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A Legal Guide to the Public’s Rights to Access and Use of California’s Navigable Waters

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A Legal Guide to the Public’s Rights to Access and Use of California’s Navigable Waters
California State Lands Commission | November 20, 2017...
Summary
In California, members of the public have rights to access and use navigable waters for many beneficial uses, including, but not limited to navigation, fishing, and recreation. These public rights are expressed in federal law, California’s Act of...
In California, members of the public have rights to access and use navigable waters for many beneficial uses, including, but not limited to navigation, fishing, and recreation. These public rights are expressed in federal law, California’s Act of Admission, the California Constitution, court opinions, and state statutes. However, the public’s rights to access and use the state’s navigable waters are sometimes misunderstood.

California public officials are periodically called on to address disputes about the public’s rights to access and use the state’s navigable waters. These disputes may arise between recreational water users, such as boaters, fishermen, hunters, shoreline and beach users, and adjacent private property owners. In this guide, the California State Lands Commission seeks to inform and clarify, for the public, government officials, and private property owners, the public’s rights to access and use the state’s navigable waters by summarizing the relevant legal principles.

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Agricultural Land Stewardship (Resource Management Strategy)
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Agricultural Land Stewardship (Resource Management Strategy)
Department of Water Resources | July 29, 2016...
Summary
This resource management strategy focuses primarily on private land in agriculture including cultivated land and rangeland. Agricultural land in California comprises about 31.6...
This resource management strategy focuses primarily on private land in agriculture including cultivated land and rangeland. Agricultural land in California comprises about 31.6 million acres (California Department of Conservation, Division of Land Resource Protection, Farmland Mapping and Monitoring Program 2008). About 12.4 million of these acres are cultivated, while the remaining 19.2 million acres are rangeland (California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection 2010).

Agricultural systems in California are varied in the way resources are used, ranging from intensive conventional agriculture (irrigated crop cultivation) to more extensive systems such as livestock grazing, each with a different relationship to natural resources. They also affect and are affected by surface hydrology and groundwater recharge in different ways. Stewardship of this land requires constant balancing among natural constraints, market forces, and ever-changing social expectations. Institutions and policies have been developed in response to these challenges. Public investment in water infrastructure (reservoirs, canals, drains, levees, dykes) has been in the forefront of these.

This resource management strategy report focuses on agricultural land stewardship (ALS) strategies that can be incorporated into relevant adaptive management of agricultural land at different levels, including landscape, regional and project.

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Before the Well Runs Dry: Improving the Linkage Between Groundwater and Land Use Planning

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Before the Well Runs Dry: Improving the Linkage Between Groundwater and Land Use Planning
Water in the West, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, The Bill Lane Center for the American West | April 17, 2014...
Summary
There is no comprehensive regulation of groundwater use in the state of California,* and the right to withdraw groundwater is based on surface...
There is no comprehensive regulation of groundwater use in the state of California,* and the right to withdraw groundwater is based on surface land ownership. This creates a direct linkage between every land use that requires water and the groundwater underneath that land. Because so many aspects of groundwater use are not regulated by the state, local governments’ land use decisions become a key driver of demands on groundwater. Nonetheless, land use decisions and planning are not well coordinated with groundwater management.

Understanding how land use decisions affect groundwater resources has become increasingly important in recent years, as groundwater provides approximately 30 percent of California’s water supply in average years and 40 percent of the supply in dry years. In some places, the reliance on groundwater during droughts is much higher, due to reduced supplies of surface water. Growth from housing and irrigated agriculture, among other demands, have led to chronic overdraft and declining groundwater elevations in many communities that rely heavily on groundwater.

To address this problem, Water in the West convened groundwater managers, land use planners, water lawyers, consultants and academics at Stanford University for an Uncommon Dialogue in the fall of 2013. Its aim was to discuss a growing consensus that more effective integration of land use planning and groundwater management is an essential component of preserving groundwater aquifers for the future, and to share possible means of accomplishing this in California.

This report, shaped in part by the Dialogue, provides the background and regulatory context for land use planning and groundwater management in California, shares case studies that highlight the intersection of groundwater and land use, and makes specific recommendations to improve the linkage between land use decisions and groundwater management in the state.

*The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) was signed into law five months after this was published.

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Effects of Urban Development on Stream Ecosystems in Nine Metropolitan Study Areas Across the United States
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Effects of Urban Development on Stream Ecosystems in Nine Metropolitan Study Areas Across the United States
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | November 13, 2012...
Summary
Urban development is an important agent of environmental change in the United States. The urban footprint on the American landscape has expanded during...
Urban development is an important agent of environmental change in the United States. The urban footprint on the American landscape has expanded during a century and a half of almost continuous development. Eighty percent of Americans now live in metropolitan areas, and the advantages and challenges of living in these developed areas—convenience, congestion, employment, pollution—are part of the day-to-day realities of most Americans.

Nowhere are the environmental changes associated with urban development more evident than in urban streams. Contaminants, habitat destruction, and increasing streamflow flashiness resulting from urban development have been associated with the disruption of biological communities, particularly the loss of sensitive aquatic species.

Every stream is connected downstream to larger water bodies, including rivers, reservoirs, and ultimately coastal waters. Inputs of chemical contaminants or sediments at any point along the stream can cause degradation downstream with adverse effects on biological communities and on economically valuable resources, such as fisheries and tourism.

In response to general concerns about the degradation of urban streams, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted a national-scale, scientific investigation of the effects of urban development on stream ecosystems. Nine metropolitan study areas of the United States were selected—Portland, Oregon; Salt Lake City, Utah; Birmingham, Alabama; Atlanta, Georgia; Raleigh, North Carolina; Boston, Massachusetts; Denver, Colorado; Dallas, Texas; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The studies were conducted in Salt Lake City, Birmingham, and Boston in 1999–2000; in Atlanta, Raleigh, and Denver in 2002–2003; and in Portland, Dallas, and Milwaukee in 2003–2004.

The comprehensive investigation of all nine studies focused on three broad questions of interest to decision makers:
1. What are the primary effects of urban development on stream ecosystems?
2. How do the effects of urban development on stream ecosystems vary regionally across the country?
3. Which urban-related stressors are most closely linked to biological community degradation, and how can multiple stressors be managed to protect stream health as a watershed becomes increasingly urbanized?

RELATED DOCUMENT: Strategies for Managing the Effects of Urban Development on Streams

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Federal Land Management Agencies: Background on Land and Resources Management
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Federal Land Management Agencies: Background on Land and Resources Management
Congressional Research Service | February 9, 2009...
Summary
The federal government owns about 650 million acres (29%) of the 2.27 billion acres of land in the United States. Four agencies administer...
The federal government owns about 650 million acres (29%) of the 2.27 billion acres of land in the United States. Four agencies administer 617.5 million acres of the federal land: the Forest Service in the Department of Agriculture, and the Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, and National Park Service, all in the Department of the Interior. Most of these lands are in the West, including Alaska. They generate revenues for the U.S. Treasury, some of which are shared with states and localities. The agencies receive funding through the annual Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations laws, as well as in various trust funds and special accounts.

The lands administered by the four agencies are managed for a variety of purposes, primarily related to preservation, recreation, and development of natural resources. Yet each of these agencies has distinct responsibilities for the lands and resources it administers. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages 255.8 million acres and is responsible for 700 million acres of subsurface mineral resources. The BLM has a multiple-use, sustained-yield mandate that supports a variety of uses and programs, including energy development, recreation, grazing and wild horses and burros, and conservation. The Forest Service (FS) manages 192.8 million acres also for multiple uses and sustained yields of various products and services, including timber harvesting, recreation, grazing, watershed protection, and fish and wildlife habitats. Most of the lands are designated national forests, but there are national grasslands and other designations.

Wildfire protection is an increasingly important activity for both agencies. The BLM and FS have several authorities to acquire and dispose of lands. The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) manages 90.8 million acres of federal land, primarily to conserve and protect animals and plants. The National Wildlife Refuge System includes wildlife refuges, waterfowl production areas, and wildlife coordination units. Units can be created by an act of Congress or executive order, and the FWS also may acquire lands for migratory birds. The National Park Service (NPS) manages 78.1 million acres of federal land to conserve lands and resources and make them available for public use. Activities that harvest or remove resources generally are prohibited. The National Park System has diverse units ranging from historical structures to cultural and natural areas. Units are created by an act of Congress, but the President may proclaim national monuments.

There also are three special management systems that include lands from more than one agency. The National Wilderness Preservation System consists of 107.6 million acres of protected wilderness areas designated by Congress. The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System contains 11,944 miles of wild, scenic, and recreational rivers, primarily designated by Congress and managed to preserve their free-flowing condition. The National Trails System contains four classes of trails managed to provide recreation and access to outdoor areas and historic resources.

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FLOOD- MAR Using Flood Water for Managed Aquifer Recharge to Support Sustainable Water Resources
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FLOOD- MAR Using Flood Water for Managed Aquifer Recharge to Support Sustainable Water Resources
California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | June 26, 2018...
Summary
The effects of climate change are necessitating wholesale changes in how water is managed in California. With less water storage from snowpack, California...
The effects of climate change are necessitating wholesale changes in how water is managed in California. With less water storage from snowpack, California needs to leverage both the current water system and new opportunities to provide sustainable alternatives that can simultaneously accommodate longer and deeper droughts, and more severe, and frequent, episodic and seasonal flooding. This recent cycle of drought and flood, and the passage of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), provide an enhanced opportunity to modernize State policies related to the nexus between flood management, land use, groundwater management, and ecosystem enhancement.

Partnerships, among DWR; other State, federal, tribal, regional, and local entities; and university and private researchers, are actively exploring opportunities to determine how flood and groundwater management can be integrated for multiple benefits. Although integrating flood and groundwater management is not a new concept, the time is ripe to implement an expanded, large-scale integrated program. With the passage and early implementation of SGMA, in combination with climate-induced extreme events, the logic for communities to partner and integrate is evident and imperative. This partnership will help reduce the impacts of future swings between high- and low-flow periods while meeting their communities’ objectives, with the added benefits of improving floodplain ecosystems, preserving working landscapes, and engaging California’s agricultural community in needed solutions, among others.

This white paper explores “Flood-MAR”, an integrated and voluntary resource management strategy that uses flood water resulting from, or in anticipation of, rainfall or snowmelt for groundwater recharge on agricultural lands and working landscapes, including but not limited to refuges, floodplains, and flood bypasses. Large-scale implementation of Flood-MAR will fundamentally change how flood and groundwater management are managed. Flood-MAR can be implemented at multiple scales, from individual landowners diverting flood water with existing infrastructure, to using extensive detention/recharge areas and modernizing flood protection infrastructure/operations. Flood-MAR’s potential and value for California is achieved by integrating Flood-MAR with other regional recharge efforts, changing management of California’s water system to better integrate surface water and groundwater, upgrading conveyance, storage, and operations, and considering Flood-MAR’s opportunities as related to water transport and transfers are some of the system integration considerations.

This white paper demonstrates the need for Flood-MAR to become an important part of California’s portfolio of water resource management strategies, now and in the future, to help significantly improve water resources sustainability and climate resiliency throughout the state. Using Flood Water for Managed Aquifer Recharge Can Provide Broad Benefits. There is a clear State interest in encouraging, and participating in, Flood-MAR projects because they can provide broad and multiple public and private benefits for Californians and the ecosystems of the state.

Potential public benefits include:
- Flood Risk Reduction.
- Drought Preparedness.
- Aquifer Replenishment.
- Ecosystem Enhancement.
- Subsidence Mitigation.
- Water Quality Improvement.
- Working Landscape Preservation and Stewardship.

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Forest Management (Resource Management Strategy)
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Forest Management (Resource Management Strategy)
California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | July 29, 2016...
Summary
Forest lands in California, the majority of which are in the middle to high elevation foothills and mountains, produce a diverse array of...
Forest lands in California, the majority of which are in the middle to high elevation foothills and mountains, produce a diverse array of resources such as water, timber, native vegetation, fish, wildlife, and livestock, and outdoor recreation. However, the water produced by these forests has economic value that equals or exceeds that of any other forest resource (Krieger 2001; California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection 2003).

Most of California’s major rivers and a substantial portion of its runoff originate in these forests; therefore, most of California’s major water development projects are tied strongly to forested watersheds.

Forest management activities can affect water quantity and quality. This strategy focuses on forest management activities, on both public and privately-owned forest lands, whose goals specifically include improvement of the availability and quality of water for downstream users.

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Guidebook for Implementation of SB 610 and SB 221 to assist water suppliers, cities, and counties in integrating water and land use planning
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Guidebook for Implementation of SB 610 and SB 221 to assist water suppliers, cities, and counties in integrating water and land use planning
Department of Water Resources | October 10, 2003...
Summary
Senate Bills 610 (Chapter 643, Statutes of 2001) and Senate Bill 221 (Chapter 642, Statutes of 2001) amended state law, effective January 1,...
Senate Bills 610 (Chapter 643, Statutes of 2001) and Senate Bill 221 (Chapter 642, Statutes of 2001) amended state law, effective January 1, 2002, to improve the link between information on water supply availability and certain land use decisions made by cities and counties. SB 610 and SB 221 are companion measures which seek to promote more collaborative planning between local water suppliers and cities and counties. Both statutes require detailed information regarding water availability to be provided to the city and county decision-makers prior to approval of specified large development projects. Both statutes also require this detailed information be included in the administrative record that serves as the evidentiary basis for an approval action by the city or county on such projects.

Both measures recognize local control and decision making regarding the availability of water for projects and the approval of projects. Under SB 610, water assessments must be furnished to local governments for inclusion in any environmental documentation for certain projects (as defined in Water Code 10912 [a]) subject to the California Environmental Quality Act. Under SB 221, approval by a city or county of certain residential subdivisions requires an affirmative written verification of sufficient water supply.

If coordinated and comprehensive water supply planning is underway at the time that the SB 610-water assessment is prepared, compliance with SB 221 will be greatly facilitated. SB 221 is intended as a ‘fail safe’ mechanism to ensure that collaboration on finding the needed water supplies to serve a new large subdivision occurs when it should – before construction begins.

Not every project that is subject to the requirements of SB 610 would also require the mandatory water verification of SB 221 (e.g. if there is no subdivision map approval). Conversely, not every project that is subject to the requirements of SB 221 would also require the environmental document to contain an SB 610 water supply assessment. Projects approved before January 1, 2002 were not subject to the requirements of SB 610 or SB 221; however, some projects may have been subject to the requirement to prepare a water supply assessment as set forth in Senate Bill 901 of 1995 (Chapter 881, Statues of 1995).

A foundational document for compliance with both SB 610 and SB 221 is the Urban Water Management Plan (UWMP). Both of these statutes repeatedly identify the UWMP as a planning document that, if properly prepared, can be used by a water supplier to meet the standards set forth in both statutes. Thorough and complete UWMPs will allow water suppliers to use UWMPs as a foundation to fulfill the specific requirements of these two statutes. Cities, counties, water districts, property owners, and developers will all be able to utilize this document when planning for and proposing new projects.

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Hydrologic Modeling of the Santa Clara River Watershed with the U.S. EPA Hydrologic Simulation Program – FORTRAN (HSPF)

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Hydrologic Modeling of the Santa Clara River Watershed with the U.S. EPA Hydrologic Simulation Program – FORTRAN (HSPF)
Ventura County Watershed Protection District | January 24, 2009...
Summary
The purpose of the Santa Clara River (SCR) Watershed Feasibility Study as described in the PMP (October, 2003) is to determine the impact of...
The purpose of the Santa Clara River (SCR) Watershed Feasibility Study as described in the PMP (October, 2003) is to determine the impact of the upstream urbanization, specifically in Los Angeles County, to the present natural state of the river in Ventura County and communities adjacent to the River that expect to develop close to the river banks. It is the goal of the watershed study to develop the necessary baseline data and analytical tools. In order to evaluate these impacts the feasibility study will include:

• A comprehensive update of hydrologic, hydraulic, and sediment (yield and transport) models for a range of flow rates for existing conditions and future conditions within the Santa Clara River. The hydrologic model provides the flow data needed as input to the hydraulic and sediment transport models.

• The hydrologic model will also be used to evaluate baseline and changes to water quality and pollutant loadings as a result of development or any proposed regional solutions to flooding or water quality problems.

• Generate computer models that can simulate the impacts of land use changes under existing, natural and future conditions, and provide data to forecast the resulting changes to streamflow in the Santa Clara River.

• Existing conditions include recently installed flood control and water supply/storage facilities. For future conditions, the modeling will include proposed land use changes, any additional flood control or sediment control facilities, and the effects of changes in sediment flow to the downstream areas as a result of proposed alternatives to mitigate flooding or water quality problems. The Natural Condition will be modeled by assuming the watershed has not been developed or subjected to extensive ranching or agricultural activities (pre-European).

This document is the Final Report for the watershed hydrology model of the Santa Clara River Watershed using the U.S. EPA Hydrologic Simulation Program FORTRAN (HSPF). This effort was funded directly and wholly by contract with the Ventura County Watershed Protection District (VCWPD). This report identifies and describes the watershed characteristics and types of data required/available for the model, the segmentation of the watershed for modeling purposes, model calibration and validation efforts, and the results for the Baseline and Natural Conditions Scenario model runs.

This effort has been designed to produce a comprehensive watershed model that meets the needs of the hydrologic model component of the SCR Watershed Feasibility Study as described above. This model was designed to:

a. Represent hydrologic conditions throughout the SCR watershed for a wide range of flow conditions continuously for both high flows, low flows and individual storm events

b. Provide continuous flow boundary conditions for the hydraulic and sediment transport models, at the appropriate spatial scales and boundary locations identified by the Feasibility Study participants

c. Provide a modeling framework for subsequent sediment yield and water quality modeling requirements of the Feasibility Study

d. Include a long-term database of 40 or more years of model input (e.g. precipitation, evaporation, diversions, POTWs) to allow long-term model simulations needed to develop the required flood (and low flow) frequency information at selected points throughout the SCR Watershed

e. Provide long-term model simulations for both Baseline (current) and Natural Condition alternatives as a basis for assessing and comparing with planned Future Condition alternatives.

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Inhabiting the Delta: A Landscape Approach to Transformative Socio-Ecological Restoration

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Inhabiting the Delta: A Landscape Approach to Transformative Socio-Ecological Restoration
San Francisco Estuary and Watershed Science | September 19, 2017...
Summary
Current legislation and plans for the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta (Delta) call for large-scale restoration of aquatic and terrestrial habitats, which will require significant...
Current legislation and plans for the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta (Delta) call for large-scale restoration of aquatic and terrestrial habitats, which will require significant changes in waterways, land uses, and cultural patterns. These re-made landscapes will be subject to a variety of new human uses, which Delta planning and adaptive management literature has yet to adequately consider. Failing to account for human uses and evolving place values can lead to diminished performance and public support for Delta restoration efforts.

Our empirical study examined restored and naturalized Delta landscapes using an integrative landscape approach that seeks to reconcile multiple goals and land-use agendas that span ecological, social, economic, and political domains. The research design consisted of six overlapping methods that included a planning, policy, and law review specific to the Delta; surveys and interviews with approximately 100 land managers, scientists, land-owners, law-enforcement personnel, agency representatives, and Delta residents; nine case studies of restored and naturalized delta landscapes; GIS mapping; and extensive field work.

Findings derived from the synthesis of these methods show that human uses of the Delta’s re-wilded landscapes are diverse and pervasive. Given the infrastructural and urbanized context of the region, these environments are subject to multiple and sometimes conflicting uses, perceptions, and place values. Though these myriad uses cannot be fully predicted or controlled (nor should they be), findings showed that more proactive and inclusive planning for human uses can encourage or discourage particular uses while also building constituency, support, and active engagement in ecological restoration efforts. We conclude that reconciling human uses with ecological recovery in the Delta will require a more localized, multi-functional, and creative approach to designing and adaptively managing these emergent landscapes. We recommend that more resources and experimental prototyping be dedicated to such work.

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A Legal Guide to the Public’s Rights to Access and Use of California’s Navigable Waters

A Legal Guide to the Public’s Rights to Access and Use of California’s Navigable Waters

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Agricultural Land Stewardship (Resource Management Strategy)

Agricultural Land Stewardship (Resource Management Strategy)

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Before the Well Runs Dry: Improving the Linkage Between Groundwater and Land Use Planning

Before the Well Runs Dry: Improving the Linkage Between Groundwater and Land Use Planning

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Effects of Urban Development on Stream Ecosystems in Nine Metropolitan Study Areas Across the United States

Effects of Urban Development on Stream Ecosystems in Nine Metropolitan Study Areas Across the United States

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Federal Land Management Agencies: Background on Land and Resources Management

Federal Land Management Agencies: Background on Land and Resources Management

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FLOOD- MAR Using Flood Water for Managed Aquifer Recharge to Support Sustainable Water Resources

FLOOD- MAR Using Flood Water for Managed Aquifer Recharge to Support Sustainable Water Resources

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Forest Management (Resource Management Strategy)

Forest Management (Resource Management Strategy)

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Guidebook for Implementation of SB 610 and SB 221 to assist water suppliers, cities, and counties in integrating water and land use planning

Guidebook for Implementation of SB 610 and SB 221 to assist water suppliers, cities, and counties in integrating water and land use planning

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Hydrologic Modeling of the Santa Clara River Watershed with the U.S. EPA Hydrologic Simulation Program – FORTRAN (HSPF)

Hydrologic Modeling of the Santa Clara River Watershed with the U.S. EPA Hydrologic Simulation Program – FORTRAN (HSPF)

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Inhabiting the Delta: A Landscape Approach to Transformative Socio-Ecological Restoration

Inhabiting the Delta: A Landscape Approach to Transformative Socio-Ecological Restoration

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