Researchers Show off Groundwater Recharge near Modesto

A farmer on Tuesday spread canal water across an almond orchard southwest of Modesto. He wasn’t irrigating the trees – the rain took care of that. He was recharging groundwater.

 

The almond industry and its partners are researching whether excess water in wet years such as this one could boost aquifers that might be stressed during drought. In Tuesday’s demonstration for the media, the water came from city storm drains via a Modesto Irrigation District canal that usually is idle in winter.