Abstract |
The strategy described in this document: details the state's groundwater protection goal as established by the Legislature; explains the statewide groundwater classification system and how the state goes about identifying contamination; describes the roles and responsibilities of the various state agencies involved in groundwater protection and discusses the TGPC as a coordinating mechanism; provides examples of how the various state agencies carry out groundwater protection programs through regulatory and nonregulatory models; explains how the local, state, and federal agencies coordinate management of groundwater data for the enhancement of groundwater protection; discusses the role that research plays in understanding groundwater's importance and the importance of coordinating research efforts; provides an overview of the groundwater public education efforts in the state; discusses public participation in establishing and implementing groundwater policy; lays out a planning process for updating the groundwater strategy; proposes for inclusion in the next Strategy an identification and ranking of significant threats to the state's groundwater resource, consideration of the vulnerability of groundwater resources, and a prioritization of actions to address those threats; and provides recommendations and possible actions to protect groundwater. |