Farmers, ranchers, and members of the public got a first-hand look at several water banking projects during a bus tour of the Kern River. Kern County Water Association executive director Beth Pandol says these projects have been here for years, but were easy to miss during the drought.

Pandol believes we could get through another drought because groundwater aquifers have been recharging and our soil has been trapping a lot of water.

Wednesday’s tour was the second hosted by the group this year.

Kelli Pierce