How WELL do you know the Petaluma Valley GSA basin?

Location: north of San Pablo Bay and bounded by Sonoma Mountain on the east and low-lying hills on the west

Principal sources of groundwater recharge: streambed recharge along Petaluma River and tributaries, direct infiltration from precipitation and flows along the mountain-front/valley border

46,000 acres: how much land the Petaluma Valley GSA basin covers, including the City of Petaluma, the communities of Penngrove and Lakeville and unincorporated rural areas

• 20% Urban community areas
• 23% Agricultural use areas
• 57% Native vegetation and surface water

Acreage of crop types in the basin (not limited to groundwater-irrigated)

• Citrus & subtropical: 33.1 acres
• Deciduous fruits & nuts: 22.1 acres
• Grain: 4,596.9 acres
• Pasture: 616.1 acres
• Truck nursery & berry: 97.5 acres
• Vineyard: 2489.6 acres
• Idle or unknown: 619 acres
• Turf irrigation: 49.3 acres

645 acre-feet: Estimated groundwater crop irrigation offset per year by alternative water sources (recycled water, surface water)

2,300: approximately how many acres of crops and vines depend on groundwater for irrigation in the basin

19,621: number of parcels in the subbasin

1,391: approximate number of groundwater dependent parcels (note, these numbers do not include those connected to a public water system, and some parcels have more than one use)

• 1137: Residential
• 114: Commercial
• 155: Agricultural
• 35: Turf

6,000: number of people in the Petaluma Valley GSA basin that rely solely on groundwater for drinking and other water needs

36: number of groundwater-level monitoring wells located in the subbasin and contributing watershed

Status of Conditions

Status of Conditions defined by the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act that the GSA is actively addressing via the implementation of projects and programs in the Groundwater Sustainability Plan:

Land Subsidence: no evidence for concerns

Groundwater quality: no evidence for concerns

Interconnected surface water: more data needed

Seawater intrusion: more data needed

Reduction of storage: generally stable

Lowering of groundwater levels: generally stable, limited areas of declines

Want to learn more?

Visit our website to access the Groundwater Sustainability Plan and find detailed information on the status of our basin and the GSA’s work to manage groundwater resources in our Annual Report.

Join in the community-wide effort to support sustainable groundwater with one of our community programs:

LEVEL UP! – Voluntary Well Monitoring, Flow Smart – Voluntary Flow – Metering, and Well Aware – tools for building local groundwater sustainability.

PetalumaValleyGroundwater.org