HERITAGE PARK MONITORING WELL

The Camrosa Water District (Camrosa) is constructing a new monitoring well located near the southeast corner of Heritage Park in the City of Camarillo. Construction is planned to get underway in late March 2024 and is expected to be complete by the end of May 2024, or sooner. This monitoring well will assist in evaluating potential groundwater production, water quality, and overall suitability for the development of a future potable water well. This future well will help offset a percentage of our demand on expensive—and currently scarce—imported State Water Project water.

For years, the District’s guiding strategy has been “Building Self-Reliance.” This primarily means reducing our dependence on State Water Project water that we import from Calleguas Municipal Water District, a Metropolitan Water District wholesaler. Districtwide, we’ve accomplished this by building separate non-potable and recycled water distribution systems that have shifted half our customers’ demand off of the drinking water system. Most of the agricultural irrigation in the District’s service area and about a quarter of municipal irrigation is met with these non-potable sources.

Within the drinking water system, the District has nine groundwater wells that contribute to the potable system, including one that feeds the Round Mountain Water Treatment Plant, a one-million-gallon-a-day brackish groundwater desalination facility. Each acre foot those wells produce is one less of State Water Project water we have to import.

This monitoring well project involves the drilling of an approximately 12-inch diameter hole that extends nearly 600-feet deep. When complete, the monitoring well will be nearly flush with the surrounding grade, be secured by a small enclosure, and have minimal visual impact. Drilling of the monitoring well is expected to take between 30 – 60 days to complete. The drilling portion will be performed Monday – Friday, between the hours of 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM. The site will be surrounded by soundwall curtains to the south to help block equipment noise to the adjacent homes, and temporary fencing on all other sides to secure the drilling site.