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4.8 Hydrology and Water Quality

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4.8 Hydrology and Water Quality 4.8 HYDROLOGY AND WATER QUALITY This section discusses and analyzes the flooding, floodplain management, sea level rise, and water quality characteristics of the Planning Area. Sea level rise is more thoroughly discussed in Section 4.13, Energy and Climate Change. The information provided in this section is based on a number of sources, including the City of San Mateo’s Flood Management Strategies and the Storm Drain Master Plan. 4.8.1 EXISTING SETTING SURFACE WATER The City of San Mateo is located along the edge of the San Francisco Bay in San Mateo County and consists of approximately 15.7 square miles, which includes land area and portions of the San Francisco Bay and its associated tidelands and marshlands (3.2 square miles of bay water). The City of San Mateo has several forms of surface water sources including creeks, lagoons, tidal marsh, and bay waters. Discussion of these surface waters is included in Section 4.9, Biological Resources. City of San Mateo Watersheds San Mateo County encompasses four hydrologic basins and a total of 34 watersheds, all of which ultimately drain west to the Pacific Ocean or east to the San Francisco Bay. The City of San Mateo comprises four major drainage basins – the San Mateo Creek complex, the North San Mateo complex, the Marina Lagoon complex, and the 3rd and Detroit watershed, each composed of numerous stream channels, culverts, and storm drainage piping systems. The Marina Lagoon complex is further divided into four minor drainage basins; therefore, there are a total of seven major/minor drainages basins (both artificial and natural) within the City of San Mateo. Figure 4.8-1 delineates the City’s seven watersheds, with the first three draining directly to San Francisco Bay, either by gravity or pumping, and the latter four draining to the Marina Lagoon, whose water is pumped into the Bay: 1. North Shoreview Pump Stations 2. San Mateo Creek 3. East 3rd Avenue and Detroit Drive Pump Station 4. 16th Avenue Drain 5. 19th Avenue Drain 6. Laurel Creek 7. Direct Drainage to Marina Lagoon City of San Mateo General Plan Update July 2009 Draft Environmental Impact Report 4.8-1 4.8 HYDROLOGY AND WATER QUALITY FIGURE 4.8-1 CITY OF SAN MATEO WATERSHEDS San Francisco Bay The City of San Mateo is located along the western shoreline of San Francisco Bay. The entire San Francisco Bay comprises a group of interconnecting bays and rivers including the Sacramento River, San Joaquin River, and Napa River; the Suisun Bay, San Pablo Bay, and the main San Francisco Bay; and the Carquinez Strait. The main part of San Francisco Bay measures between 3 and 12 miles wide from east to west and 48 to 60 miles north to south. However, the Bay has been deliberately filled in since the mid-1800s by as much as a third, making the actual size of the Bay difficult to accurately measure. The areas of the Bay that were filled were primarily wetlands, which once consisted of many thousands of acres that formed the edges of San Francisco Bay. General Plan Update City of San Mateo Draft Environmental Impact Report July 2009 4.8-2 4.8 HYDROLOGY AND WATER QUALITY PRECIPITATION The Planning Area climate is temperate and subhumid and is modified greatly by marine influence. Summer fog is common in this area. Annual temperatures range from an average maximum of 66.8 degrees Fahrenheit (°F) to an average minimum of 47.1°F (Western Regional Climate Center, 2009). Average total mean annual precipitation for the San Mateo area is 20.16 inches and the mean freeze-free period is about 250 to 300 days. FLOODING AND FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT The City of San Mateo is particularly vulnerable to flooding conditions, especially areas within the lowland areas of the City. Substantial land settlement in the City has resulted in the need for additional flood control features. Historical Flooding Conditions Historic flooding has occurred at several locations throughout the City of San Mateo with the most impacted areas on the eastern side of San Mateo. In the past, flooding has occurred at several locations within the Marina Lagoon drainage complex due to inadequate channel and storage capacities or blockages during storms. In the 1970s, Laurel Creek Dam was overtopped, flooding a substantial portion of the San Mateo Village neighborhood. In the 1980s, East Laurel Creek Dam was overtopped, damaging homes immediately downstream. San Mateo Village was also flooded in 1955, 1966, and 1982. San Mateo Creek flooded in 1955 and 1958, flooding a number of homes and businesses downstream, including a number of downtown businesses. Flooding Conditions Portions of the City are located within the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) 100-year floodplain (see Figure 4.8-2). The first Flood Insurance Study was conducted by FEMA for the City of San Mateo in 1975; the study determined that all floods of any consequence occurred in the lowland areas of the City. In 1996, the City’s second Flood Insurance Study was conducted in which areas north of State Route (SR) 92 were determined inadequately protected by the levee system. In 2004, the Map Modernization Program initiated another review of the Flood Insurance Maps, and in 2008 a preliminary map was produced that determined the areas of the City that are still in danger of flooding. This new map will become final in the spring of 2010. City of San Mateo General Plan Update July 2009 Draft Environmental Impact Report 4.8-3 4.8 HYDROLOGY AND WATER QUALITY FIGURE 4.8-2 FEMA 100-YEAR FLOODPLAIN Sources of Flooding San Mateo faces two distinct but interrelated sources of flooding: San Francisco Bay and storm drain runoff. Figure 4.8-3 illustrates different flooding sources in the City. San Francisco Bay The City of San Mateo confronts substantial flood risks from the San Francisco Bay. The potential for flooding is due to the combined effects of high tides, very heavy storm flows, and sea level rise due to global warming. A series of outboard levees, located within San Mateo and Foster City, protect the City from San Francisco Bay tidal flooding. Without adequate levee protection, areas between the railroad tracks and the Bay are directly exposed to saltwater inundation. High tides, specifically, can exacerbate flooding in the low-lying areas between El Camino Real General Plan Update City of San Mateo Draft Environmental Impact Report July 2009 4.8-4 4.8 HYDROLOGY AND WATER QUALITY and the Bay because it is more difficult to discharge a given flow rate against a higher tide than a lower tide. Storm Drain Runoff Precipitation that falls on land from the Santa Cruz Mountain foothills to the bayland area generates stormwater runoff. This runoff flows downhill toward the Bay and is conveyed in a number of natural and man-made flood protection systems. The City’s seven drainage watersheds control the storm runoff and direct it toward the Marina Lagoon or directly into San Francisco Bay. FIGURE 4.8-3 SOURCES OF FLOODING Flooding Hazards Flooding within City of San Mateo is generally gradual (slow-rise flooding as opposed to flash flooding) and not necessarily life-threatening from flooding directly. However, access by emergency vehicles could be restricted, which could cause a life-threatening situation. Accordingly, emergency preparedness, as discussed in Section 4.3, Human Health/Risk of Upset, becomes an important component in San Mateo’s flood preparedness program. The City of San Mateo Fire Department and Public Works Department and the Department of Emergency Services monitor low-lying areas and storm runoff. The San Mateo Fire Department is responsible City of San Mateo General Plan Update July 2009 Draft Environmental Impact Report 4.8-5 4.8 HYDROLOGY AND WATER QUALITY for monitoring and responding to imminent/actual flooding. In the event of a severe flood, the City of San Mateo’s Emergency Operations Center would be activated and then would lead the City’s response. Bay Water Flooding The City of San Mateo confronts substantial flood risks from the San Francisco Bay, as described above. The potential for flooding is due to the combined effects of high tides, very heavy storm flows, and sea level rise due to global warming. A series of outboard levees, located within San Mateo and Foster City, protect the City from San Francisco Bay tidal flooding. Without adequate levee protection, areas between the railroad tracks and the Bay would be directly exposed to saltwater inundation. Dike Failure San Mateo’s levees are structurally stable, with the exception of approximately 1,000 feet of levee adjacent to Foster City which will be reconstructed in the near future. The probability of levee failure is very low. However, failure could result from a major earthquake or severe storm conditions. Should a failure occur at high tide, property could be inundated up to an elevation of 4.7 feet (San Mateo datum/7.06 ft. NGVD) or to a maximum water depth of about 6 feet in the lowest areas of the Shoreview neighborhood. Tsunami Tsunamis, or seismically generated sea waves, are rare in California due to the lack of submarine earthquake faults. An Alaska-generated tsunami would have to reach a height of at least 20 feet at the Golden Gate to overtop San Mateo’s levees with a minimum run-up of 5 feet at higher high tide. The highest tsunami affecting the area during the last 120 years had a height of 7.4 feet at the Golden Gate, causing a 2-foot run-up along the City of San Mateo shoreline.
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