Groundwater Recharge Areas - San Joaquin Valley, California

The San Joaquin Valley is a water limited region. Surface water availability can vary widely on an annual basis making ground water an essential component of the region’s water supply. Implicit in this is the need to protect areas that contribute to recharging groundwater supplies. This dataset was derived by the California Water Institute from the NRCS SSURGO and STATSGO datasets based primarily on drainage class. Additional criteria based on slope and Storie Index were also used for some soil categories. This dataset is has only a single category indicating that the area is a likely recharge zone.