Ruling on Atascadero basin will have little impact, water agencies say
Two of the biggest groundwater pumpers from the Atascadero sub-basin believe a recent court ruling will have minimal impact on their operations and available water supplies.
Last week, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Peter Kirwan tentatively ruled that the Atascadero sub-basin is part of the larger Paso Robles groundwater basin. The verbal ruling came after a four-day trial. The judge did not recommend that the Paso Robles basin boundaries be modified.
“The ruling has no bearing on the management of the Atascadero or Paso Robles areas and no impact on the district’s available water supply,” said Jeff Briltz, general manager of the Templeton Community Services District. “The undisputed evidence during the trial indicated that there is little to no possibility that groundwater pumping in the Atascadero area could affect groundwater in the broader Paso Robles area or vice versa.”
John Neil, general manager of the Atascadero Mutual Water Co., agreed. Both of the water purveyors are considering filing a petition with the state Department of Water Resources to officially modify the boundaries of the Paso Robles basin to exclude the Atascadero sub-basin.
Studies have shown that the Rinconada fault and other geologic features separate the two basins.
The two agencies get their water from a variety of sources including groundwater, percolated treated wastewater, percolated Nacimiento pipeline water and Salinas River underflow.
“From a management perspective, we believe the Atascadero basin should be managed separately,” Neil said. “We are really early in this process, and I think the judge was just trying to keep his options open in this very complicated case.”
The ruling will not affect the election currently underway to decide whether to form a water management district for the Paso Robles basin.
“The Atascadero sub-basin is not part of the proposed water district,” Neil said.
The judge’s ruling is part of a quiet title lawsuit filed by Steinbeck Vineyards and other property owners to protect their water rights after the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors enacted an emergency ordinance in 2013 that limited pumping from the Paso Robles basin. The lawsuit was initiated in San Luis Obispo County but was later moved to Santa Clara County because Judge Kirwan is experienced in handling water litigation.
A quiet title lawsuit is typically used to determine the ownership of a specific piece of property. However, in this case, it was used strengthen the plaintiffs’ water rights.
“Throughout the lawsuit, the Steinbeck landowners have told the court that it is a limited quiet title case and does not involve more complex management issues,” Briltz said.
The next hearing in the lawsuit is a case-management conference scheduled for March 11. The judge will outline the next steps in the lawsuit.
The Atascadero Mutual Water Co. serves more than 30,000 residents of Atascadero, with more than 10,000 service connections. The Templeton Community Services District is responsible for approximately 40 miles of water lines, nine useable wells and one standby, and four storage tanks with a combined capacity of 2.7 million gallons, all of which serve 2,037 water connections and about 5,400 people.
David Sneed: 805-781-7930, @davidsneedSLO
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The Templeton CSD will hold a public meeting at 7 p.m. March 1 in the CSD’s board room at 206 5th St., Templeton, to explain and receive public comment on the water purveyors’ proposal to modify the state Paso Robles groundwater basin boundary to exclude the Atascadero sub-basin. Maps of the basin used by the county and the proposed water district exclude the Atascadero sub-basin, but state water maps do not.
This story was originally published February 16, 2016 at 4:02 PM with the headline "Ruling on Atascadero basin will have little impact, water agencies say."