Underrepresented Communities, California Tribes, and Small Farmers Groundwater Technical Assistance Program
An extensometer in Zamora, California, will be rehabilitated for the Sustainable Groundwater Management Program of the California Department of Water Resources. Zamora is a city in Yolo County.
The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) Underrepresented Communities, California Tribes, and Small Farmers Groundwater Technical Assistance (URCTA) Program strives to determine the needs, risks, and vulnerabilities of communities impacted by the implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). The program identifies eligible communities throughout California with water supply challenges such as dry groundwater wells, water shortages, or poor water quality.
These services may be provided to the following entities within SGMA-regulated medium and high priority basins, including critically overdrafted (COD) basins, as specified by the Program:
- Underrepresented Communities, California Native American Tribes (Federally and Non-Federally Recognized), URCTA Small Farmers
The URCTA program is made possible by $18 million in funding through Proposition 68 and the Budget Act of 2021 and 2022.
This program can provide onsite engineering, geologic, hydrologic, and other technical services to eligible Underrepresented Communities, California Native American (Federally and non-Federally recognized) Tribes, and URCTA Small Farmers. The types of services provided include, but are not limited to:
- Analysis of groundwater conditions, interference, impact (for depletion, land subsidence, groundwater dependent ecosystem depletion, etc.), and water quality
- Analysis of long-term water supply demand, and assistance with facilitating water transfers, groundwater sustainability matters, water well and pump repairs
- Design of water systems (supply, production, distribution, treatment, and storage, including fire flow requirements)
- Preparation and submittals of relevant applications, project plans and specifications, equipment and system trainings
- URCTA Fact Sheet (English) (Spanish-pending)
- URCTA Services (English) (Spanish)
- URCTA Steps (English) (Spanish)
DWR has developed, for the purpose of the URCTA Program, eligibility criteria for URCTA Small Farmers that are eligible for technical assistance. This eligibility criteria was developed by DWR’s technical assistance providers and was drafted with consideration to the United State Department of Agriculture, the California Department of Food and Agriculture, and the California Farmer Equity Act of 2017 (Assembly Bill 1348).
Small Farmer Eligibility Criteria Flyer (English) (Spanish – pending)
Small Farmers Outreach Materials
Tribal Outreach and Engagement
The URCTA Program and its contractor, and in collaboration with DWR’s Office of Tribal Affairs, is working to provide California Tribes with information on available technical assistance, outreach materials for both agricultural and groundwater-related needs, Water Needs and Tribal Small Farmer Surveys, and the opportunity to request a formal consultation.
Agriculture-related Tribal outreach began in early 2024 with additional collaborative organizations identified for outreach to Tribes, including a focus on Tribal small farmers with connection to agricultural and native food growing practices.
Tribal Water Stories
The URCTA program, in collaboration with DWR’s Office of Tribal Affairs and partnering Tribes, developed culturally relevant educational materials to support continued Tribal outreach and to help educate California youth on the importance of water with connection to California Native American Tribes. Materials include the generation of Tribal graphic novels (Tribal Water Stories) with Native American stories shared by Tribes for this educational purpose, coloring books, animations, native language narration recordings, and video interviews. These materials provide the connection to indigenous origin stories and the beneficial uses of water.
URCTA Tribal Water Stories Process Flyer
Tribal Graphic Novels
Animated Videos
Behind the Scenes - Coming Soon
Recognizing the importance of water literacy and water conservation in California, the educational materials listed below were developed with an emphasis on groundwater, understanding water in relation to our changing environment, as well as an early introduction to groundwater-related topics in the education system.
These downloadable materials, provided in English and Spanish, are designed to be more localized and engaging for students in grades kindergarten through 12th grade (K-12), separated into the 10 hydrologic regions in California.
In 2025, in partnership with Project WET, the Program anticipates providing a pilot class to K-12 educators to utilize the lesson plans below to teach their students about groundwater. For more information, please visit the Project WET website at: Home | Project Wet
Educational Materials for K-12 Grades
- Central Coast Lesson Plan (English) (Spanish)
- Colorado River Lesson Plan (English) (Spanish)
- North Coast Lesson Plan (English) (Spanish)
- North Lahontan Lesson Plan (English) (Spanish)
- Sacramento River Lesson Plan (English) (Spanish)
- San Francisco Bay Lesson Plan (English) (Spanish)
- San Joaquin Lesson Plan (English) (Spanish)
- South Coast Lesson Plan (English) (Spanish)
- South Lahontan Lesson Plan (English) (Spanish)
- Tulare Lake Lesson Plan (English) (Spanish)
- Technical Memorandum Summary
- Communication and Engagement Plan (CEP) (English) (Spanish)
- Outreach Videos
- URC Fact Sheet – Coming Soon
- URC Maps
Northern California Region
Northern California Region Insets
Central California Region
Central Coast Region
Southeastern Region
Southeastern Region Inset
Tribal Regions
Tribal Land in North Coast by Hydrologic Regions
Contact Us
Questions and more information:
Email: URCTA@water.ca.gov
DWR partners with and funds a number of agencies and non-profits as part of this technical assistance program including the Water Foundation, the Community Water Center, Self-Help Enterprises, The Nature Conservancy, Audubon, the Community Alliance with Family Farmers, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCANR), UC Davis Law School, DUDEK, more.