COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

Inter-Departmental Correspondence

Board of Supervisors

DATE:

May 6, 2002

BOARD MEETING DATE:

May 14, 2002

TO:

Honorable Board of Supervisors

FROM:

Supervisor Mark Church
Supervisor Richard Gordon

SUBJECT:

Status Report of the Board Subcommittee on Wells and Acquifers and Review of Phase I of the Midcoast Aquifer Study

Recommendations

1.

Accept the Subcommittee Status Report;

2.

Receive a presentation on the Phase 1 Report for the Midcoast Aquifer Study and authorize its release to the public and interested agencies;

3.

Direct staff to schedule presentations of the Phase 1 Report to the Midcoast Community Council and the County Planning Commission at the earliest possible dates;

4.

Direct staff to prepare and distribute a Request for Proposal (RFP) for completion of Phase 2 of the Midcoast groundwater study; and

5.

Direct staff to prepare a proposed urgency ordinance to amend the standards for domestic wells in the unincorporated Midcoast area.

Background

Last fall, the Board of Supervisors appointed Supervisor Church and Supervisor Gordon to a Board Subcommittee to review issues related to wells and aquifers. Some of the impetus for appointing the Subcommittee arose from the continuing litigation over the Westside Basin aquifer in the North County as well public comments about potential saltwater intrusion in wells in the unincorporated Midcoast area. Since its creation, the Subcommittee has been asked to review issues related to the water level in the San Francisquito Creek watershed, reclaimed water and water recycling programs as well as water conservation programs. The Subcommittee has also received periodic updates from staff on the Phase 1 report for the Midcoast Aquifer Study.

Discussion

The Subcommittee presents the following status report on the various issues that it has considered over the last six months. This report also coincides with the completion of the Phase 1 Report for the Midcoast Aquifer Study. This memo therefore summarizes the various issues considered by the Subcommittee and its recommendation on those issues, including the Phase 1 Midcoast study.

1.

Reclaimed Water and Water Recycling Programs: At the Subcommittee's request, the Environmental Health Division and County Counsel's office submitted information and a proposed ordinance relating to reclaimed water regulations and programs in other jurisdictions. However, this research showed that the program would have no impact at this time because of the lack of reclaimed water facilities currently available in the unincorporated area. The Subcommittee is continuing to review this issue and has asked the Planning Division to look at the possible use of reclaimed water in new development. The Subcommittee recommends that it continue this process and bring a full report back to the Board at a later date.

2.

San Francisco Creek Watershed: In January 2002, the Board of Supervisors received a letter from the San Francisquito Creek Watershed Council concerning the effect of wells on the water levels in the West Union Creek. At the Subcommittee's request, staff investigated the concern and found that the wells at issue were probably not the cause of declining water levels in that sub watershed. A response was sent to the Council describing the results of this investigation.

3.

Water Conservation: The Subcommittee has asked staff to prepare information on what water conservation regulations and programs the County could consider. The Subcommittee will provide a full report back to the Board when this survey is completed.

4.

Phase 1 of the Midcoast Aquifer Study: Last August, when the Board of Supervisors adopted the most recent amendments to the county well regulations, the Board also directed the preparation of a study of aquifers in the unincorporated Midcoast area in order to better identify the groundwater yield for residential wells in that area. Individual groundwater wells have come into increasing use as a source of domestic water supply in the urban Midcoast over the past several years, primarily due to the unavailability of public water supplies. Wells have been controversial due to their potential unreliability as a long-term source of domestic water in an urban setting and their potential to impact coastal resources.

The Board appropriated funds for and directed staff to undertake a Midcoast groundwater study in two (2) phases. Phase 1 was to be a literature and data review summarizing all known information about groundwater in the urban Midcoast area. Phase 2 was to be a technical effort to gather missing data necessary to determine a safe yield of Midcoast aquifers, their ability to support further development and an environmental impact report on the effects of development to those levels. The County retained Balance Hydrologics, Inc. to conduct Phase 1 of the study. That work is now essentially complete. A summary of the report is attached. Balance Hydrologics will be available to make a short presentation to the Board.

The Subcommittee recommends that the Board take action to (1) authorize the release of the Phase 1 report to the public and interested agencies, (2) direct staff to schedule presentations of the report to the Midcoast Community Council and County Planning Commission, and (3) direct Planning staff to proceed with a Request for Proposal (RFP) for Phase 2 of the Midcoast groundwater study. As explained more fully below, the Subcommittee recommends that the Phase 2 study include an additional objective to review and recommend appropriate regulations of groundwater used for domestic purposes in the urban Midcoast.

5.

Well Regulations: The Subcommittee reviewed the following issues on well regulations:

A.

Well Inspection and Reporting. The Subcommittee considered the question whether the County could inspect existing wells and require well-owners to submit reports on water usage. The latter would typically require a metering system and log for each well. The Subcommittee's review found that current regulations already provide a mechanism for inspection and for metering and reporting domestic well usage. As a result, the Environmental Health Division sent letters to domestic well-owners asking them to submit reports of water usage on a voluntary basis. The Subcommittee also considered developing a two-tier monitoring and reporting fee, one level for those who voluntarily comply with self-reporting and another level for those who do not. The Subcommittee recommends that no action be taken on the fee proposal at this time in order to see the results of Environmental Health Division's requests for voluntary reporting.

B.

Well Issues in Locations Outside the Urban Midcoast. The Subcommittee has monitored the litigation over the Westside Basin in the North County.

C.

Well Issues in the Urban Midcoast. The Subcommittee received reports from the Planning Department on issues relating to wells and reports from Environmental Health on its recent program to identify wells in the Midcoast. The Subcommittee directed that the County's current standards for domestic wells in the Midcoast area be revised. The Board has heard public concern over possible saltwater intrusion in the Midcoast aquifers. In the last six months, staff for the California Coastal Commission has been requiring very stringent hydrogeological studies on projects appealed to the Commission after County approval. Finally, it was uncertain whether action would be necessary once Phase 1 of the Midcoast Aquifer Study was completed and Phase 2 was initiated.

The Subcommittee has had the opportunity to review and be briefed on the administrative draft of the Phase 1 report. The report identifies areas of potential concern in the Midcoast area, but the general conclusion was that the report does not provide enough information to support a moratorium on wells at any specific locations. The Midcoast area is geologically complex, and it is difficult, due to this complexity, to currently identify a discrete area in which a moratorium could be justified. After consultation with Balance Hydrologics, staff has suggested a performance-based approach under which the County would revise its domestic well standards for this area to better protect against concerns for saltwater intrusion and to provide a better understanding of water availability and viability. A summary of the standards and the proposed changes are attached. Also, attached is the current draft of a proposed urgency ordinance to implement these changes. If adopted, the new standards would be reviewed once Phase 2 of the Midcoast Study is completed. The new standards would only apply to the urban Midcoast area. The Subcommittee recommends that the Board direct staff to prepare and circulate the proposed ordinance for public comment and return the matter to the Board for its consideration within the next 30 to 45 days.

Vision Alignment

This project keeps the commitment to "preserve and provide people access to our natural environment" and goal number 14 - Important natural resources are preserved and enhanced through environmental stewardship.

Fiscal Impact

For the Midcoast Groundwater Study, the Board previously appropriated $500,000 in the Planning Division budget for both phases of the Study. The contract amount for the Phase 1 report was $22,975. The balance is available for funding the Phase 2 work. No additional appropriation is required. There are no other fiscal impacts to report.

Attachments

Summary - San Mateo County Midcoast Aquifers: Literature and Data Review (Phase 1, Midcoast Groundwater Study)

Summary - Proposed Changes to County Well Ordinance - April 2002

Draft Ordinance Amending Chapter 4.68 (Wells) of the San Mateo County Ordinance Code Relating to Standards for Domestic Wells in the Urban Midcoast Area.