Abstract Groundwater is a critical drinking water source globally. However, drinking water wells, particularly domestic wells, tend to be shallower than those used for agricultural purposes, which makes them vulnerable to drying if groundwater levels decline. This creates tensions in the administration of laws that aim to protect access to groundwater for vulnerable communities. Some laws consider impacts on such communities through references to disadvantaged communities or environmental justice, which facilitate special consideration of the potentially unfair treatment of certain populations. This research examines the adequacy of groundwater-related laws for responding to environmental justice concerns in the Kings Subbasin of the Central Valley, a low-income, groundwater-dependent, and environmental risk-burdened region in California, USA. It examines both laws on paper and their implementation in practice. A fragmented system of laws emerges, with weaknesses in addressing risks of groundwater depletion, relative to quality concerns; diverging definitions of the vulnerable communities that deserve special attention; and further differences in how a single law is implemented in practice by different agencies. Local regulatory agencies charged with addressing depletion do not protect, nor try to protect, drinking water wells from running dry, which poses justice risks for communities facing threats to their drinking water. Avenues for strengthening support for considering environmental justice in groundwater laws include clearer references to environmental justice in laws that focus on sustainable aquifer levels, and clarifying the populations of concern at the heart of these provisions, supported by a reasoned approach to determining the relevant characteristics of vulnerability.
Nelson et al. (Wed,) studied this question.