Santa Rosa Groundwater Master Plan

In 2013, the City adopted a Groundwater Master Plan (PDF) to provide strategic direction for effectively managing the groundwater resources within the urban growth boundary of Santa Rosa. The master plan integrates groundwater and surface water protection and management with water conservation and reuse to increase groundwater reliability and sustainability. The master plan includes: 

  • Recommendations for an emergency groundwater supply plan;
  • Development of a key well monitoring network;
  • Conceptual evaluation of aquifer storage and recovery;
  • Recommended groundwater policies designed to guide the future role of groundwater and promote balanced use and sustainability for the groundwater resources available to the City
  • Based on these recommended policies, identified specific groundwater projects and programs
Background  
In October 2011, the City initiated the development of a Groundwater Master Plan to provide direction and recommended policies on Santa Rosa’s use of current and future groundwater resources for both peaking and emergency supply. The City hired West Yost Associates to develop the Master Plan which provides recommendations for emergency groundwater supply, development of a key well monitoring network, summary of all of the groundwater data the City has developed in one central document, evaluation of the feasibility of aquifer storage and recovery, development of a key well monitoring network to help establish and track baseline groundwater conditions, and recommended groundwater policies for the Board of Public Utilities and City Council’s consideration.

The Groundwater Master Plan includes recommended groundwater policies designed to promote balanced use and sustainability of the groundwater resources available to the City, including installation of emergency groundwater wells to ultimately provide an additional 12.0 million gallons per day emergency groundwater capacity.  
 
The City of Santa Rosa Groundwater Master Plan Mitigated Negative Declaration and Mitigation Monitoring Program and the Groundwater Master Plan was adopted by the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) at a public meeting on September 19, 2013.

Master Plan Documents

  1. Groundwater Master Plan
  2. Errata Sheet
  3. Final Mitigated Negative Declaration

Master Plan Presentations

  1. June 2013 BPU Presentation
  2. November 2012 WAC Presentation
  3. October 18, 2012 BPU Presentation
  4. October 4, 2012 BPU Presentation
  5. September 2012 Joint Council BPU Presentation
  6. May 2012 BPU Presentation
  7. October 2011 BPU Presentation
  8. March 2011 BPU Presentation

Santa Rosa Plain (Regional) Groundwater Management Plan

Additionally, the City, in collaboration with a 30-member Basin Advisory Board, which included diverse stakeholders who live or work in the Santa Rosa Plain Watershed, developed a Santa Rosa Plain Groundwater Management Plan (PDF) in 2014 to comply with AB 3030 and SB 1938. The Plan is an integrated strategy to increase water supply reliability, minimize adverse impacts to groundwater, enhance local management of groundwater resources, and increase economic opportunities through available state grant funding programs.