Memorandum
Date: May 9, 2023
To: The Honorable Lake County Board of Supervisors
From: Michael S. Green, District 4 Supervisor
Subject: Consideration of Scotts Valley Community Advisory Council project requests and prior allocation of discretionary cannabis tax funds
Executive Summary:
Acting upon the request of the Scotts Valley Community Advisory Council (SVCAC), former Supervisor Tina Scott directed administrative staff to allocate $165,000 in District 4 discretionary cannabis tax revenues for a project to clear brush and sediment from a 3-mile stretch of Scotts Creek. As requested, the funds were transferred to Water Resources - Flood Zone #4, budget unit 8104, on or about July 29, 2022, shortly before Ms. Scott’s resignation date of July 31, 2022. However, no formal work plan has been submitted for review and approval by your board to date.
Early scoping work by Water Resources staff and additional inquiries by the current District 4 supervisor disclosed several areas of concern with the project as it was originally proposed, including cost, efficacy and potential expenditure of public funds for private landowner benefit. On April 24, 2023, the SVCAC met and considered several project alternatives suggested by Water Resources. The council then voted to request the project alternatives be presented to the full Board of Supervisors for consideration and possible direction to staff to develop a work plan.
In brief, the project alternatives include:
• Hydrological survey of surface water movements.
• Aerial electromagnetic (AEM) groundwater survey.
• Establishment or enhancement of stream flow and water level monitors.
All of the project alternatives benefit the Scotts Valley community as a whole and fit well with the existing goals and programs of Water Resources. Additional details are provided below.
Hydrological survey
Water Resources has previously applied for grant funding to assess surface flow patterns of Scotts Creek and its tributaries during baseline conditions and high-flow storm events including atmospheric rivers. A better understanding of the lower creek’s interaction with the Tule Lake flood plain is also desired, as is an updated inventory of in-stream barriers to fish passage. Water Resources staff are working on another grant application that includes this scope of work. Local funding, in full or in part, could help make the grant application more competitive. Your board previously approved a contract not to exceed $50,000, but the contract was not fulfilled.
AEM groundwater survey
A proposal to conduct an Airborne Electromagnetic (AEM) survey of Lake County’s groundwater basins was approved by the Blue Ribbon Committee for the Rehabilitation of Clear Lake in 2022. However, no funding for the project was identified. Your board recently approved submission of this proposal to U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson for consideration as a Community Funded Project with an estimated budget of $300,000 total to survey multiple watersheds in Lake County. Funding the Scotts Valley portion of the project could help demonstrate our commitment to cost-sharing.
Stream flow monitoring
In-stream flow meters can generate near-real-time measurements that are useful on multiple fronts, including citizen monitoring during high-flow storm events with heightened flood risk. Expanding stream flow datasets is a key strategy in the Clear Lake hitch emergency response, and flow metering is also central to water quality and storm water discharge monitoring programs.
Peak stage data may be important to know when designing stream restoration projects where high flows and physical barriers including levees shape the physical habitat of the stream. Perhaps most importantly, continuous stream monitoring is required to assess the “flashiness” of a watercourse as measured by the frequency and rapidity of short-term changes in streamflow.
State-of-the-art streamgages that measure water levels and flow rates are not inexpensive. The recommended action requests Water Resources to identify one or more potential new monitoring stations in Scotts Creek and/or its important hitch-bearing tributaries including Hendricks Creek, and to identify options for cost-effective flow meter installation, maintenance and data-sharing.
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Recommended Action: Direct Water Resources staff to research the project alternatives identified by Scotts Valley Community Advisory Council, develop a recommended work plan not to exceed $165,000 in total cost in consultation with the SVCAC, and return to the board for review and approval of the expenditure of District 4 discretionary cannabis tax revenues.