Watershed & Coastal Resources Division

We are one of seven divisions with Resources & Development Management Department. As part of the County of Orange, we serve the residents, businesses, and visitors throughout Orange County.

Our Mission: To develop regional management strategies to preserve, protect, and enhance coastal resources and surface waters throughout Orange County. A watershed approach considers the entire geographic area that a watercourse drains to address a broad range of issues:

• Water quality in streams, channels, harbors, bays, and beaches
• Control of urban runoff
• Reduction of sedimentation and erosion
• Flood protection
• Habitat and species protection
• Public recreation and education

GOALS & OBJECTIVES

1. Implement the County's Watershed Programs

In recent years, the focus of water quality and habitat enhancement efforts has shifted to initiatives conducted on a broader watershed basis that looks at a watercourse in its entirety. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is sponsoring three ongoing watershed studies in Orange County aimed at identified water quality problems and resultant habitat degradation on the Aliso, San Diego, and San Juan creeks. New studies are beginning in 2002 for Carbon Creek, Coyote Creek, and Westminster watersheds. RDMD is supporting these multi-agency efforts and has received grant funding under the Clean Water Act to conduct further studies and coordinate the watershed approach.
Objective: Facilitate the preparation and implementation of watershed plans and projects for watersheds in Orange County.
Identify and implement projects to improve the geomorphic stability and restore the water quality and habitat values of streams.
Objective: Lead partnership programs for establishing cooperative funding arrangements among local, state and federal entities for the studies and projects.
Objective: Maintain involvement of public interests in watershed projects for developing restoration projects and addressing the effects of non-point source pollutants.

2. Implement the Countywide Stormwater Quality Program

The 1987 Water Quality Act holds municipalities responsible for the urban sources of pollutants that are discharged through their stormdrains. To reduce or eliminate sources of pollutants in Orange County, RDMD coordinates the efforts of the County and the 33 cities.

Objective: Coordinate regional compliance with NPDES, the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System program, serving as the principal municipality for the 33 city stormwater co-permitees.

Objective: Conduct countywide water quality monitoring of creeks, channels, bays, and harbors; intensive inspections of illicit connections.

• In order to better protect Orange County's rivers, creeks, bays, and estuaries, water quality monitoring is conducted throughout the year, with emphasis on chemical constituents in stormwater runoff. Storms are of particular interest because that is the time when most pollutants are washed out of the air and off the land into the waters of Orange County.
• All runoff from our streets flows through creeks, channels, and harbors and eventually ends up in the Pacific Ocean. Unlike sewage, it receives no treatment. The intent of the monitoring program is to evaluate the impacts of stormwater and urban runoff on these receiving waters and the effectiveness of water quality control practices.

Objective: Condition all new development with water quality protection requirements.

• Periodic review and update of the 1997 water quality ordinance

Objective: Conduct water pollution investigations and spill abatement

• Spills of chemicals, both accidental and occasionally otherwise occur throughout Orange County. While many are small and are easily cleaned up, such as fuel spills from accidents, others which have greater potential for harm also occur. The American Trader oil spill of 1989 and the Brea tire factory fire of 1996 are examples of this type.

Objective: Educate the public on household and business practices that:

• Conduct public outreach and education
• Stenciling No Dumping Drains to Ocean on storm drains and catch basins

3. Coordinate regional compliance with the federal Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) allocations established for impaired water bodies under the Clean Water Act

Section 303(d) of the federal Clean Water Act requires that states make a list of impaired waterbodies that are not attaining applicable water quality standards even after technology-based discharge limits on point sources have been implemented. Once listed, states must establish priority rankings for their impaired waters and develop a total maximum daily load (TMDL) for each pollutant contributing to the listing. A TMDL specifies the maximum amount of a pollutant that a waterbody can receive while still meeting applicable water quality standards. California ranks TDMLs as high, medium or low priorities based on a number of factors including the severity of the impairments and the importance of the waterbody's beneficial uses.

TMDLs differ from other pollution management efforts in that all sources of impairment must be accounted for, including contributions form point sources (federally permitted discharge) and nonpoint sources. Moreover, all pollutant loads must be allocated to specific sources. These allocations may be specific to agencies or persons (businesses), or more general by source category or sector.

In Orange County, the TMDL focus to date has been on the Newport Bay / San Diego Creek watershed, where TMDLs for nutrients, sediment and and fecal coliform have been developed by the State and are currently being implemented. An additional TMDL for toxicity is in the process of being developed for this watershed.

4. Coordinate RDMD's compliance with federal and state regulations pertaining to surface water, domestic water, ground water, hazardous wastes, and hazardous materials, including special studies of RDMD resources.

• Regional Park Lake Management: The County Regional Park lakes provide an aesthetic and recreational benefit to the public and are considered jewels within the park system. The ensure the beneficial uses of the lakes are maintained, a lake management program has been established. The program consists of water quality monitoring, algae and aquatic weed growth mitigation, and coordinating fish stockings with the State Department of Fish and Game.
• County Land Acquisition Assessments: The County, with its infrastructure of regional parks, roads and flood control channels, is one of the largest owners of land in Orange County. Each year, new land is acquired through acquisitions or dedications. In order to ensure that these new properties are free of contamination, staff from the Environmental Resources Section conducts historical research and performs inspections and investigations prior to the acquisition being approved.
• Newport Bay Sediment Control: Newport Bay is one of the most important environmental and recreational resources in Orange County. A special program managed by the environmental Resources section (in cooperation with the Cities of Irvine, Lake Forest, Newport Beach, and Tustin, The Irvine Company, the County of Orange & the Orange County Flood Control District is intended to help protect it. One element of the program involves measuring the amount of sand and silt which flows into the bay each year. This information is used to determine compliance with the Newport Bay - San Diego Creek sediment TMDL.

5. Maintain and operate the countywide hydrologic and meteorologic data collection system

The County, with its infrastructure of regional parks, roads and flood control channels (over 350 miles of flood control facilities) has placed a top priority on predicting flood events and reacting in a timely manner to areas of flooding and severe soil erosion.

The ALERT ( Automatic Local Evaluation on Real Time) Flood Detections System consists of a network of over 100 rainfall and flood control and reservoir water level sensors strategically located throughout Orange County. The ALERT system transmits data via radio transmission to the County's base station computer which allows for real time monitoring of storm conditions. The ALERT network is supported by satellite and radar storm tracking provided by the National Weather Service (NWS), the National Oceanic and Atomspheric Association (NOAA) and a contract meteorologist.

A hydrologic data report is prepared annually and is available for review through this web site.