Coyote Creek Santa Ana River Santiago Creek San Diego Creek Newport Bay THE OC PLAN Integrated Regional Water Management for the North and Central Orange County Watershed Management Areas March 2018 The OC Plan Contacts County of Orange Orange County Watersheds Orange County Department of Public Works 2301 N. Glassell Street Orange, California 92865 www.ocwatersheds.com Orange County Water District 18700 Ward Street Fountain Valley, California 92708 (714) 378-8248 www.ocwd.com Orange County Sanitation District 10844 Ellis Avenue Fountain Valley, California 92708 (714) 962-2411 www.ocsd.com March 2018 The OC PLAN for IRWM in North and Central Orange County TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................................................. TOC-1 LIST OF ACRONYMS ...................................................................................................................... AC-1 1 REGIONAL PLANNING, OUTREACH, GOVERNANCE AND COORDINATION........................................ 1-1 1.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 1-1 1.2 History of Integrated Regional Water Management Planning in the North and Central Orange County Watershed Management Areas ...................................................................................... 1-5 1.3 IRWM Plan Development and Governance .................................................................................. 1-7 1.3.1 IRWM Plan Development................................................................................................. 1-9 1.3.1.1 IRWM Plan Development Process ........................................................................... 1-10 1.3.1.2 IRWM Plan Adoption ............................................................................................... 1-11 1.3.2 Regional Water Management Group ............................................................................. 1-11 1.3.3 Advisory Committee to the Regional Water Management Group ................................ 1-12 1.3.4 Planning Group .............................................................................................................. 1-13 1.3.5 Stakeholders Group ....................................................................................................... 1-14 1.3.6 Ad Hoc Working Groups ................................................................................................ 1-14 1.3.7 Roles and Responsibilities for Regional Water Management ....................................... 1-14 1.3.7.1 Jurisdictional Participants in the IRWM Region ...................................................... 1-14 1.3.7.2 Additional Organization Outreach and Participation in the IRWM Region ............. 1-15 1.3.8 Framework for Decision Making .................................................................................... 1-18 1.3.9 Appropriateness of Region and Geographic Boundaries ............................................... 1-18 1.3.10 Watershed Management Challenges ............................................................................ 1-19 1.3.11 Plan Focus ...................................................................................................................... 1-21 1.4 Outreach ..................................................................................................................................... 1-22 1.5 Coordination ............................................................................................................................... 1-22 1.6 Technical Analysis ....................................................................................................................... 1-25 2 REGION DESCRIPTION .................................................................................................................. 2-1 2.1 North and Central Orange County IRWM Region ......................................................................... 2-1 2.1.1 Watersheds, Adjoining IRWM Regions and Overlapping Efforts ..................................... 2-1 2.1.2 North Orange County Watershed Management Area ..................................................... 2-5 2.1.2.1 Anaheim Bay-Huntington Harbour Watershed ........................................................ 2-6 2.1.2.2 Lower San Gabriel River/Coyote Creek Watershed ................................................. 2-6 2.1.2.3 Santa Ana River Watershed ....................................................................................... 2-9 2.1.3 Central Orange County Watershed Management Area ................................................ 2-11 2.1.3.1 Newport Bay Watershed ......................................................................................... 2-14 2.1.3.2 Newport Coast Watershed ...................................................................................... 2-14 2.1.4 Integrated Watershed Management in Region ............................................................. 2-15 2.1.5 Social and Culture .......................................................................................................... 2-20 2.1.6 Economic Conditions ..................................................................................................... 2-21 2.2 Water Supplies of the Region ..................................................................................................... 2-22 2.2.1 Groundwater .................................................................................................................. 2-22 2.2.2 Imported Water ............................................................................................................. 2-29 2.2.3 Recycled Water .............................................................................................................. 2-31 2.2.4 Projected Water Supplies .............................................................................................. 2-35 2.2.5 Potential New Water Supplies ....................................................................................... 2-38 March 2018 AC-1 The OC PLAN for IRWM in North and Central Orange County 2.2.6 Projected Water Demands............................................................................................. 2-40 2.3 Water Related Objectives and Conflicts ..................................................................................... 2-43 2.4 Water Quality of the Region ....................................................................................................... 2-45 2.5 Jurisdictional Boundaries ............................................................................................................ 2-65 2.6 Open Space and Land Use........................................................................................................... 2-71 2.7 Parks, Forests, Refuges, and Areas of Special Biological Significance ........................................ 2-73 2.8 Ecosystem Processes, Habitat and Vegetation ........................................................................... 2-77 2.8.1 Geology and Hydrology .................................................................................................. 2-78 2.8.2 Soils ................................................................................................................................ 2-84 2.8.3 Biological Resources ...................................................................................................... 2-86 2.8.4 Wildlife ........................................................................................................................... 2-88 2.9 Climate Change Impacts on the Region .................................................................................... 2-88 3 GOALS, OBJECTIVES, AND STRATEGIES .......................................................................................... 3-1 3.1 Regional Vision, Mission and Goals .............................................................................................. 3-1 3.2 Methodology for Determining Goals and Objectives .................................................................. 3-2 3.3 Water Management Issues ......................................................................................................... 3-10 3.3.1 Water Supplies ............................................................................................................... 3-10 3.3.2 Water Quality ................................................................................................................. 3-10 3.3.3 Ecosystems and Native Habitat ..................................................................................... 3-11 3.3.4 Flood Management ........................................................................................................ 3-12 3.3.5 Quality of Life in Orange County .................................................................................... 3-13 3.3.6 Climate Change .............................................................................................................. 3-14 3.4 Regional Goals............................................................................................................................. 3-17 3.5 Objectives and Strategies ........................................................................................................... 3-19 3.6 Prioritization and Weighting of Objectives ................................................................................