Water Supply and Sanitation Projects
Russian River Instream Flow and Restoration
The biological opinion is a 15-year recovery plan to implement the mandates of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) as they relate to threatened and endangered fish in the Russian River and its tributaries.
The Sonoma County Water Agency (Water Agency) has created the Russian River Instream Flow and Restoration (RRIFR) Project to implement the 15-year biological opinion. In the early years, it's likely that the Water Agency and NMFS will ask the State Water Resources Control Board for interim changes in summertime flows. In the meantime, with help from state and federal partners, the Water Agency will work on an application to make long-term changes in summertime flows.
Water Supply Strategies
For more than half a century, the Sonoma County Water Agency has worked to insure that our North Bay customers have the water they need, when they need it. Our job is to make sure that the Agency can make the same claim in 2060.
Learn more about our Water Supply Strategies
Safe Medicine Disposal Program
The Sonoma County Water Agency is sponsoring a pilot program to safely dispose of unused and unwanted medications. Participating drop-off locations are listed below. Bring any unwanted medication (in original containers with personal information marked out) to any participating location for safe disposal during business hours.
Safe Medicine Disposal Program
Integrated Regional Watershed Management Plan
In November 2002, California voters approved Proposition 50, the Water Security, Clean Drinking Water, Coastal and Beach Protection Act of 2002. The Act encourages regional cooperation in water resources planning by providing grant funding for projects identified in a regional plan, referred to as an Integrated Regional Water Management Plan (IRWMP). In order to qualify for funding, projects should be "designed to improve regional water supply reliability, water recycling, water conservation, water quality improvement, stormwater capture and management, flood management, recreation and access, wetlands enhancement and creation, and environmental and habitat protection and improvement." The Sonoma County Water Agency has been a leader in bringing together agencies and other stakeholders throughout the North Coast and Bay Area to cooperatively develop two regional plans; one for the North Coast region and another for the San Francisco Bay Area region. For more information, visit the CA State Water Resources Control Board's IRWMP website .
North San Pablo Bay Restoration and Reuse Project
The proposed North San Pablo Bay Restoration and Reuse Project (Project) would build on commitments to long-term inter-agency cooperation within Sonoma, Marin and Napa counties to address common needs related to reliable water supplies and enhanced environmental restoration within the northern San Pablo Bay region. The proposed Project would provide recycled water for agricultural, urban, and environmental uses thereby reducing reliance on local and imported surface and groundwater and reducing discharges to San Pablo Bay. The North Bay Water Reuse Authority (NBWRA), established under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in August 2005, is comprised of four wastewater utilities: Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District (LGVSD), Novato Sanitary District (Novato SD), Sonoma Valley County Sanitation District (SVCSD), and Napa Sanitation District (Napa SD), with Sonoma County Water Agency acting as administrative agency. Additional agencies supporting the Authority through contribution of funds and staff time include North Marin Water District (NMWD) and Napa County. The NBWRA and its contributing agencies would be the implementing agencies to design and construct the proposed Project.
As implementation of the Project would likely require external funding assistance, the investigation and development of the Project is being carried out in conformance with the requirements of the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation Public Law 102-575, Title XVI, which provides a mechanism for federal participation and cost-sharing in water reuse projects.
The proposed project extends approximately 10 to 15 miles inland from the San Pablo Bay within Marin, Sonoma, and Napa Counties. The action area extends as far south as Point San Pedro in Marin County, and as far north as Milliken Canyon located 28 miles to the northeast in eastern Napa County, and encompasses about 318 square miles of land. Urban centers in the action area are San Rafael (county seat) and Novato in Marin County, Sonoma in Sonoma County, and Napa (county seat) in Napa County.
The following project objectives have been developed by the NBWRA for the proposed Project. The project is proposed to promote the expanded beneficial use of recycled water in the North Bay region to:
- Offset urban and agricultural demands on potable supplies;
- Enhance local and regional ecosystems;
- Improve local and regional water supply reliability;
- Maintain and protect public health and safety;
- Promote sustainable practices;
- Give top priority to local needs for recycled water, and;
- Implement recycled water facilities in an economically viable manner.
The Water Agency is acting as the administrative Agency under the NBWRA
For more information on this project, please visit the project website.
North Sonoma County Agricultural Reuse Project
The purpose of the NSCARP is to provide a reliable alternative source of water for agricultural water users in the Russian River, Dry Creek, and Alexander Valley areas (North Sonoma County area) to reduce reliance on natural regional water supplies and address regional water supply and regulatory issues. The NSCARP would include the design and construction of storage reservoirs, conveyance and distribution pipelines, and pump stations in the North Sonoma County area. The water for NSCARP would be tertiary treated municipal wastewater generated and conveyed primarily through the City of Santa Rosa's Geysers Pipeline to the project areas. The Agency held three public workshops in 2004 to discuss the project planning process and provide opportunities for public participation regarding the project. A Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the project was released for public review in March 2007. A Final EIR and Response to Comments document was released in March 2009.
Russian River County Sanitation District Equalization Basin Storage Project
The Russian River County Sanitation District (District) is proposing to develop the Equalization Basin Storage Project (Project). The Project would design, construct, operate, and maintain an approximately 3.6 million gallon earthen equalization basin and appurtenant structures within the existing boundaries of the wastewater treatment plant. The purpose of the Project is to minimize the potential for National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit violations by increasing the District’s wastewater storage capacity and adding redundancy to the system during large storm events, periods of high influent flow, and process upset conditions, thus improving discharge season reliability. Additionally, the project would implement long-term strategies to satisfy North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Board) Cease and Desist Order (CDO) No. 98-57 requirements by increasing equalization storage.