Valley to Valley

Amrik Basra is a farmer in Madera, California, teetering on bankruptcy because of a new water regulation that is remaking the Central Valley.Passed in 2014, the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) requires local governments to bring their groundwater tables into equilibrium, meaning no more can be extracted than is replenished.Groundwater is pumped up from underground aquifers through wells.Its rapid depletion over the past 30 years in the Central Valley is attributed to two colliding forces: severe drought and the expansion of crops like pistachios, grapes and almonds.When SGMA passed, at the height of the California mega-drought, entire woodlands of ancient oak trees were dying, unable to find water with their roots.Rivers had dried up.The land was sinking.Thousands of households could no longer turn on their taps.SGMA is designed to mitigate these impacts, but it comes at a significant cost.Land values are tanking and real estate brokers include new SGMA disclosures on their listings.