The East Kaweah GSA, in partnership with GSAs in the Kaweah Subbasin, has provided access to the Water Dashboard, an online tool to help growers track water use and gain key water use insights at the field level. This is especially helpful to growers while monitoring water use within the allocation. The Water Dashboard reflects water use data collected by Land IQ. Land IQ uses a data-driven model developed for detailed, field-scale water use reporting. Land IQ calculates water use through evapotranspiration (ET), the amount of water consumed by the plant through evaporation and transpiration.

Land IQ determines field-level ET through ground measurements from approximately 90 Land IQ and other monitoring field stations to generate hourly ET data, which are then used as dependent variables in the modeling process. ET is reported based on consumptive use — what the plant actually absorbs — and not applied water, which is measured by gauges or meters. Nearly 40 GSAs or irrigation districts are utilizing Land IQ data.

Growers’ water use in the East Kaweah GSA is monitored using Land IQ data, so it is beneficial for growers and landowners to use the Water Dashboard to maximize their involvement in achieving groundwater sustainability.