Biola Completes Groundwater Recharge Basin as First Water Flows from Fresno Irrigation District

The Biola Community Services District received its first delivery of surface water into a new 6-acre groundwater recharge basin on July 22, completing a project aimed at restoring water security to a small community in northwest Fresno County that depends entirely on groundwater.

The basin connects to Fresno Irrigation District’s Herndon Canal through a new turnout, giving Biola the ability to capture surface water when it’s available and send it back into the local aquifer instead of pumping groundwater out. The project holds about 30 acre-feet of storage.

Biola CSD may be the first disadvantaged community in a critically overdrafted groundwater basin — as the state defines it — to reach this milestone under California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, according to the district.

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“For a small community like Biola, having the ability to recharge groundwater with surface water is a tremendous investment in our water resilient future,” said Carmen Zamora, Biola CSD’s general manager.

The project was funded by the California Department of Water Resources and Fresno County, with support from Biola CSD, Fresno Irrigation District, the North Kings Groundwater Sustainability Agency, and other local and regional partners.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday, July 29, at the basin site on North 4th Street and West H Street in Kerman.

The Breakdown

• The basin holds approximately 30 acre-feet of water to help offset groundwater pumping.
• The infrastructure was completed in 2024 and includes a new turnout connecting the Herndon Canal to the basin, allowing Biola to capture surface water when Fresno Irrigation District has it available.
• Biola is classified as a disadvantaged community in a critically overdrafted groundwater basin.
• The project operates under California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act.

What This Means for You

Groundwater is what keeps Biola’s wells running. This project was funded through state and county budgets, and it gives the small community infrastructure to capture surface water and replenish the local aquifer instead of pumping groundwater out.

What You Can Do

The public is invited to a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 9 a.m. Wednesday, July 29, at the basin site on North 4th Street and West H Street in Kerman.

What to Watch

This project cost state and county taxpayers money — the material doesn’t state how much — and it delivers 30 acre-feet of recharge capacity to a single small community.