A sprawling, 250-acre wetland near Watsonville that provides refuge for thousands of wintering waterfowl is slated for acquisition by the Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency (PVMA) to provide water for crop irrigation—one of several groundwater recovery projects adopted as part of the agency's Basin Management Plan.
To address the potential adverse impacts of the water impoundment project on wetland wildlife, the PVMA has prepared an Adaptive Management Plan (AMP) after years of urging by the Sierra Club to include a technical advisory committee as part of the overall project. The resulting Adaptive Management Plan Committee was tasked with preparation of the AMP, with a focus on biological resources.
The AMP includes a monitoring plan for waterfowl and wetland vegetation, as well as triggers for potential management actions should the water project reduce the extent of wetland habitat or degrade waterfowl populations or species diversity. The plan also seeks to sustain plants important to First Nation communities and improve the steelhead fishery.
Jerry Busch, the Sierra Club's representative on the AMP Committee and its Vice Chair, said that the plan, if properly implemented, could result in supplemental waterfowl food production and other measures to preserve current bird populations.
Adaptive management is an organized process that allows action under uncertain conditions based on the best available science and information. It relies on closely monitoring and evaluating outcomes, and then re-evaluating and adjusting decisions as more information is collected. The purpose of this AMP is to provide an adaptive management framework, including metrics, triggers, and management actions, to guide operations and maintenance of the College Lake Project, and to mitigate negative impacts to the lake ecosystem.
The Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency Board of Directors unanimously adopted the Adaptive Management Plan 2022 (AMP) at its January 2022 meeting. The Sierra Club supported this adoption.
Photo of the Lake on the afternoon of December 12, 2021. On December 3, more than 2,000 waterfowl were counted at the lake. Photo by permission of Jerry Busch
See our comment letters here:
PVWMA Draft Adaptive Management Plan Letter
College Lake FEIR Letter
College Lake DEIR Letter