Agenda Item AGENDA STAFF REPORT ASR Control 07-000121
MEETING DATE:	02/27/07
legal entity taking action:	Orange County Flood Control District
board of supervisors district(s):	All Districts
SUBMITTING Agency/Department:	Resources and Development Management Department (Approved)
Department contact person(s):	Nadeem Majaj (714) 834-3719
	Lance Natsuhara (714) 834-5398

Subject: Prado Dam Water Conservation Operations Agreement

ceo Concur	County Counsel Review		Clerk of the Board
Concur	Approved Agreement to Form		Consent Calendar
			3 Votes Board Majority
Budgeted: N/A		Current Year Cost: N/A		Annual Cost: N/A
Staffing Impact: No		# of Positions:		Sole Source: N/A
Current Fiscal Year Revenue: N/A
Funding Source: N/A
Prior Board Action: Local Cooperation Agreement between the U.S. Department of the Army and the Orange County Flood Control District dated 12/14/89 and Supplements thereto.

RECOMMENDED ACTION(S)

Acting as the Board of Supervisors for the Orange County Flood Control District:

Approve and execute the Prado Dam Water Conservation Operations Agreement - Agreement No. D07-006.

SUMMARY:

The Prado Dam Water Conservation Operations Agreement is a cooperative agreement between the Orange County Flood Control District (OCFCD) and the Orange County Water District (OCWD). It obligates OCWD to reimburse OCFCD for its increased operations and maintenance costs attributable to OCWD's water conservation activties at Prado Dam.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

The December 1989 Local Cooperation Agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) for the Santa Ana River Mainstem Project (a previous Board action) designates the OCFCD, the San Bernardino County Flood Control District and the Riverside County Flood Control and Water Conservation District as Local Sponsors of the project and owners. In February 2003 the Corps and OCFCD entered into a Project Cooperation Agreement for the construction of Prado Dam as a separable element of the Santa Ana River Mainstem Project.

On completion of individual features of the Santa Ana River Mainstem Project, OCFCD will be responsible for the operation and maintenance of the new Prado Dam features and other Santa Ana River Mainstem features within Orange County. For federally operated features like Prado Dam, OCFCD and the Corps will share the cost of operation and maintenance for the Prado Dam embankment and outlet works. OCWD has acknowledged that its water conservation activities at Prado Dam will result in increased operation and maintenance costs for the dam and improvements located downstream.

In September 1999 OCWD petitioned the State Water Resources Control Board to modify the Declaration of Fully Appropriated Stream Status. In July 2002 the Local Sponsors, including OCFCD, submitted a protest to OCWD’s application which proposed the execution of an operation agreement to resolve the protest.

To resolve the protest and to resolve concerns regarding reimbursement of expenses incurred by OCFCD due to implementation of water conservation activities at Prado Dam, OCWD and OCFCD have prepared the attached Agreement No. D07-006 for approval by your Board. Agreement No. D07-006, approved by OCWD’s Board of Directors on January 18, 2007, obligates OCWD to reimburse OCFCD for incremental increases in its operation and maintenance costs for Prado Dam and the Lower Santa Ana River. OCFCD, with the consent of the other Local Sponsors for the Santa Ana River Mainstem Project, agrees to dismiss its protest to OCWD’s water rights application.

Fiscal Impact:

None. The Agreement obligates OCWD to reimburse OCFCD for the incremental increase in operation and maintenance costs attributable to water conservation activities at Prado Dam.

Compliance with CEQA:

The subject activity is not a project as defined by CEQA pursuant to Section 15378(b)(4) of the CEQA Guidelines.

FINANCIAL IMPACT:

N/A

STAFFING IMPACT:

N/A

ATTACHMENT(S):

Attachment A - Agreement D07-006 (two originals at Clerk of the Board)