Lower Pajaro Flood Project
The Lower Pajaro Levee Reconstruction Project involves rebuilding the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) flood protection levees along seven miles of the Lower Pajaro River: from the ocean to Murphy’s Crossing Road and along Salsipuedes and Corralitos Creeks, which drain into the Lower Pajaro in the City of Watsonville, CA.
To view full-size click on image.
Until the Levee Reconstruction Project is completed, the Lower Pajaro River area will be alarmingly under-protected from flooding. The reconstructed levees will ultimately protect the region from flooding from a 100-year storm (a storm that has a 1 percent chance of occurring in any given year). A 100-year flood can even occur several times during a 100-year period. Current estimates show that the levees can handle about 19,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) of water flowing through. A 100-year flood would generate about 44,000 cfs. In fact, even 13-to-15-year events (storms with a 6.5 percent to 8 percent chance of occurring each year) can cause flooding.
Over the past several decades, the Pajaro River has severely flooded a number of times with dire consequences. In March 1995, for instance, flooding caused $95 million of damage, including $67 million in damage to agricultural fields and $28 million in non-agricultural damage to the Town of Pajaro. As the population living and working near the river increases and the economic impact of the Pajaro floods grows, finding solutions becomes more and more pressing.
The City of Watsonville, the unincorporated town of Pajaro, and surrounding agricultural areas in Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties are all subject to flooding from the main stem of the Pajaro River. Without reconstruction of the levees, engineers estimate total annualized damage at $63.6 million.
To solve the Pajaro River flooding problem, the Counties of Monterey and Santa Cruz, the City of Watsonville, and other local partners are working with the Corps. The Levee Reconstruction Project is a local and federal response to address the immediate and future flood protection needs of the region.
Once the project is completed, the areas at risk of flooding may qualify to be mapped out of the FEMA 100-year flood plain, and may no longer be required to participate in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). This is especially critical in this region given the economic challenges facing many property owners along the river.
The project was federally authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1966 and the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 1990.
