Valle Del Sol Properties LLC bought 1,784 acres of Armstrong Ranch in 2017 and converted the property to row crops, despite seawater intrusion.

Valle Del Sol Properties LLC bought 1,784 acres of Armstrong Ranch in 2017 and converted the property to row crops, despite seawater intrusion.

What if the water coming out of your tap, or the water irrigating the produce you eat, was mined from an ancient water source from when woolly mammoths used to walk the Earth? Is that sustainable?

The latter is a question facing the Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency’s board on Thursday, Aug. 11, when they will be presented with the most comprehensive study of that ancient water source in at least 20 years, and maybe ever. It’s a draft, not yet finalized, but it’s fair to say it doesn’t look good.

The stakes are high: Residents in Salinas, Marina, Castroville and parts of Seaside, as well as various agricultural interests, depend on it.

It’s called the deep aquifer, and is around 900 feet below the surface, a subterranean reservoir of water believed to be at least 20,000 years old, pre-dating the first humans that arrived in North America. But because of over-pumping by the local agricultural industry, which has led to decades-long seawater intrusion in the overlying 180 – and 400-foot aquifers – both named for their depth – the coastal areas of the northern Salinas Valley have increasingly relied on it.

And since the Weekly first reported extensively on the topic in 2016, the pumping has only ramped up: The latest statistics reported by the Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA) show pumping of the deep aquifer has more than doubled since 2015, largely due to agricultural pumping, which more than quadrupled from 2,010 acre-feet in 2015 to 8,820 acre-feet in 2021. The total production from the aquifer in 2021, per the MCWRA’s records, was 13,079 acre-feet.

Martin Feeney, a hydrologist who worked on an investigative study of the deep aquifer in 2002, is arguably the leading expert on the subject, and is also on the team working on the recent study commissioned by the SVBGSA.

Feeney says the only recharge to the deep aquifer is leakage from the overlying 400-foot aquifer, and that any assertion otherwise “is not true.”

The overview of the draft report uses similarly plain language: “Continued pumping at this unsustainable rate will make it harder to reach sustainability.”

Yet for areas impacted by seawater intrusion – a phenomenon created by over-pumping overlying aquifers, creating a pressure differential that draws in saltwater from the sea or above – the deep aquifer has become an increasingly important water source, in particular for agriculture.

The county does not publish data from private wells, which are considered proprietary. But one notable event that might help explain the spike happened in November 2017. That’s when Valle Del Sol Properties LLC bought 1,784 acres of Armstrong Ranch, historically pasture land north of Marina, for $81.5 million. The deep aquifer was the only water supply to irrigate that land.

And while water supply has been oft-litigated locally when it comes to urban uses like housing, agricultural wells have largely flown scot-free through the approval process, despite their outsized impact on water supplies.

The article you’re about to read is from our reporters doing their important work — investigating, researching, and writing their stories.

We want to provide informative and inspirational stories that connect you to the people, issues and opportunities within our community.

Journalism takes a lot of resources. Today, our business model has been interrupted by the pandemic; the vast majority of our advertisers’ businesses have been impacted. That’s why the Weekly is now turning to you for financial support. Learn more about our new Insider’s program here.

That has changed, per a 2021 executive order issued by Gov. Gavin Newsom that mandates no agency can approve a new well unless it “would not decrease the likelihood of achieving a sustainability goal for the basin covered by such a plan.” But there are already many straws in the milkshake, so it’s not clear to what extent it will eventually help local residents who depend on that water to live. Because, as Feeney says of the straws already in, “there’s no mechanism at this point to stop them.”

But aside from the new pumping data associated with the deep aquifer, Feeney says the recent study mirrors his past work. What’s changed is that seawater intrusion has continued to march inland as growers continue to pump their wells without any kind of restrictions, and when they need to, drill deeper.

Eric Tynan is general manager of the Castroville Community Services District, which has a well in the deep aquifer. He says one of the district’s three 400-foot aquifer wells – its best – failed. There is discussion about trying to desalinate the water from it, but it’s all just talk, for now.

Among the two remaining 400-foot wells the district owns, one is in close proximity to its deep-aquifer well, and he says they have to blend the two together in order to bring down the temperature to send to produce packing houses.

That’s because the water from the deep-aquifer well is 99 degrees Fahrenheit.

Feeney’s view of our water future is not rosy as it pertains to groundwater, but he believes urban communities, at least, will (theoretically) be able to harness desalinated water, something that is less likely to price out for growers.

“This is happening in Texas right now,” Feeney says. “The whole community is changing because they can’t grow things anymore.”

So how much longer can we keep pumping the deep aquifer?

“That is the million-dollar question,” Feeney says.

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

Your comment has been submitted.

There was a problem reporting this.

Essentially the farmers drafting from the 900 ft aquifer are taking water not only from below their land, but from neighbors who don't draw from it, depleting the neighbor's opportunity. There should be rules established as to how much one can draw, and certainly rules to prevent salt-water intrusion on this warm water aquifer. Perhaps it should be recharged with winter run-off (if we ever get that again).

Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.

Issue August 11, 2022 - Assemblymember Robert Rivas could become the second-most powerful politician in California.

Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos.

We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

The mission of Monterey County Weekly is to inspire independent thinking and conscious action, etc.

Serving Big Sur, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Carmel Valley, Castroville, Del Rey Oaks, Marina, Monterey, Moss Landing, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Prunedale, Salinas, Salinas Valley, Sand City, Seaside and the entire Monterey County. © Copyright , Monterey County Weekly, Seaside, CA - Milestone Communications Inc. All rights reserved. Formerly the Coast Weekly newspaper.