INDIAN WELLS VALLEY COOPERATIVE GROUNDWATER
MANAGEMENT WORKING GROUP
DISCUSSION NOTES
June 16, 2011 – 1:00 p.m.
Chairman Don Zdeba called the meeting to order at 1:02 p.m.
Don Zdeba asked the BLM’s representative to introduce himself. Robert Pawelek introduced himself
and informed the Group that Glenn Harris would not be present.
Approval of Discussion Notes: Motion was made by LeRoy Marquardt and seconded by Pat Quist to
accept the May 19, 2011 Discussion Notes as presented. The motion was carried, unanimously.
Public Comment for Items on the Agenda: None
Grant for Watershed Coordinator Position: LeRoy Marquardt reported that the Watershed
Coordinator position has been approved, but it is unknown when the budget will be approved in order to
fill the position. Mr. Marquardt asked for assistance on how or where to post the position and if the
Group had any suggestions or recommendations. The Group recommended the position be posted in the
local area initially and if a suitable placement is not found then further out, if needed.
Revised Groundwater Management Plan (GWMP): LeRoy Marquardt approached the Airport
District and Inyokern Community Services District to request their signature on the GWMP. Mr.
Marquardt reported that Scott Seymour from the Airport District signed the document, but the ICSD
requested a report be presented to them before they signed. Mr. Marquardt stated that he would be
making the presentation. The original signature sheet was then signed by members of the Group who
were able to sign for their organization and was then taken by Don Zdeba to present to his organization
for signature.
Discussion on Complying with the Monitoring Requirements as it Pertains to California Statewide
Groundwater Elevation Monitoring (CASGEM): Mike Stoner was not present at the meeting to
make a presentation. Adam Bingham reported that the DWR is pushing the timeframe up to September
21, 2011 for submission of the data. The preliminary information has been submitted and the only thing
left for the Group to submit will be the map that was recently modified and the data that will accompany
it.
State Water Policies: Tom Mulvihill reported that Tim Parker gave his report to the TAC. This item
will be moved to the “Reports” section on future agendas and be listed under Item B as a subsection.
Kern County Specific Plan Update: Lori Acton reported that the next Visioning meeting will be held
on Wednesday, June 22, 2011 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Inyokern Senior Center. Ms. Acton
stated that she will be submitting an ad to the Daily Independent and encouraged the Group to attend, as
well as the public that was in attendance.
Articles on Water for Publication in Local Media: Don Zdeba asked if the last article had made it to
the three publications yet. Adam Bingham said the next article in the series had been approved by the
TAC and is ready for publication. Mr. Bingham is going to send it to Patty to forward for publication.
1
Lori Acton said she would check with her contact at the Daily Independent to see if they are going to
print the last article and to inform them that the next article will be sent over soon.
Inyo-Mono Regional Water Management Group: Leroy Corlett reported that CalTrout sent out a 10
page response to the DWR concerning the zero dollars received from the Implementation Grant
disputing the outcome. A reply should be received by month end. The DWR is now pushing for bigger
integration emphasis in Integrated Regional Water Management Plan (IRWMP) efforts.
Mr. Corlett reported that the IRWMG has funding for 20 needs assessments of disadvantaged
communities and was wondering if Trona would qualify as a disadvantaged community. Don Zdeba
asked what the criteria were and Mr. Corlett stated that he thought it was based on the poverty level and
average income of the town residents. Mr. Corlett asked for the name of the agency and Mr. Zdeba
stated it was the Searles Domestic Water Company.
Leroy Corlett reported that the effective date of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) has been set
for 1 September 2011.
Discussion of Flood Control for Indian Wells Valley: Don Zdeba asked Dennis Speer for the
background regarding this subject. Mr. Speer reported that to be effective in flood control you need a
district that contains all the Indian Wells Valley. Mr. Speer was directed to the County several years ago
and at the time his original contact was days away from retirement. Leroy Corlett asked if Dennis Speer
could do a follow-up. Mr. Speer stated that since he has been the City’s representative of their TAC, he
thinks that with the contacts that he has made he will be able to gather the information and report back to
the Group.
Reports:
A. Project Review – Tom Mulvihill had nothing to report.
B. Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) – Adam Bingham reported that there have been land
purchases between Brown Road and Highway 395. The new owner of the 400+ acres of land
has already begun “grubbing” it; approximately 120 acres have been cleared. LeRoy
Marquardt has the data on the well that is on the property and states that it has a specific
capacity in excess of 400, which was unheard of. Mr. Bingham reported that Tom
Haslebacher is going to put together a list of the wells that are near there to track the activity.
Tim Parker phoned in with no new changes made since last month. Mr. Parker stated that the
Groundwater Caucus that he is a part of is looking at different ways to inventory
groundwater data and calculate storage in basins.
Review Action Register: The Action Register was reviewed and changes made. An updated version of
the Action Register will be sent to the Group with the July meeting agenda.
Items for the July Agenda: 1) Grant for Watershed Coordinator Position; 2) Revised Groundwater
Management Plan; 3) CASGEM; 4) Kern County Specific Plan Update; 5) Articles on Water for
Publication in Local Media; 6) Inyo-Mono Regional Water Management Group; 7) Discussion of
Flood Control for Indian Wells Valley; 8) Project Review Report and 9) TAC Report.
2
The following Agency Reports were made:
City of Ridgecrest: Dennis Speer reported that there were 3 new sewer connections last month, 8.7
million gallons of water has been reclaimed, the City has 15 building permits year to date and the
amount of water reclaimed is down 7-10% from January to May.
Indian Wells Valley Water District: Tom Mulvihill reported that the Board Meeting was on Monday
night and the Board surplused the Northwest well field property, a.k.a. Neal Ranch, withholding the 5
well sites and future pipeline easement and retaining control of water rights. Also excluded from that
surplus were two parcels of approximately 30 acres for a future Brackish Water Treatment Plant. The
District will contact the last organizations that have expressed interest to see if they are now interested
and if not, then the District will do a Request for Proposal to realtors to let them make proposals as to
what kind of marketing plan they will have.
The District had 3 new residential services. Water production for the month of May was 709.7 acre feet
compared to 729.7 acre feet of 2010, which is a decline of 2.75%.
Mr. Mulvihill reminded the Group that the District will have a Special Board Meeting/Public Hearing
for the 2010 Urban Water Management Plan. CDs of the Plan are available at the front desk or there is a
hard copy here to view or at the County Library. The meeting will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Monday and
on Thursday the District will be holding its Mid-year Board Workshop at 9:05 am.
Mr. Mulvihill reported that the mainline replacement project has been completed on Burns Street,
between Mahan and Dolphin. Pressure testing and sampling have been completed and the County will
then do the permanent paving.
The District is continuing to test its Arsenic Treatment Facilities which were completed in March. The
District is having software programming problems.
The installation of the District’s 11,981 automated meter reading devices is complete.
Mr. Mulvihill invited everybody to the Xeriscape Workshop on Saturday morning at the USO Historic
Building from 10:00am until noon.
Quist Farms: Pat Quist announced that the solar project is coming along. The buildings are up, one is
on-line and one that is being installed now will be on-line soon. She spoke about her dogs that she’s
trained to spot water leaks.
Ms. Quist reported that she works with UC Davis and Cal Poly Pomona students on research projects in
the orchard. The students learn about botany, agriculture, wild life, weeds and conservation practices
while they are working.
Kern County: Lori Acton asked if there was a resolution for brush removal but had nothing to report.
Eastern Kern County Resource Conservation District: Nothing more to report.
BLM: Robert Pawelek properly introduced himself as the Resources Branch Chief for the BLM field
office.
3
Searles Valley Minerals: Don Zdeba reported that there was a leak on base this morning which was
50-100 gallons a minute that they are working on repairing. The Arsenic Treatment Facility is still
behind schedule due to vendor delivery issues, the hope is to have it online mid to late August.
General Public Comment: Public making comment was Judie Decker. Ms. Decker stated that during
the Agency Report section, Tom Mulvihill did not mention that at the IWVWD’s Board Meeting on
Monday night, their 2011-2012 Budget was approved. At that time, Mr. Mulvihill stated that the
District has General Fund budgeted loss of $1.38 million for the next fiscal year beginning July 1, due to
declining water sales. Ms. Decker asked if Mr. Mulvihill has heard anything more about when the
District will publish the initial study of the Water Supply Improvement Project. Mr. Mulvihill stated
that there would be a publication in the Daily Independent that the distribution to public agencies will be
July 1st, the public agency scoping period will be July 6th to August 4th and as announced at the Board
Meeting, the Public Scoping meeting will be the evening of July 13 th and will begin at 5:00 p.m. as Ms.
Decker has requested.
LeRoy Marquardt announced to the Group that he had a visit from a heavy moving company employee
letting him know that he was moving an object that is 400 feet long and 14 feet high. The item is being
moved from San Clemente, CA to Clive, Utah.
Marie Brashear introduced herself to the Group as a member of the RC&D Council and Chair of a Wild
Life Group. Ms. Brashear stated that she heard on the radio that the State of California had passed a law
that required homeowners to clear 100 feet around dwellings in response to Lori Acton’s question.
With no further comments or discussion to come before the Group, motion was made by LeRoy
Marquardt and seconded by Lori Acton to adjourn the meeting at 2:40 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Patty Montenegro
Recording Secretary
The next meeting is scheduled for July 21, 2011.
4
IWV COOPERATIVE GROUNDWATER
MANAGEMENT GROUP
JUNE 16, 2011
ATTENDEE ADDRESS/REPRESENTING PHONE NUMBER E-MAIL
~~ \ ~4 b~4'1Lf~1
)~ Ic.~I2...LI) /.Pv ~ 7 7 c:::./:;- 2, 2--
~ 7 b0~ J ¥ ;;{ - 3t.S~ ~
:/1
. ~t:)'r--
/5Vj\./\ 7tJJ- 372-254-2 S:rtrf z0cbE' U 5V·'h tn ~-tl k( 07,
~r(2C/ ~ 5
(C l.-J
W,' ~~ it: f'L/) ~ ,MeL, ) c/.C0--l
r U,(M1l\
"'ie