Environmental Program Manager – Interlake Tunnel and Spillway Modification Project, Monterey and San Luis Obispo Counties, California
The Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA) is proposing the Interlake Tunnel and San Antonio Spillway Modification Project (ILT), located northwest of Paso Robles, in northern San Luis Obispo County and southern Monterey County, California. MCWRA operates Nacimiento and San Antonio Reservoirs for water supply (primarily groundwater recharge), conservation, recreation, and flood management purposes. The Nacimiento River basin produces nearly three times the average annual flow of the San Antonio River basin, therefore, capturing high Nacimiento River flows and diverting those flows to San Antonio Reservoir would increase the overall storage capacity of the system. To maximize storage capacity in both reservoirs, MCWRA proposes to construct and operate an approximately 2-mile long gravity flow water conveyance tunnel from Nacimiento Reservoir to San Antonio Reservoir as well as raise the spillway at San Antonio Dam
After successfully assisting MCWRA in the completion of the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Salinas River Stream Maintenance Program, Laurie Warner Herson, doing business as (DBA) Phénix Environmental Planning, was asked to serve as Environmental Program Manager for the ILT. She has assisted MCWRA in finalizing a Request for Proposals (RFP) for environmental consulting services as well as in the review and ranking of submitted proposals. She is currently assisting MCWRA with environmental technical guidance, management of the selected environmental consultant (including schedule, budget, invoices, etc.), and review of the environmental, modeling and design deliverables. Other tasks have included providing support to MCWRA on key technical issues including: preparation of a white paper to identify potential ecological benefits of the project; participation in a task force to address anticipated effects of the transfer of an invasive species (white bass) between reservoirs; preparation of the CEQA scoping report; and, preparation of technical memo and white paper to address Endangered Species Act (ESA) Section 10 compliance and habitat conservation planning associated with the long term operation of the reservoirs and the proposed Long-Term Salinas River Management Plan.
Environmental Planning Integration Lead – Sites Reservoir Project, Colusa, Glenn, Yolo and Tehama Counties, California
The Sites Project Authority (Authority) has embarked on a multi-year program to construct a new water storage reservoir near Maxwell, California. The proposed Sites Reservoir Project (Project) consists of a 1,500,000 acre-foot acre-foot off-stream reservoir and associated conveyance facilities, grid interconnection facilities, roadways and bridges (both temporary and permanent), recreation facilities, and other ancillary facilities and features. The Project will be owned and operated by the Authority, and it will be operated in a cooperative manner with both the US Bureau of Reclamation’s Central Valley Project and California Department of Water Resources’ State Water project to provide both water supply and environmental benefits. As part of HDR’s Sites Project Integration Team, Ms. Warner Herson serves as the Environmental Planning Integration Lead for the project. Responsibilities include ensuring that work being performed by Authority’s consultants meets performance requirements and the work is being performed in accordance within the respective industry’s standards of care. Tasks to date include working with legal counsel to develop the Site’s Authority’s local CEQA Guidelines, CEQA technical support to the Environmental Planning and Permitting Manager, review of consultant-prepared environmental documents, and NEPA coordination with Reclamation.