About the SWRP

The Coastal Mendocino County Storm Water Resource Plan (SWRP) encompasses three coastal watersheds in Mendocino County, Northern California: Pudding Creek-Frontal Pacific Ocean Watershed, Noyo River Watershed, and Big River Watershed. The purpose of the SWRP is to identify potential projects that utilize stormwater as a resource for multi-benefit projects that augment water supply, identify areas of concern, enhance water quality, reduce localized flooding, and create environmental and community benefits within the three coastal watersheds.  For more information on the SWRP objective, multi-benefit projects and current projects in 2018 SWRP visit our projects page.

Until recent years, the State Water Board and Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Water Board) National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting program for municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s) has historically focused requirements for stormwater and dry weather runoff capture and use on new development and significant redevelopment, rather than on modifications to existing landscapes to increase stormwater and dry weather runoff capture and use.

In 2014, Prop 1 was passed by California voters. Prop 1 created a fund to allocate monetary resources to increase water supply reliability, restore and preserve fish and wildlife habitat, and develop resilient and sustainably managed water systems that will withstand future and unforeseen pressures in the coming decades. In 2015, the State Stormwater Resource Plan Guidelines were prepared to build a framework consistent with the requirements of California Water Code sections 10561-10573. The Coastal Mendocino County Stormwater Resource Plan (SWRP) utilizes the SWRP Guidelines to screen and evaluate projects based on weighted benefit criteria and quantitative analysis. The five main benefit categories are Environmental, Water Supply, Water Quality, Community, and Flood Management benefits. Quantitative methods utilized in project prioritization are project-dependent and a function of the benefit category that applies to the project. During the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) Kickoff Meeting on July 13, 2017, the five benefit categories were ranked (Table 1).

Table 1. Benefit Category Ranking from July 13, 2017 TAC Meeting

Each benefit category includes several primary and secondary benefits. A proposed project must be applicable to two primary benefits and one secondary benefit in order to qualify as a project alternative. Some primary or secondary benefits apply to more than one benefit category. For example, nonpoint-source pollution control fits into the Water Quality benefit category and the Environmental benefit category. Primary and secondary benefits are utilized in the selection of the appropriate quantitative methods for each benefit category.