AUTHORITY:
The study is being conducted under the authority of the Resolution of House Committee on Public Works, 8 May 1964 (Flood Control Act of 1938).
DESCRIPTION:
The study area is an approximately 74 square mile watershed located in western Orange County, 25 miles southeast of the City of Los Angeles. The study focuses on flood risk management for two major channel systems: the East Garden Grove-Wintersburg (EGGW) Channel and the Westminster Channel. The watershed lies on a flat coastal plain, and is almost entirely urbanized. Flood damage along the channels affects residential, commercial, and industrial structures within the cities of Santa Ana, Westminster, Huntington Beach, and Fountain Valley. Alternative plans combine measures such as channel modification, channel reconstruction, downstream channel outlet modification, and floodwalls. High quality tidal habitat at the downstream end of the channel systems is at risk of inundation impacts, disrupting sensitive ecosystems in the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve which provides critical habitat for threatened and endangered species. All study alternatives seek to avoid & minimize the negative impacts of flooding on these sensitive ecosystems.
STATUS:
Disaster Supplemental funding was provided in 2018 to complete the study at an accelerated pace. Public meetings were held in November 2018 (information below). The Agency Decision Milestone (ADM) was achieved in February 2019. At the conference, risks and issues regarding successful completion of the study report were discussed, and a path forward for resolution was identified. Feasibility level design is now complete and the final report was submitted to Corps HQ for final approval in February 2020. The final report is available at the links provided at right.
NOTICE OF PUBLIC AVAILABILITY
The Integrated Feasibility Report (IFR) and Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) analyzes the results of the Westminster, East Garden Grove, California Flood Risk Management Study within the Westminster watershed. This study was conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in partnership with Orange County Public Works.
Review period: April 24, 2020 – May 26, 2020. Comments should be mailed to the attention of Michael Padilla at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 231 South LaSalle Street, Suite 1500, Chicago, IL 60604; hand delivered to the attention of Justin Golliher at Orange County (OC) Public Works, 601 North Ross Street, Santa Ana, CA 92701, or via email to: westminster_comments@usace.army.mil