The Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program is California's comprehensive groundwater quality monitoring program that was created by the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) in 2000. It was later expanded by Assembly Bill 599 - the Groundwater Quality Monitoring Act of 2001. AB 599 required the State Water Board, in coordination with an Interagency Task Force (ITF) and Public Advisory Committee (PAC) to integrate existing monitoring programs and design new program elements as necessary, resulting in a publicly accepted plan to monitor and assess groundwater quality in basins that account for 95% of the state’s groundwater use. The GAMA Program is based on interagency collaboration with the State and Regional Water Boards, Department of Water Resources, Department of Pesticide Regulations, U.S. Geological Survey, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and cooperation with local water agencies and well owners.

In July 2020, the Division of Water Quality (DWQ) Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment Program (GAMA) released its program evaluation report that summarizes work completed to date and makes recommendations for future efforts. GAMA staff are in the process of implementing many of these ideas, as well as making improvements in response to discussions with users across the groundwater community.

The main goals of GAMA are to:

Improve statewide comprehensive groundwater monitoring.

Increase the availability to the general public of groundwater quality and contamination information.

More GAMA goals:

Establish ambient groundwater quality on a basin wide scale.

Continue periodic groundwater sampling and groundwater quality studies in order to characterize chemicals of concern and identify trends in groundwater quality.

Centralize the availability of groundwater information to the public and decision makers to better protect our groundwater resources.

The Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment (GAMA) Program is California's comprehensive groundwater quality monitoring program that was created by the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) in 2000. It was later expanded by Assembly Bill 599 - the Groundwater Quality Monitoring Act of 2001. AB 599 required the State Water Board, in coordination with an Interagency Task Force (ITF) and Public Advisory Committee (PAC) to integrate existing monitoring programs and design new program elements as necessary, resulting in a publicly accepted plan to monitor and assess groundwater quality in basins that account for 95% of the state’s groundwater use. The GAMA Program is based on interagency collaboration with the State and Regional Water Boards, Department of Water Resources, Department of Pesticide Regulations, U.S. Geological Survey, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and cooperation with local water agencies and well owners.

In July 2020, the Division of Water Quality (DWQ) Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment Program (GAMA) released its program evaluation report that summarizes work completed to date and makes recommendations for future efforts. GAMA staff are in the process of implementing many of these ideas, as well as making improvements in response to discussions with users across the groundwater community.

The main goals of GAMA are to:

Improve statewide comprehensive groundwater monitoring.

Increase the availability to the general public of groundwater quality and contamination information.

More GAMA goals:

Establish ambient groundwater quality on a basin wide scale.

Continue periodic groundwater sampling and groundwater quality studies in order to characterize chemicals of concern and identify trends in groundwater quality.

Centralize the availability of groundwater information to the public and decision makers to better protect our groundwater resources.