ITEM:		INFORMATIONAL ITEM/STAFF REPORT
24.	QUARTERLY CARMEL RIVER RIPARIAN CORRIDOR MANAGEMENT PROGRAM REPORT
Meeting Date:			April 19, 2021	Budgeted:	N/A
From:			David J. Stoldt	Program/	N/A
			General Manager	Line Item No.:
Prepared By:			Thomas Christensen	Cost Estimate:	N/A
General Counsel Review: N/A
Committee Recommendation: N/A
CEQA Compliance: This action does not constitute a project as defined by the California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines section 15378.

IRRIGATION OF RIPARIAN VEGETATION: Supplemental watering of riparian mitigation plantings and irrigation system tune-ups took place during low rainfall from January through March.

Water Use in Acre-Feet (AF)
January - March 2021	0.15 AF
Year-to-date	0.15 AF

MONITORING OF RIPARIAN VEGETATION: During the winter season, the District suspended the riparian vegetation monitoring program. The monitoring of soil moisture, groundwater levels, and canopy defoliation (a measure of vegetation moisture stress) will resume in June 2021. During the months of June through October, staff will take monthly measurements of depth to groundwater and canopy vigor in areas where willow and cottonwood trees may be impacted by lowered water levels caused by groundwater extraction. The areas monitored are in the vicinity of California American Water’s (Cal-Am) Cañada and San Carlos wells, and the District’s Valley Hills (next to Cal-Am’s Cypress Well) and Schulte (next to Cal-Am’s Schulte Well) Restoration Projects. The District’s monitoring provides insight into the status of soil moisture through the riparian corridor by collecting and analyzing monthly readings from the District’s array of monitoring wells and pumping records for large-capacity Carmel Valley wells in the Cal-Am system.

OTHER TASKS PERFORMED SINCE THE JANUARY 2021 QUARTERLY REPORT:

1. Los Padres Alternatives Study: District staff have facilitated multiple meetings with AECOM, National Marine Fisheries Service, and California Department of Wildlife to restart the Los Padres Reservoir Alternatives Study. This study was on hold as the District completed various modeling scenarios associated with possible alternatives to Los Padres Reservoir actions (reservoir dredging, dam removal, and various rates of water extraction). AECOM will now analyze the effects to steelhead and determine which alternatives are feasible in their final report.

2. Sleepy Hollow Steelhead Rearing Facility: District staff have been helping develop an operations and maintenance manual for the new equipment at the Sleepy Hollow Steelhead Rearing Facility. In addition, some repairs to the liner have been carried out along the rearing channel where leaks were discovered last year during operation.

3. Steelhead Permit Reporting Requirements: The District has been uploading steelhead rescue data from last year’s steelhead rescue season to state and federal databases. This reporting is required to keep the District’s Scientific Collecting Permit valid as well as help regulators understand the current state of steelhead on the Carmel River.

U:\staff\Boardpacket\2021\20210419\Informational Items\24\Item-24.docx