"We rely on groundwater basins during drought. Surface water just isn't available, it dries up. That pattern of California relying on groundwater is not going away," said Amanda Montgomery, permitting program manager for the division of water rights of the State Water Resources Control Board.
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The Board allows those without permanent water rights to divert some of the overflow into underground storage, but entities must have a permit.
It just issued its first-ever 5-year permit to divert more than 2,400 acre feet of water from the Cosumnes River in Sacramento County to be stored.
A shorter permit, of 180 days, was recently issued closer to home for the overflow of Mariposa Creek.
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"We issued that permit on January 6th and that's for 10,000 acre feet and that's going to Merced irrigation district and department of water resources, they applied together," said Montgomery.
Applying for a permanent water right can take a long time, that's why the shorter-term permits are being issued so much now -- while a lot of water is still flowing.
"It's good to know there's that project there to take advantage of the water. The water's coming out of the creek anyway to help with public safety, but also to refill the aquifers for later use," said Montgomery.