ITEM:		INFORMATIONAL ITEMS/STAFF REPORTS
27.	QUARTERLY CARMEL RIVER EROSION PROTECTION AND RESTORATION PROJECTS REPORT
Meeting Date:			October 16, 2006	Budgeted:	N/A
From:			David A. Berger,	Program/	N/A
			General Manager	Line Item No.:
Prepared By:			Larry Hampson	Cost Estimate:	N/A
General Counsel Approval: N/A
Committee Recommendation: N/A
CEQA Compliance: N/A

Carmel River Advisory Committee Meeting: On August 17, 2006, the Carmel River Advisory Committee held a Regular Meeting. Minutes from that meeting will be made available in a future Board packet.

State Proposition 50 Planning Grant:  In August 2006, the City of Monterey completed an alternatives analysis for ceasing stormwater discharges into the areas of special biological significance in Carmel Bay and adjacent to Pacific Grove. This alternatives analysis represents more than 50% of the planning effort to develop an Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) Plan for the Region, which includes the Carmel River watershed, the Monterey Peninsula, the Seaside Groundwater Basin, and other areas within the MPWMD boundary.

In September 2006, RMC Water and Environment (RMC) completed an administrative draft of the IRWM Plan. District staff comments are due back to RMC in mid-October. A review draft IRWM Plan is tentatively scheduled for release to plan stakeholders for their review and comment in early November. The resulting draft plan is anticipated to be presented to the Board for their review and comment in December 2006 or January 2007.

In early October 2006, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) approved a revised scope of work for the IRWM Plan. The scope was updated in response to several recent events including:

• RMC made several recommendations to improve the IRWM Plan.
• A portion of the work planned for the Carmel River Lagoon is being subsumed into the planning effort to develop a Long Term Management Plan.
• Work to identify potential restoration projects in the 100-year floodplain of the Carmel River was modified since FEMA has delayed completion of a new Flood Insurance Study for Carmel Valley. No new deadline for completion has been set, but the floodplain coordinator for Carmel Valley at the Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA) believes the update may not be completed until 2008.
• Work to investigate problems and potential solutions in the Canyon del Rey drainage will be subsumed into an update of the 1977 Canyon del Rey drainage study. MCWRA and MPWMD are working together to define a scope of work for the update.
• Tasks to develop a monitoring and management plan for the Seaside Groundwater Basin were eliminated after the basin was adjudicated and this task became the responsibility of the Watermaster.

An amendment to the agreement between RMC and MPWMD for completion of an IRWM Plan is being finalized that incorporates the changes approved by DWR.

Carmel River Streambank Violations Update:  District staff responded to an updated application for a River Work Permit to address violations of District riparian ordinances at the Woods and Marotta properties, which are located just downstream of the Via Mallorca Bridge. The submittal did not adequately respond to previous District direction regarding streambank restoration and the applicants were requested to make changes and re-submit their plans.

Carmel River Lagoon Sandbar Management: On September 8, 2006, District staff (General Manager Dave Berger, District Engineer Andy Bell, Water Resources Engineer Larry Hampson, and Senior Fisheries Biologist Kevan Urquhart) facilitated a meeting of the Carmel River Lagoon Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) that included a site visit of the flow outlet structure at the Soquel Creek lagoon in the City of Capitola.

The City of Capitola has operated an outlet structure (dubbed the “flume”) under the city’s main beach for more than 50 years. Initially the structure was used to regulate flow from Soquel Creek to the ocean and maintain the lagoon for recreational purposes. More recently, operations have been modified to reduce impacts to migrating steelhead and other sensitive species in the watershed. A flow control structure at the Carmel River lagoon is among the alternatives described by the TAC to be studied for managing Carmel River flows. The review of the Capitola flume helped underscore some of the issues that could be involved with a similar structure at the Carmel River lagoon, including public safety, need for regular (daily) maintenance, aesthetics, and functionality.

At the meeting, General Manager Berger and Monterey County Water Resource Agency (MCWRA) Assistant General Manager Bill Phillips suggested that MPWMD and MCWRA generate statewide focus on the Carmel River lagoon and State Beach as a special status place of interest. This effort would include contacting State and Federal elected representatives as well as upper management in State and Federal resources agencies. Initially, the intent would be to provide a clear picture to decision-makers and the wider public about why they should support efforts towards a comprehensive long-term program to manage the lagoon.

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