Los Padres Dam Gravel Augmentation Program

Document Description: Up to 1,500 tons of gravel will be repeatedly placed in the channel of the Carmel River at Los Padres Dam. As gravel is washed downstream, the Project would be repeated for up to four times over a ten year period. The Los Padres Dam has been a known fish passage impediment for both upstream and downstream migrating South-Central California Coast steelhead as well as impacting the downstream habitat by blocking the natural sediment supply. In January 2018, the National Marine Fisheries Service and CA America Water, the dam owner, signed a Memo of Agreement that included a requirement that Cal-Am carry out gravel augmentation at Los Padres Dam to improve steelhead spawning habitat downstream of the dam.

Contact Information: Larry Hampson
Monterey Peninsula Water Management District
P.O. Box 85
Monterey, CA 93942-0085
831-658-5620

(1) The project will have a significant impact on the environment: No
(2a) An Environmental Impact Report was prepared for this project pursuant to the provisions of CEQA: No
(2b) A Negative Declaration was prepared for this project pursuant to the provisions of CEQA: Yes
(3) Mitigated measures were made a condition of the approval of the project: Yes
(4) A Statement of Overriding Considerations was adopted for this project: No
(5) Findings were made pursuant to the provisions of CEQA: Yes