Approval of Parts 1 & 2 of Watershed Management Plan
Scheduled for Nov. 20 Council Meeting. 
Because the Ventura River Watershed Management Plan will be such a large document, its approval by the Watershed Council is being handled in stages. At the upcoming November 20 meeting of the Watershed Council, the front sections of the plan—those that comprise what is essentially “the plan” part of the plan—are scheduled for approval. This includes:

• Executive Summary
• Part 1 – Introduction
• Part 2 – Watershed Plan, Projects, and Programs

Part 3 – Watershed Characterization, and Part 4 – References and Supporting Material, will be approved at a future meeting.

Here is the Final Plan (Parts 1 & 2) that will be presented for approval.

We think you will be pleased with what you see. Our clunky Word drafts have been transformed into a lovely, professional layout—and your pictures adorn the pages. As a group, we have been pulling these pieces together for several years. The pages reflect the work of our Council, and the work of the individuals and organizations that comprise the Council.

Many, many people will see in this document something that they contributed, some way in which they shaped it. There is much to be proud of in this collective accomplishment!

Reviewing Information and Instructions:
Please note that this version is a low-resolution pdf, so some of the graphics are not sharp. A higher-resolution pdf of the final version will be made available on the website and for print. Also, some of the graphics and design elements in this version are still in flux.

The schedule and budget do not allow for significant revisions at this point. Many opportunities have been provided to review most of this text in draft form. New sections that have not been through review include: Introduction, 1.1 Executive Summary, and 1.3 The Planning Process.

Please do your best to limit comments to the new sections, or to correct important inaccuracies or errors. If you find something you feel should be corrected, contact Lorraine Walter (lorraine@ovlc.org or 649-6852×4) with that information—by November 17 if possible. We can discuss anything that might need Council input at the meeting on the 20th.

Newer versions of Adobe Reader have tools (go to View/Comment/Drawing Markups) that let you insert, delete, comment, etc. You can also mark up a hard copy or type your comments in an email, etc.

Call for WCVC Steering Committee Representatives
The Ventura River Watershed Council is one of the three committees that comprise the Watersheds Coalition of Ventura County (WCVC). The other two being the Santa Clara River Watershed Committee and the Calleguas Creek Watershed Steering Committee.

Each of these watershed groups elects two members to represent them on the WCVC Steering Committee. The Steering Committee meets about four times a year and provides programmatic and fiscal oversight to the ongoing Ventura County Integrated Regional Water Management planning process.

This Steering Committee handout explains more about the roles and responsibilities of Steering Committee representatives, one of which is to represent their respective watershed’s proposed projects in negotiations for countywide grant proposals (such as for Proposition 84) submitted through WCVC.

The WCVC Steering Committee was established in 2009. Russ Baggerly with Casitas Municipal Water District has represented the Ventura River Watershed Council since the beginning; Greg Gamble with Ojai Valley Land Conservancy (OVLC) has represented the Council since July 2011. Greg Gamble recently left the OVLC, creating the need to replace him on the Steering Committee.

Since we need to go through the process of electing a new representative now, and since we have never established the term of service for the representatives and it has been over five years, I propose that at the upcoming November 20 Council meeting we freshly elect both Steering Committee representatives and establish the term of service.

With this in mind, please let me know by Wednesday, November 12, if you would like to serve as a WCVC Steering Committee representative or who you would like to nominate. We also need one alternate, so you can also indicate your willingness to serve as the alternate. I will send the list of names out by November 13, one week before the meeting, and the Council can make its selections then.

A couple of things to bear in mind:

The WCVC Steering Committee should ideally represent a balance of interests across the region, although there is no established formula for achieving that. Here are the interests represented in the other watersheds: Calleguas Creek – one member represents a wholesale water agency and one a city sanitary district; Santa Clara River – one member represents a wholesale water agency and one a nonprofit conservancy.

WCVC is supported by contributions from member agencies. The agencies of elected representatives should be current on their contributions. (No contributions are required of nonprofits.)

Nov. 20 Watershed Council Meeting (Group Photo Day!)
The next meeting of the Ventura River Watershed Council will be on Thursday, November 20, 2014, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm, in the Topping Room of the Foster Library, 651 E. Main Street.

As mentioned above, an important agenda item will be the Council’s consideration for approval of Parts 1 & 2 of the Ventura River Watershed Management Plan. We’ll also elect new WCVC Steering Committee representatives; take a new group photo; get a report on preliminary work towards establishing a local groundwater sustainability agency; and start strategizing on the final round of Proposition 84 grant funding.

Here is the agenda.