GROUNDWATER RECHARGE TO BENEFIT PEOPLE AND WILDLIFE
With the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) requiring basins to balance water budgets and manage groundwater sustainably, there is an opportunity to demonstrate groundwater recharge with benefits to birds and people.
A multiple-benefit approach brings together water managers, farmers, agencies and conservation groups to stabilize groundwater in a manner that provides greater water reliability for farms and communities while protecting ecosystems, including migratory bird habitat.
WHAT ARE WE DOING?
The Migratory Bird Conservation Partnership is developing resources to help landowners incorporate multiple benefits into groundwater recharge projects. This includes working with farmers, water management agencies, and other partners to identify how recharge on annual crop fields can also provide bird habitat. Our goal is to develop the resources that will help landowners implement multiple-benefit recharge projects where it matters most.
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
Talk to your community, other farmers and local agency staff about a multiple-benefit approach to replenishing groundwater. Collaborate with us to evaluate the benefits and tradeoffs of managing annual cropland for birds and groundwater recharge. If you are interested in collaborating, please reach out by calling or emailing Samantha Arthur, sarthur@audubon.org, (916) 737- 5707.