Almaden Lake project will help the environment.

With the public comment period on the Draft Environmental Impact Report for the Almaden Lake Improvement Project closed, I wanted to take a moment to thank all the members of the community who have participated in our extensive outreach for this project. As an initiative funded through our Safe, Clean Water and Natural Flood Protection program, the Almaden Lake project is locally financed and it is very important that our community’s voice is heard.

It was great to see more than 60 people attend our Jan. 8 public meeting at Valley Water’s headquarters to express their views and opinions on the environmental impact of the proposed project. The gathering marked the 22nd public meeting Valley Water has hosted since outreach on the project began in 2012.

Almaden Lake is about 5 miles away from the site of the old New Almaden Quicksilver Mine, a Gold Rush-era mine that released thousands of tons of mercury into local creeks and the Guadalupe Watershed. Since the formation of Almaden Lake by the erosion of the old gravel quarry, mercury-laden sediment that flows down Alamitos Creek has accumulated at the bottom.

To address these issues, the project team proposes to build a levee to separate Alamitos Creek from Almaden Lake. Post-construction, the lake will feature the existing island and a new island. To improve water circulation, the lake bottom will be recontoured and water from the lake will be discharged to the Alamitos Percolation Pond. The creek flows will be isolated to the restored creek section, providing a direct connection from Alamitos Creek to Guadalupe River, as it once did before the park was created in the 1980s.

The native Central California Coast steelhead, a species listed as threatened under the Federal Endangered Species Act, will be able to bypass the waters of the lake, where they risk getting lost and being preyed upon by invasive species, such as bass.

The final EIR will be brought to the Valley Water Board of Directors this summer. The extensive community input we’ve gathered ensures me, along with my board colleagues, that our decision will be well informed. We will be responding in writing to all comments received during the review period of the draft in the final EIR. Safe, Clean Water and Natural Flood Protection matter to all of us. Thanks for working side-by-side with Valley Water as we maintain our commitment to protect the environment, restore habitat and improve water quality.