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REGION:  CENTRAL COAST
LOCATION:  SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

ADDRESS:  820 Bay Avenue, Suite 128, Capitola, CA 95010
PHONE:  (831) 464-2950
FAX:  (831) 475-3215

MEETINGS:  Regular Meetings of the Board of Directors of the Santa Cruz County Resource Conservation District (SCCRCD) are held at Resource Conservation District office on the second Wednesday of each month at 7:00 PM. The public is invited to attend and participate in all meetings.

EMAIL:  sccrcd@sccrcd.org
WEBSITE:  http://www.sccrcd.org

DISTRICT SIZE:  282,000 acres

Santa Cruz County is located along the Central Coast of California at the northern end of Monterey Bay. It is bordered on the northwest by San Mateo County, on the east and northeast by Santa Clara County, on the southeast comer by San Benito County, on the south by Monterey County, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean.

Santa Cruz County contains 282,000 acres of land of which more than 25,000 acres are in State, County, and City Parks. Recreation and tourism is a multimillion-dollar industry in the County each year.

Santa Cruz County is the second smallest County in California and the smallest agricultural County in California: yet it ranks 22nd out of 58 counties in gross value of crops and livestock (Santa Cruz County Agricultural Commissioner's Office).

YEAR DISTRICT FORMED:  1941

Resource Conservation Districts have had a presence in Santa Cruz County since 1941, when the Pajaro RCD was formed in South County. Later, in 1978, the Redwood RCD was formed to serve the central portion of the County. As the County began to grow in population and development began to encroach on more mountainous and sensitive land, the need arose to address the resource issues beyond the present boundaries of the two districts.

In 1978, the Directors of the Districts petitioned the Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) to extend the District boundaries countywide, excluding the territories of the four incorporated cities. This new District was named the Santa Cruz County Resource Conservation District with a service of over 260,000 acres. The City of Capitola was subsequently annexed to the District in 1983, at the request of the City of Capitola.

WATERSHED PROJECTS:  

Elevations drop from 3,200 feet on the crest of the Santa Cruz Mountains down to the ocean in a southwesterly direction. A series of narrow uplifted marine terraces extends along the Pacific Ocean and Monterey Bay coast. Most of the watersheds in the County are small and have very narrow alluvial flood plains. Approximately 15% of the Pajaro River basin lies within Santa Cruz County. (Parts of Santa Clara, Monterey, and San Benito Counties also lie within the Pajaro River Watershed.)

In the north County, the San Lorenzo River drains the 88,000 acre San Lorenzo River Watershed, the largest watershed that is completely within our County. Beyond it northwesterly are other large and smaller stream drainages. Locally-intensive development with forestland conversion to other uses, in addition to forestry and coastal agriculture are the major land uses in this portion of the County.

The District has extensive, numerous conservation projects relating to the watercourses, wetlands, lakes and reservoirs (please contact RCD for details):

Creeks	Lakes	Wetlands
Aptos Creek Bean Creek Bear Creek Boulder Creek Branciforte Creek Carbonera Creek Corralitos Creek Kings Creek Laguno Creek Love Creek Newell Creek San Vincente Creek Scotts Creek Waddell Creek Valencia Creek Zayante Creek	College Lake Drew Lake Kelley Lake Freedom Lake Loch Lomond Reservoir Pinto Lake Rose Reservoir Simal Lake Tynan Lake	Baldwin Creek Wetland Corcoran Lagoon Gallighan Slough Hanson Slough Moran Lake Harkins Slough Laguna Creek Wetland Lidell Springs Lombardi Gulch Majors Creek Wetland Neary's Lagoon Old Dairy Gulch Schwan's Lagoon Scott Creek Wetland Struve Slough Watsonville Slough Wilder Creek Wetland

IMPORTANT AGRICULTURE:  

Agriculture is limited to the marine terraces along the ocean and bay northwest of Santa Cruz, a section of coastal plain southeast of Aptos, the lower hills of the Corralitos-Watsonville area, and the rich alluvial soils in the Pajaro Valley. The Pajaro Valley comprises about 21,000.

The North Coast area has historically been farmed mainly with artichokes and Brussels sprouts, largely because of the cool damp climate. Recently, other crops, including strawberries, leeks, and mixed organic vegetables have also been successfully produced. The coastal plain from Aptos to west of Watsonville is devoted to Brussels sprouts, broccoli, strawberries, and flowers.

The Pajaro Valley is a diverse area. The top ten crops are strawberries, iceberg lettuce, landscape plants, raspberries, apples, roses, field flowers, nursery transplants, leaf lettuce, and bushberries (Santa Cruz County Crop Report, 1997).

Santa Cruz County's agricultural value in 1997 reached $278,718,000 (Santa Cruz County Crop Report, 1997). The County's agriculture plays an important role in statewide agricultural production, particularly in terms of specialty crop production.

OTHER ECONOMIC FACTORS:  

Santa Cruz County has a number of unique historic features that. represent a larger County heritage. These historic and cultural resources serve as a physical link to our common origins and heritage: they also provide an aesthetically diverse environment and serve as architectural design guidelines for our modern development efforts. Historic sites occur in most areas of the County. However, the majority of sites are concentrated in areas where early settlements existed, such as Santa Cruz, the San Lorenzo Valley, and the Soquel and Aptos areas. Known prehistoric sites are catalogued by the Northwest Information Center at Sonoma State University.

Santa Cruz County is known for its outstanding scenic beauty. The densely forested Santa Cruz Mountains, rugged peaks and ridges, sandy beaches and shallow lagoons. coastal bluffs and cliffs, riparian corridors, undeveloped open spaces and expanses of agricultural land are all components of the County's visual amenities.

Recreation and tourism are important local industries along with agriculture and forestry. Santa Cruz County recreation spots receive the most use by visitors from the populated San Jose and San Francisco Bay Areas, which are within a one-day round trip distance. Probably the best known of Santa Cruz County's Parks is Big Basin State Park near Boulder Creek. Henry Cowell Redwood State Park and Sunset and Natural Bridges State Beaches are also favorite vacation stops. Santa Cruz County offers recreation enthusiasts and vacation seekers swimming, water-skiing, sailing, surfing, beach walking, hiking in the redwoods, rock climbing, hang gliding, fishing, and other warm season outdoor sports all year round, in addition to various nature study activities.

DISTRICT OVERVIEW:

The boundaries of the County are associated mainly with physical land features. The Pajaro River is the southern boundary, the crest of the Santa Cruz Mountains and the Pacific Ocean form the eastern and western boundaries.

A long growing season is characteristic of the County. The frost-free period throughout the County ranges from 220-275 days. It ranges from 220-245 days on the coast and in the Pajaro Valley. The average date of the first frost, 32 degrees, is early in November in the mountains and early in December in the area near Monterey Bay.

The Santa Cruz Mountains cover approximately 75% of Santa Cruz County. The County's timberlands are located predominantly on these steep slopes, ridges, and valleys, ranging in elevation from 100-3,000 feet.

The County is a transitional zone from true timber types to lesser woody vegetation, and a few old-growth remnants of redwood can be found throughout the County. These are representative of some of the most southern extensions of these trees.

Santa Cruz County has an abundance of plant and animal resources. Fifty-five species of land mammals occur here along with 35 species of reptiles and amphibians, 49 species of fish, and over 350 species of birds. The number of plant species occurring in the County has not been tabulated but is definitely over 1,000. Over one-half the County is forested, with 13 different biotic communities.

The importance of the woodland/forestland resource in Santa Cruz County has changed in recent years. The rapid growth of population in the County has resulted in increased home site development on soils and in areas that were formerly used exclusively for timber production.

The major mineral resources of economic value in Santa Cruz County consist of structural and industrial materials, namely sand, gravel, limestone (with siliceous shale), and crushed rock (mainly granite).

There are over 40 different soil types and 85 soil mapping units in Santa Cruz County. Soil is the most important natural resource in the County. It produces crops for food, and timber for construction, firewood and cover for wildlife habitat. Soil is also responsible for the green lush look of our County's landscape. See Appendix, General Soil Map of Santa Cruz County. Soils form on geologic parent materials" which are the rocks and deposits that form the substrate of the County.

Water is one of the most important natural resources of the County. Santa Cruz County is one of the few California county that is not dependent on water sources from outside its boundaries. However, increased water demand has exceeded currently developed surface sources and depleted groundwater supplies. Saltwater intrusion has encroached into coastal wells. Water providers and managers are seeking ways to expand surface water capture and storage to conserve water, and to address saltwater intrusion problems.

Santa Cruz County receives some inflow of surface water from San Benito County via the Pajaro River and Pescadero Creek and perhaps some groundwater inflow from Monterey County. Otherwise, the County is isolated from all other areas by topographic barriers and fault lines.

The North County depends on surface flow and wells for its water supply. The Central County depends on wells and Soquel Creek for its water needs. The South County including the agricultural area around Watsonville relies primarily on well water for domestic and agricultural uses.

CRITICAL RESOURCE CONCERNS:  

Many critical conservation problems challenge the Santa Cruz County Resource Conservation District but our most urgent concern is controlling accelerated erosion and sedimentation from human activities; such activities include using inadequate drainage plans and structures, major land use change, and erosion and reactivation of chronic landslide masses from landslides induced by human activities (as well as natural events). We also place high priority on issues and work dealing with the protection of prime and important farmland, and in areas where watershed groups (e.g. CRMPs) are active.

The district is charged with protecting our County's soil, water, and related resources and assuring the responsible use. The following goals will help to accomplish this charge.

1. Reduce accelerated erosion and sedimentation caused by land use.

2. Reduce the impact of non-point sources of pollution with the use of proper conservation practices.

3. Manage existing resources within their capabilities and protect them for future use.

4. Encourage decision-makers to guide and insure proper land use and care of our natural resources.

5. Protect important and prime farmlands from uninformed and improper use and urban encroachment.

6. Carry out an active information and education program consistent with local needs.

7. Concentrate conservation efforts in critical resource problem areas and areas with a high level of community support. Develop programs to solve the problems.

8. Cooperate with all assisting agencies, groups and units of government in sponsoring conservation workshops, meetings, training sessions and education events, and to coordinate efforts whenever possible.

9. Take an ecosystem approach in solving conservation problems considering natural resources, including but not limited to soil, water, air, wildlife, fish, plant, mineral, scenic, timber, historical, recreational, and geological.

10. Develop clear quantifiable objectives in Annual Work Plans.

11. Continue to foster and expand the Coordinated Resource Management and Planning (CRMP) Program's role in watershed enhancement and expand throughout Santa Cruz County.

12. Increase the District's role in water resource conservation and management.

CRITICAL PARTNERSHIP NEEDS:  

The District works with over 40 partners to fulfill conservation objectives. Additional project partners are welcome.

CRITICAL OPERATIONAL NEEDS:  

It is the policy of the District to investigate all available sources of funding, staffing, and supporting programs that will strengthen the District's role and best address land and water conservation problems and also protect land. The District looks for opportunities in the areas of land use planning, program support, and technical assistance in order to improve Long-Range Conservation Program effectiveness.

 

DISTRICT MAPS:    Boundary and Topography   PLANS:    Long Range Plan    Annual Plan For full page view, use More Data

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