Since 1924 the District has relied on its well field located on Puente Avenue in the City of Baldwin Park as its primary source of water. The wells located at this site pump water out of the Main San Gabriel Groundwater Basin.  The Main San Gabriel Basin is an adjudicated basin, meaning that there is a court decision which established rights to the water and the responsibility for efficient management of the quantity and quality of the Basin's ground water.  This court decision, known as the judgement, also created a governing body known as the Main San Gabriel Basin Watermaster to manage the water resources in the Basin.  Watermaster’s primary responsibilities include the following:

• Manage and control the withdrawal and replenishment of water supplies in the Basin.
• Determine annually, the Operating Safe Yield (the amount of groundwater that can safely be extracted) for the succeeding fiscal year, and notify the pumpers of their shares thereof.
• Acquire and spread replacement water as needed.
• Coordinate local involvement in efforts to preserve and restore the quality of groundwater in the Basin.
• Assist and encourage regulatory agencies to enforce water quality regulations affecting the Basin.
• Collect production, water quality, and other relevant data from p roducers.
• Prepare an annual report of Watermaster activities, including financial activities and summary reports of pumping and diversion.

The La Puente Valley County Water District has three active wells that produce water from the basin to meet the needs of the District’s customers.  The District’s water system serves a population of approximately 7,500.  The annual water demand of the system is approximately 2,000 acre feet, which equates to 650 million gallons.  Our annual per capita consumption is 86,000 gallons, which equates to about 240 gallons a day per capita.

In recent years, not only has the San Gabriel Valley received less than average rainfall, imported water deliveries used to replenish groundwater have not been available.  Currently the water levels in the basin are at an all time low and looking into the future, without imported deliveries available for replenishment, alternative sources must be considered and conservation efforts need to be greatly increased.