Kern Water Bank Authority

What Kern Water Bank Authority does

Kern Water Bank Authority is a California joint powers authority (special district) that operates one of the largest groundwater banking facilities in the United States. The organization manages a 32-square-mile property in the Southern San Joaquin Valley capable of storing 1.5 million acre-feet of water underground — nearly three times the capacity of nearby Lake Isabella — using shallow recharge basins rather than injection wells, and recovers that water through wells, pipelines, and canals during dry years.

Recharge water is sourced primarily from the California State Water Project via the California Aqueduct, supplemented by Kern River flood flows and the federal Central Valley Project. A network of 57 dedicated monitoring wells measures groundwater levels at least semiannually and tracks water quality annually, with average TDS of approximately 220 mg/l — better than the California Aqueduct average and well within safe drinking-water limits. Electric-powered pumps eliminate direct greenhouse-gas emissions, and no measurable land subsidence has occurred on the parcel since monitoring began in 1994.

The Authority serves the residents of Bakersfield and farmers in Kern County, and also operates a Groundwater Sustainability Agency under California's SGMA framework. A 1997 Habitat Conservation Plan/Natural Community Conservation Plan co-executed with the California Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service protects roughly 30 square miles of the parcel as state- and federally-designated wildlife habitat through at least 2072, enabling a dual water-bank/conservation use case. The organization is structured as a public agency — not a private or venture-backed entity — with 5 employees, no parent company, no subsidiaries, and no publicly disclosed revenue or pricing.

Name

Kern Water Bank Authority

Legal name

Kern Water Bank Authority

Website

https://kwb.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Kern Water Bank Authority operates a 32-square-mile groundwater banking facility in California's Southern San Joaquin Valley, storing up to 1.5 million acre-feet of water underground to supply Bakersfield residents and Kern County farmers during dry years, while co-managing protected wildlife habitat.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Groundwater Banking / Water Storage Services

NAICS

Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (221310), Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213)

SIC

Water Supply (4941)

akta.pro primary industry

Water Resources Administration (Watersheds, Rivers, Groundwater) (BPAIAMAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Watershed Protection & Water Quality Services (AFAMAMAB), Regulatory Compliance Monitoring & Reporting (SDWA/CWA/NPDES, permits, audits) (EUANAJAA)

Keywords

• Groundwater banking
• Aquifer recharge
• Water storage
• Groundwater management
• Water recovery

Headquarters

HQ city

Bakersfield

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Kern Water Bank Authority operates a 32-square-mile groundwater banking facility in the Southern San Joaquin Valley that stores up to 1.5 million acre-feet of water underground during wet years and recovers it via wells, pipelines, and canals during dry years for municipal and agricultural water users. The Authority also functions as a designated Groundwater Sustainability Agency under California's Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) and operates a Conservation Bank providing habitat conservation credits on lands protected through 2072 under state and federal HCP/NCCP permits.

Product overview

The Kern Water Bank Authority operates a single unified water banking facility—a 32-square-mile groundwater storage and recovery system in the Southern San Joaquin Valley. The core offering is the Kern Water Bank itself, which stores water underground during wet years for recovery during dry years, serving residents of Bakersfield and farmers in Kern County. Supporting operations include a Groundwater Sustainability Agency (GSA) for regulatory compliance under SGMA, a network of 57 monitoring wells for groundwater quality surveillance, and a Habitat Conservation Plan/NCCP that enables dual-use of the property for both water banking and wildlife habitat protection. An enterprise system catalog is also publicly accessible for transparency compliance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Kern Water Bank (Groundwater Banking Service)

Quantifiable outcome

• Storage capacity of 1.5 million acre-feet, nearly 3x the capacity of Lake Isabella
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and notable.

• California Department of Water ResourcescoreTechnology or IntegrationPrimary water source provider through the State Water Project and California Aqueduct. KWB receives water from this source for recharge operations during wet years.
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-executor of the Kern Water Bank Habitat Conservation Plan/Natural Community Conservation Plan (HCP/NCCP) in 1997. Provides permits protecting habitat from development through at least 2072.
• California Department of Fish and GamecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-executor of the HCP/NCCP in 1997 along with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Kern Water Bank Authority. Provides permits protecting habitat from development through at least 2072.
• Kern County Water AgencycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint Operations Plan partner. Owns and operates groundwater banking and recovery projects. Coordinates with KWB and Rosedale-Rio Bravo Water Storage District on groundwater level monitoring and impact mitigation during extended recovery operations.
• Rosedale-Rio Bravo Water Storage DistrictcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint Operations Plan partner. Owns and operates groundwater banking and recovery projects. Coordinates with KWB and Kern County Water Agency on groundwater level monitoring and impact mitigation during extended recovery operations.
• Tulare Basin Wildlife PartnersnotableStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation organization whose President Robert B. Hansen has described KWB as 'a model of state-wide, national and worldwide significance' and 'an inspirational landscape that exemplifies what the Tulare Basin was once like while providing important economic benefits.'

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Kern County Water Agency: Joint Operations Plan partner and SWP contractor that operates groundwater banking and recovery projects coordinating with KWBA. Closely linked entity with shared operational mandate and overlapping board/customer relationships in Kern County.
• Buena Vista Water Storage District: San Joaquin Valley water storage district operating groundwater banking infrastructure with SWP supply. Comparable scale, similar recharge/recovery model, and overlapping regulatory environment in Kern County.
• Arvin-Edison Water Storage District: Kern County water storage district operating groundwater banking and recovery projects under SWP contract. Direct geographic peer in the same hydrologic basin with similar recharge infrastructure and agricultural customers.
• Rosedale-Rio Bravo Water Storage District: Named Joint Operations Plan partner of KWBA, operating parallel groundwater banking and recovery infrastructure in Kern County. Same regulatory framework (SGMA), same source water (SWP), same customer base (Kern County agriculture and municipalities).
• Santa Clara Valley Water District: Groundwater management authority operating one of the most advanced groundwater banking and recharge programs in California. Comparable integrated surface water/groundwater/recharge business model under SGMA.
• Semitropic Water Storage District: Adjacent groundwater banking district in the southern San Joaquin Valley that operates recharge and recovery programs under similar State Water Project allocations. Directly comparable groundwater storage business model serving overlapping agricultural customers.

Broad incumbents

• Metropolitan Water District of Southern California: Largest water wholesaler in California and major SWP contractor with interest in groundwater banking partnerships. Operates at much larger scale and broader geography, but is a counterparty/funder of Southern San Joaquin Valley storage programs.
• Westlands Water District: Largest agricultural water district in the US, located in the western San Joaquin Valley with extensive groundwater banking and water storage operations. Much larger scale and broader mandate, but operates in the same regulatory and hydrologic basin.

Emerging players

• Sites Project Authority: Pre-construction off-stream reservoir project in Northern California aimed at increasing water storage capacity. Represents the surface-storage alternative to groundwater banking; KWBA's underground model competes for the same policy and funding attention.
• Irvine Ranch Water District: Innovative California water district known for groundwater banking, recycled water, and integrated water resource management. Comparable in pioneering non-traditional water storage approaches under SGMA-era regulatory framework.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kern-water-bank-authority

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kern Water Bank Authority