Promoting

Multi-Benefit Water Projects

in the

North Bay Watershed Association Region

and the Greater Bay Area

BENEFITS PROMOTED

BY INTEGRATION

Water Supply Recreation

Wastewater Treatment Habitat Enhancement

Flood Protection Water Quality

Aesthetics

Supply, Power and Recreation

Multi-benefit projects are not a new idea . . .

Why integration now?

• Mismatch between NBWA policy #3 to ‘support integrated activities’ and project inventory

• Population growth

• Environmental constraints

• Climate change

• Planning integration: transportation, land use, water

• Funding

ISSUES AND LIMITATIONS

NORTH BAY

WATERSHEDS

SAN

PABLO

BAY

NAPA RIVER

FLOODING: Urban & Agricultural

GROUNDWATER: Depletion

PETALUMA RIVER

FLOODING: Urban & Agricultural

GROUNDWATER: Depletion

LACK OF PARTICIPATION

EAST MARIN

FLOODING: Urban

URBAN LANDSCAPE:

Small lots

Difficult to implement change

SONOMA VALLEY

FLOODING: Urban & Agricultural

GROUNDWATER: Depletion

& Salt Water Intrusion

COMMON ISSUES:

WATER SUPPLY

HABITAT RESTORATION

Fish Passage Barriers

Endangered Species

WATER QUALITY

Excess Sediment

PRIVATE PROPERTY

MULTI-BENEFIT PROJECTS

REQUIRE COORDINATION AND COMMUNICATION

among a variety of agencies and players:

WATER SUPPLIERS

SANITATION DISTRICTS

CITY & COUNTY PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENTS

PARKS & OPEN SPACE DISTRICTS

NON-PROFITS, RCDs, WATERSHED GROUPS

GENERAL PUBLIC & ELECTEDS

SAN

PABLO

BAY

NORTH BAY

WATER PLAYERS

(a partial list)

SONOMA VALLEY•Sonoma County Water Agency

•Valley of the Moon Water District

•City of Sonoma

•Sonoma Valley County Sanitation District (SCWA)

•Sonoma County Water Agency

•City of Sonoma

•Sonoma County Transportation

and Public Works Department

•Sonoma County Regional Parks Department

•Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District

•Southern Sonoma County

Resource Conservation District

•Sonoma Ecology Center

•Sonoma Valley Vintners and Growers

•Sonoma Land Trust

PETALUMA RIVER•Sonoma County Water Agency

•City of Petaluma Water Resources

and Conservation Department

•Violia

•Penngrove Sanitation District

•Sonoma County Transportation

and Public Works Department

•City of Petaluma

•Sonoma County Regional Parks Department

•Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District

•Southern Sonoma County

Resource Conservation District

•Friends of the Petaluma River

NAPA RIVER•City of Napa Public Works Department, Water Division

•Napa Sanitation District

•Napa County Department

of Public Works

•Napa County Flood Control

and Water Conservation District

•Napa County Regional Park

and Open Space District

•Napa County

Resource Conservation District

•Friends of the Napa River

•Napa County Land Trust

EAST MARIN•Marin Municipal Water District

•North Marin Water District

•Sonoma County Water Agency

•Central Marin Sanitation District

•County of Marin Department

of Public Works

•City of San Rafael Stormwater Program

•Marin County Parks and Open Space District

•Friends of Corte Madera Creek

•Friends of Novato Creek

•Mill Valley Streamkeepers

•WATER SUPPLIERS

•SANITATION DISTRICTS

•CITY & COUNTY PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENTS

•PARKS & OPEN SPACE

•NON-PROFITS,RCDS & WATERSHED GROUPS

INTERVIEWEES:

Stormwater agencies

Flood agencies

Watershed groups

Water suppliers

Water treaters

Open space organizations

Resource Conservation Districts

Environmental & Policy nonprofits

Electeds

Army Corps of Engineers

Environmental consultants

Interview Questions

• Past and upcoming multi-benefit projects? Lessons learned?

• Ideas for future multi-benefit projects?

• Obstacles to multi-benefit projects (institutional, cultural,

technical, financial, and regulatory)?

• What’s worked, or could work to promote more

multi-benefit projects?

FloodProtection

HabitatEnhancement

WaterQuality

Wastewater(Treatment)

Supply Recreation Aesthetics

FloodProtection

32 24 4 9 7

HabitatEnhancement

22 4 7 12 8

WaterQuality

10 5 5

WastewaterTreatment

2 1 1

Supply

Recreation 3

FREQUENCY OF BENEFIT PAIRINGS

FOR COMPLETED AND POTENTIAL PROJECTS

Triple Benefit Projects:

Flood Protection, Habitat Enhancement & Water Quality 19

Flood Protection, Habitat Enhancement & Recreation 6

Flood Protection, Water Quality & Water Supply 2

Flood Protection, Habitat Enhancement & Water Supply 1

Habitat Enhancement, Wastewater Treatment & Recreation 1

Projects addressing:

three or more benefits: 29

four or more benefits: 14

five benefits: 2

Wastewater Treatment

Water Supply

Aesthetics

Recreation

Habitat Enhancement

Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility

Petaluma

OBSTACLES to MULTI-BENEFIT WATER PROJECTS

as identified by greatest number of interviewees

No one thinking about the big picture or taking the lead 15 71%

Lack of funding, staff 12 57%

Poor communication (within and between agencies, and between 8 38%

agencies, non-governmental organizations, and the public)

Benefits of integrated projects unclear, difficult to quantify 7 33%

Additional obstacles:

Lack of regulation or enforcement, confusing jurisdiction, 6 29% daunting permitting process

Lack of quantitative knowledge about basic questions 5 23%

Private property issues 5 23%

Challenges with recycled water 5 23%

Lack of political will for water regulation, mandates 4 19%

A two-pronged approach: “Bottom up” and “Top down”

Project-Scale Tools: Short to Long-TermIntegrating multiple benefits into existing or conceived projects

Regional-Scale Recommendations: Medium to Long-TermDeveloping regional processes and structures

to promote multi-benefit projects

Project-Scale Tools: Short to Long-Term

• GuidelinesCreate guidelines for “Making Your Project Multi-Benefit”. Avoid mitigation. Agency managers and design staff write, stakeholders review.

• Cost-benefit analysisAdd benefits, longer time frame.

• ProcessIncorporate guidelines early in the project process. Inter-departmental design teams.

Making Your Project Multi-Benefit (example)

Primary Benefit: Flood Protection

Potential additional benefit Possible actions to achieve additional benefit

Habitat Enhancement: Remove fish passage barriersRestore large woody debris (prevent road wash-outs)Restore wetlands (give stormwater a place to go)Lay back banks to increase capacity, re-occupy floodplainCreate new channels in tidal marsh (elsewhere, too)

Clean channels of human-caused debris

Water Quality: Restore native vegetation: protect bank, (reduces sediment)Detain or retain water on open space, agricultural land,

or in new development (reduces sediment)Purchase flood easement (reduces sediment)Remove concrete channels and restore (slows water,

reduces sediment downstream)

Water Supply: Purchase flood easement (increase recharge)Use permeable paving (increase recharge)

Recreation: Create walking & bike trailsCreate wildlife viewing areasRemove barriers to boat travel

Aesthetics: Plant native trees and wild flowersImprove urban creek accessIncrease wildlife (by increasing habitat)Create a floodable park or a rain garden

Regional-Scale Recommendations: Medium to Long-Term

Create an entity / forum / structure whose mission includes quality of life, healthy environment, sustainable economy

Options:

• Governance structure among existing stakeholders• Regular forums focused on integrated management• New entity• A combination

Convene a process workgroup for six months to develop a work plan and timeline, and obtain buy-in

Regional-Scale Recommendations

Guiding document or governance structure

for integrated, sustainable water managementto which all water players pledge consistency

Forums

Geographic areasBi-annual North Bay forumAnnual watershed forumsOccasional SCWA system forumBay Area

Facilitated by third party

Results: agreement on projects and approaches for integrating the highest priority benefits for each geographic area

Include all stakeholders in a transparent process:

WATER SUPPLIERS

SANITATION DISTRICTS

CITY & COUNTY PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENTS

PARKS & OPEN SPACE DISTRICTS

NON-PROFITS, RCDs, WATERSHED GROUPS

GENERAL PUBLIC & ELECTEDSBroad, Integrated

Goals

Focused Goals

Regional-Scale Recommendations

Arising out of forums…

Committees or workgroups to move from broad goals to specific projects/actions

TechnicalFinancialEnvironmentalPublic outreachAesthetics

Regional-Scale Recommendations

DataCollect, organize, analyze, and provide access to dataDevelop a baseline and continue to monitor

Develop long-term funding sources

Integrate priorities with other regional planning efforts: transportation, land use, open space