The County of San Diego sought total maximum daily load (TMDL) monitoring, special study work, and strategic planning services to support bacteria TMDL implementation and planning for a future TMDL reopener. The county hired Geosyntec to develop TMDL compliance monitoring plans to accompany the comprehensive load reduction plans. Multiagency coordination was essential to gaining approval for the monitoring plan.
Nearly four years after the historic 2003 wildfires devastated San Diego County, strong, shifting Santa Ana wind conditions, combined with high temperatures, low humidity, and multiple years of drought combined to create the perfect conditions for fast spreading wildfires in 2007. The 2007 fire season saw approximately 500,000 acres burned within Southern California, with over 340,000 acres within San Diego County alone, destroying over 2,300 structures and several people losing their lives. With winter rains fast approaching, the County of San Diego faced the potential for devastating mudslides and debris flows that could inundate thousands of homes, close evacuation routes, and cause significant environmental damage. Using Geosyntec's 2003 Post-Fire hazard response as a model, personnel from the County and Geosyntec initiated an Emergency Flood / Erosion Protection Program that first assisted homeowners in protecting their property, then stabilized watersheds to reduce mudslides and debris flows.
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