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Eastern San Joaquin Groundwater Basin Groundwater Management Plan Northeastern San Joaquin County Section 4 Groundwater Banking Authority 87 Groundwater Management Options Voluntary Crop Rotation A voluntary crop rotation program is intended to be exclusively at the discretion of the local grower. Removing acreage from production does in fact save water; however, the economic consequences are not acceptable to the member agencies of the Authority. As an incentive based program, growers opting for crop rotation could be compensated based on conserved water thus reducing the economic impacts. Substantial analysis must be undertaken to ensure that crop rotations do not adversely impact the agribusiness of Eastern San Joaquin County, downstream users depending on return flows, or the environment. 4.2 Groundwater Contamination Groundwater contamination and the continued degradation of groundwater quality is a global threat to all groundwater users. The Authority recognizes that the long-term sustainability of the underlying Basin cannot be accomplished without adequate groundwater quality protection, contamination prevention, and remediation programs. As depicted in Table 3-2, numerous local, State, and Federal agencies currently regulate activities with potential impacts to groundwater quality and enforce monitoring and remediation requirements. The Authority has discussed the issue of managing groundwater protection and contamination programs in Eastern San Joaquin County. A major concern of the Authority is that undertaking regulatory oversight will only duplicate the existing efforts of other regulatory agencies while financially burdening the community beyond its abilities. Increased coordination with regulatory agencies and a concerted effort to ensure its activities do not degrade water quality is potentially less resource intensive for the Authority and a more efficient method of protecting groundwater quality throughout the Basin. The Authority will continue to lead the pursuit against saline groundwater intrusion. The following policies reflect the Authority’s desire to address groundwater contamination and groundwater quality degradation: 1. Coordinate with local, State, and Federal agencies to ensure the underlying Basin is adequately protected against groundwater contamination and to ensure all contaminated sites are documented and mitigated by the responsible parties. 2. Continue to manage efforts to combat saline groundwater intrusion. 3. Strive to improve groundwater quality when technically and economically feasible. Authority actions degrading groundwater quality are not acceptable. 4. Require recharge projects to identify and evaluate impacts to groundwater quality and the potential for mobilization of soil and source water contaminants. 5. Consider current and future water quality standards in the planning and design of projects identified in this Plan.