Resources for Resource Professionals

The Preliminary Integrated Regional Water Management Plan for Northern Santa Cruz County has been prepared to coordinate water resources management efforts and to enable grants for project implementation under Proposition 50, Chapter 8. The Preliminary Plan was approved by the various partner agencies in December, 2005. The Plan is based on a compilation of information and recommendations from previous efforts and background documents for the region, including:
Watershed Assessments in Arana, Soquel, Aptos, Scott Creek, San Lorenzo, and Watsonville Slough, Integrated Watershed Restoration Programs, County Water Resources Reports and Water Agency Plans.

The following is a summary of the Plan contents:

Plan Area

All of Santa Cruz County, excluding the Pajaro Watershed, but including the Watsonville Sloughs watershed.

ISSUES ADDRESSED

Water Supply

Desalination
Groundwater recharge
Conjunctive use
Water treatment

Water Quality

Stormwater
Wastewater Disposal

Habitat Restoration

Sediment control
Barrier removal
Wetlands

Participating Entities

Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County
County of Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz County Resource Conservation District
Soquel Creek Water District
Scotts Valley Water District
Santa Cruz County Sanitation District
Davenport Sanitation District
City of Santa Cruz
City of Watsonville
Watsonville Wetlands Watch
Additional Watershed Groups and agencies

Priority Projects

The Plan recommends seventeen high priority projects:
1. San Lorenzo Onsite Sewage Disposal System Upgrades
2. Abandoned Well Destruction Program
3. Feasibility Study for Enhanced Aquifer Recharge
4. Regionwide Drainage Master Plan
5. Santa Cruz County Stormwater Pollution Prevention Program
6. Enhance and Protect Primary Groundwater Recharge Areas
7. Relocate Sewer Main From New Brighton State Beach
8. Engineering for Regional Ocean Desalination Project
9. Polo Grounds Well, Treatment Plant, Pipelines, and Water Conservation Project
10. Groundwater Monitoring Wells in the Aromas and Purisima Formations
11. Davenport Drinking Water Improvement Project
12. Implement Middle Watsonville Slough Wetlands Enhancement Plan
13. Integrated Watershed Restoration Program
14. Four Recycled Water Distribution System Extensions in the Scotts Valley Area
15. Bergstrom Pit Aquifer Recharge Project
16. Project Monitoring
17. Upgrade and Expand Integrated Regional Water Management Plan

To provide comments on the Plan or for more information, please contact John Ricker, County Water Resources Program Coordinator: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
831-454-2750

Plan Download

Full plan - 25 MB

Plan Segments

Table of Contents - 165 kB
Color Cover - 233 kB
Acknowledgements - 44 kB
Executive Summary - 543 kB
A - Introduction - 121 kB
B - Regional Agency - 1 MB
C - Region Description - 6 MB
D - Objectives - 129 kB
E - Water Management Strategies - 145 kB
F - Regional Priorities - 507 kB
G - Linkages Among Projects - 2 MB
H - IWRP - 157 kB
I - IRWM Plan Expansion - 118 kB
J - Implementation - 99 kB
K - Schedule - 126 kB
L - Impacts and Benefits - 25 kB
M - Technical Analysis and Plan Performance - 64 kB
N - Data Management - 137 kB
O - Beneficiaries and Financing - 125 kB
P - Statewide Priorities - 240 kB
Q - Relation to Local Planning - 99 kB
R - Stakeholder Involvement - 127 kB
S - Coordination - 95 kB

Maps

Map 1 - Jurisdictions - 1 MB
Map 2 - Region and Watersheds - 450 kB
Map 3 - Major Groundwater Basins - 186 kB
Map 4 - Significant Water Issues - 325 kB
Map 5 - Significant Issues - 190 kB
Map 6 - Land Cover - 4 MB
Map 7 - Disadvantaged - 344 kB
Map 8 - Project Locations - 362 kB
Map 9 - San Lorenzo Sub-Basin - 346 kB
Map 10 - Project Locations in Soquel-Aptos Sub-Basin - 305 kB
Map 11 - North Coast Sub-Basin - 277 kB
Map 12 - Watsonville Sloughs Sub-Basin - 194 kB

Appendices

Appendix A - Lists of Species - 65 kB
Appendix B - Santa Cruz County Economic Forecast - 72 kB
Appendix C - Plans Refenced - 104 kB
Appendix D - Projects Grouped by Management Strategy - 184 kB
Appendix E - Water Quality and Water Quantity Monitoring Efforts in Santa Cruz County - 562 kB
Appendix F - Budgets for Projects - 140 kB
Appendix G - Santa Cruz Sentinel Articles Regarding Desalination and Local Water Supply Issues - 1022 kB
Appendix I - Acronyms - 48 kB

Local Watershed Plans

"The watershed is defined as a unit of natural or disturbed land on which all the water that falls (or emanates from springs) collects by gravity and fails to evaporate and runs off via a common outlet. The watershed is the basic unit of water supply." - Peter E. Black, Watershed Hydrology, Second Edition, 1996.

There have been seven Watershed Assessment and Enhancement Plans developed for Santa Cruz County, they include:

Lower Pajaro
Aptos Creek
Soquel Creek
Arana Gulch
San Lorenzo River and Scotts Creek

Please note the size of the Adobe Acrobat ".pdf" file you are downloading.

Arana Gulch Watershed Enhancement Plan (another website)
Lower Pajaro River Watershed Enhancement Plan - 22 MB
San Lorenzo River Salmonid Enhancement Plan - 3 MB

Aptos Creek Watershed Assessment and Enhancement Plan

Soquel Creek Watershed Enhancement Plan

Note: Appendixes D and G of the Soquel Creek Watershed Enhancement Plan (Geomorphology / Hydrology Assessment and Erosion Prevention Plan, respectively) are currently down. We are in the process of restoring these two appendices.

Santa Cruz County Maps

Santa Cruz County GIS (another website)
Santa Cruz County Boundary Map - 12 kB
Santa Cruz Road District Map - 29 kB
Steelhead and Coho Salmon Distribution Map - 2 MB

Soil Surveys

Soil surveys provide the basic information needed to manage soil sustainability. They also provide information needed to protect water quality, wetlands, and wildlife habitat. Soil surveys are the basis for predicting the behavior of a soil under alternative uses, its potential erosion hazard, potential for ground water contamination, suitability and productivity for cultivated crops, trees, and grasses. Soil surveys are important to planners, engineers, zoning commissions, tax commissioners, homeowners, developers, as well as agricultural producers.

NRCS Soil Survey Report of Santa Cruz County, CA

USDA-NRCS Soil Survey Index

Create your own soil map on the web!