Pima County Regional Flood Control District Monthly Brown Bag Series
Presenters: Cyrus D. Miller, J.E. Fuller/Hydrology & Geomorphology, Inc., and Michael A. Milczarek, GeoSystems Analysis, Inc.
Date/Time: Wednesday, April 12, 2017, 12–1PM
Location: 9th Floor Public Works Building, 201 N. Stone, Tucson AZ, 85701
Since 2011, Cochise County, Arizona has been evaluating stormwater management and capture to conduct aquifer recharge, towards the goal of sustaining baseflows on the Upper San Pedro River. Initiation of the Cochise County stormwater capture program followed previous efforts by several parties to identify available resources in the Sierra Vista sub-watershed of the River, and has prompted the formation of a multi-agency collaboration group named the Cochise Conservation and Recharge Network made up of representatives from Cochise County, The Nature Conservancy, Hereford NRCD, and Cities of Sierra Vista and Bisbee.
Initial stormwater capture and recharge studies focused on the Palominas sub-watershed, which had known flooding problems. Following the successful design and construction of the Palominas Flood Control and Recharge project in 2014, the Cochise Conservation and Recharge Network Technical Team has conducted studies on two other properties in the subwatershed, and is currently in the concept formulation stage for the Bella Vista Ranch property east of Sierra Vista. Supporting activities have involved: rainfall/runoff modeling, near-surface and deeper subsurface investigations, groundwater modeling, alternatives analyses, concept formulation, construction document preparation, construction administration, pipeline route studies, and creation of a GIS interface to facilitate future planning activities. In addition, surface and subsurface hydrology is monitored at the Palominas recharge facility and a network of surface and sub-surface water monitoring gauges have been placed in watersheds that contain the additional sites to better understand current hydrologic conditions.