WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect wetlands and waters of the United States associated with Watsonville Slough, within the Pajaro River watershed. The project area is located along the Watsonville Slough, extending from Struve slough east to the existing Harkins Slough Filter Plant, and to an existing recharge basin north of Dairy Road. The center point coordinates are Latitude 36.8862986 and Longitude -121.81566, in unincorporated Santa Cruz County, CA.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The project area is primarily on or adjacent to land used primarily for agriculture, among some rural and residential areas, located within the central coast subdivision of the California Floristic Province. The surrounding topography consists of the coastline, west-to northwest-trending mountain ranges, and long valleys that are parallel to the mountains. Vegetation includes ruderal species, central coast arroyo willow riparian forest, coastal freshwater marsh and agricultural species associated with the open water within Watsonville Slough and irrigation ditches.
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: Recharge groundwater supply for agriculture to be a sustainable resource.
Overall: The primary purpose of the project is to meet water supply needs in the PV Water’s service area. PV Water would balance the groundwater basin, prevent further seawater intrusion, and help achieve sustainable groundwater resources in the critically over drafted Pajaro Valley Groundwater Basin.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant requests authorization for the installation of an intake screen, replacement of intake pumps, and mechanical equipment upgrades at the existing Harkins Slough filter plant. Crews would install a screened intake and pump station at Struve Slough and a pipeline to connect the new Struve Slough pump station to the Harkins Slough filter plant. Crews would also construct a recharge basin (approximately 12.7 acres with a storage capacity of 128 acre-feet) and associated recovery wells, monitoring wells, and pipelines. In addition, the project proposes to enhance and manage a 2.84-acre site by establishing a seasonal pond and perimeter wetlands as mitigation for impacts to California red-legged frog habitat. The site is located on agricultural lands immediately adjacent to Watsonville Slough (APN 052-221-09), north of the construction easement for the Project’s Struve Slough to filter plant pipeline, and east of property owned and managed by the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County (APN 052-221-25). The proposed mitigation pond would convert 1.745 acre of agricultural wetlands, 0.195 acre of perennial channel, and 0.1 acre of irrigation ditches, and 0.805 acre of uplands to a seasonal pond with fringing wetland.
AVOIDANCE AND MINIMIZATION: The applicant has provided the following information in support of efforts to avoid and/or minimize impacts to the aquatic environment:
The project proposes avoidance and minimization measures including:
- Standard measures to maintain water quality and control erosion and sedimentation;
- Compliance construction site stormwater pollution prevention plan (Construction General Permit);
- Implement Best Management Practices (BMP) for in-water construction;
- Preparing a Frac-out contingency plan if horizontal directional drilling installation is implemented beneath a regulated drainage, which would include training construction workers about monitoring procedures, materials and procedures in place for the prevention, containment, clean-up (such as creating a containment area and using a pump, using a vacuum truck, etc.), and disposal of released bentonite slurry, and agency notification protocols;
- Measures to avoid and minimize impacts to wetlands and CA red-legged frog critical habitat, including:
- Avoiding willow riparian forests habitat where possible in design.
- Where impacts to willow riparian habitat is unavoidable, the project would restore and revegetate after construction;
- Revegetation will include a 3:1 replacement ratio of the acreage of willow riparian forest habitat lost and for all trees lost as result of the Project to account for the reduced habitat values of smaller trees compared with mature vegetation. Success criteria for replanting will be less than 20 percent mortality of individual species annually for 5 years.
- Where temporary impacts to open water or wetlands cannot be avoided, the project would restore and revegetate the areas after construction.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION: The applicant offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment: The permanent loss of waters of the U.S. from the project construction is less than 0.1 acre, and so compensatory mitigation is not proposed. The Project would result in permanent cumulative loss of 0.017-acre wetland waters of the U.S. and permanent loss of 0.009-acre non-wetland waters of the U.S. (43 linear feet of stream bed).
CULTURAL RESOURCES:
The Corps is evaluating the undertaking for effects to historic properties as required under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. This public notice serves to inform the public of the proposed undertaking and invites comments including those from local, State, and Federal government Agencies with respect to historic resources. Our final determination relative to historic resource impacts may be subject to additional coordination with the State Historic Preservation Officer, federally recognized tribes and other interested parties.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is the federal lead agency for this project and evaluated the undertaking pursuant to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) and provided a concurrence letter from the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), determining that: Historic properties (i.e., properties listed in or eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places), are present within the Corps’ permit area; however, the undertaking will have no adverse effect on these historic properties.
The District Engineer’s final eligibility and effect determination will be based upon coordination with the SHPO and/or THPO, as appropriate and required, and with full consideration given to the proposed undertaking’s potential direct and indirect effects on historic properties within the Corps-identified permit area.
ENDANGERED SPECIES: The Corps has performed an initial review of the application, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Information for Planning and Consultation (IPaC), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Section 7 Mapper, and the NMFS Critical Habitat Mapper to determine if any threatened, endangered, proposed, or candidate species, as well as the proposed and final designated critical habitat may occur within the boundary of the proposed project. Based on this initial review, the Corps has made a preliminary determination that the proposed project will not adversely affect Santa Cruz tarplant (Holocarpha macradenia) and Tidewater goby (Eucyclogobius newberryi) and designated critical habitat and may adversely affect California red-legged frog (Rana draytoni) and designated critical habitat and Northwestern pond turtle (Actinemys marmorata) proposed for Federal listing as threatened.
The EPA is federal lead and completed section 7 consultation with the USFWS. The EPA also determined that no species protected by the NOAA Fisheries (NMFS) would be affected by the project. Based on this initial review, the Corps has made a preliminary determination that no additional ESA Section 7consultation is required.
This notice serves as request to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service for any additional information on whether any listed or proposed to be listed endangered or threatened species or critical habitat may be present in the area which would be affected by the proposed activity.
ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT: Pursuant to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 1996, the Corps reviewed the project area, examined information provided by the applicant, and consulted available species information.
The EPA, as federal lead, determined the proposal would have no effect on any Essential Fish Habitat (EFH). This conclusion is based on no EFH identified in the project action area. Therefore, no consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service on EFH as required by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 1996 is required.
NAVIGATION: The proposed structure or activity is not located in the vicinity of a federal navigation channel.
SECTION 408: The applicant will not require permission under Section 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 USC 408) because the activity, in whole or in part, would not alter, occupy, or use a Corps Civil Works project.
WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: Water Quality Certification may be required from the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board.
NOTE: This public notice is being issued based on information furnished by the applicant. This information has not been verified or evaluated to ensure compliance with laws and regulation governing the regulatory program. The geographic extent of aquatic resources within the proposed project area that either are, or are presumed to be, within the Corps jurisdiction has been verified by Corps personnel.
EVALUATION: The decision whether to issue a permit will be based on an evaluation of the probable impact including cumulative impacts of the proposed activity on the public interest. That decision will reflect the national concern for both protection and utilization of important resources. The benefits, which reasonably may be expected to accrue from the proposal, must be balanced against its reasonably foreseeable detriments. All factors which may be relevant to the proposal will be considered including cumulative impacts thereof; among these are conservation, economics, esthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historical properties, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, floodplain values, land use, navigation, shoreline erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs, safety, food, and fiber production, mineral needs, considerations of property ownership, and in general, the needs and welfare of the people. Evaluation of the impact of the activity on the public interest will also include application of the guidelines promulgated by the Administrator, EPA, under authority of Section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act or the criteria established under authority of Section 102(a) of the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972. A permit will be granted unless its issuance is found to be contrary to the public interest.
COMMENTS: The Corps is soliciting comments from the public; Federal, State, and local agencies and officials; Indian Tribes; and other Interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the impacts of this proposed activity. Any comments received will be considered by the Corps to determine whether to issue, modify, condition, or deny a permit for this proposal. To make this determination, comments are used to assess impacts to endangered species, historic properties, water quality, general environmental effects, and the other public interest factors listed above. Comments are used in the preparation of an Environmental Assessment (EA) and/or an Environmental Impact Statement pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Comments are also used to determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the proposed activity.
The San Francisco District will receive written comments on the proposed work, as outlined above, until November 8, 2025. Comments should be submitted electronically via the Regulatory Request System (RRS) at https://rrs.usace.army.mil/rrs or to Frances Malamud-Roam at Frances.P.Malamud-Roam@usace.army.mil. Alternatively, you may submit comments in writing to the Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, San Francisco District, Attention: Frances Malamud-Roam, Regulatory Division, CESPN-RGS, 450 Golden Gate Avenue, 4th Floor, San Francisco, California 94102. Please refer to the permit application number in your comments.
Any person may request, in writing, within the comment period specified in this notice, that a public hearing be held to consider the application. Requests for public hearings shall state, with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing. Requests for a public hearing will be granted, unless the District Engineer determines that the issues raised are insubstantial or there is otherwise no valid interest to be served by a hearing.