Catch up on the latest GSA board meeting recaps anytime—at home, on the road, or on your tractor.
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The board discussed whether to continue copper-based mussel treatment through October; members leaned toward continuing, and staff described positive early results and plans to bring operations in-house next year. The FY 2025 audit was approved with an unqualified opinion and ~$14.5M working capital. Staff also reviewed El Niño outlook information and ongoing recharge maintenance.
Staff said they were told a subsidence management plan is needed by December or the state could impose a pumping moratorium along the subsidence corridor. Porterville and Saucelito discussed recharge/banking policy updates. M&I deliveries were the lowest in ~15 years; the annual estimate dropped from 1,500 to 1,350, with ~7,500–7,700 AF remaining to reach the Nov. 1 shutdown.
Staff reported progress in subsidence talks with DWR, including DWR's reaction to modeling that could show subsidence after 2040. The board approved a semi-annual cost-sharing invoice totaling about $688,000, split three ways (~$230,000 each). Staff said the State Water Board is expected to release a Phase Two scientific basis report Aug. 18 on Sacramento-Delta flows affecting surface water and recharge.
Staff outlined a timeline for the Periodic Evaluation and updated GSP chapters, with public review targeted for fall 2026 and a DWR submission deadline of January 28, 2027. EKI described ISW data gaps and a plan to improve data and modeling; ISW SMC refinement was discussed as a target for the next five-year update (noted as 2032), not a final decision. Prop 4 grants are being explored; scope and budget will return at a future meeting.
The board kept the San Francisquito Creek Project E5 KPI intact and approved a letter proposing a joint working group with the JPA rather than changing the performance target. A $1.34 million payment was approved to advance planning for the B.F. Sisk Dam raise, a key water storage project with a final investment decision expected in 2028. The board also adopted a greenhouse gas reduction plan targeting carbon neutrality by 2045.
