Get Involved in the Flood-MAR Network

Flooded agricultural field along Woodbridge Road in Lodi, California (DWR, 2019).



Who We Are

The Flood-MAR Network is a vibrant collaboration of individuals and organizations dedicated to promoting Flood-MAR implementation in California.

Stay up-to-date with the latest Flood-MAR news and activities!


Coordinating Team

The Coordinating Team supports the Flood-MAR Network to ensure that the Network is effective in promoting the implementation of Flood-MAR projects throughout California. The Coordinating Team helps identify emerging and priority topics that should be brought to the Network for discussion and further action. Coordinating team members meet monthly, and team membership rotates annually.

If you are interested in joining the Coordinating Team, contact [email protected]

2024 Coordinating Team Members:

Adam Hutchinson, Orange County Water District
Aysha Massell, Sustainable Conservation
Cliff Feldheim, Ducks Unlimited
Duncan Axisa, UC San Diego
Eric Ginney, ESA Associates
Glen Low, Earth Genome
Graham Fogg, UC Davis
Dr. Helen Dahlke, UC Davis
Jamie Cameron-Harley, California Department of Water Resources
Jenny Marr, California Department of Water Resources
Jesse Roseman, Grower
Kamyar Guivetchi, California Department of Water Resources
Kristan Culbert, American Rivers
Meredith Goebel-Szenher, Stanford University
Michael Founds, cbec eco engineering
Philip Bachand, Bachand Associates
Samuel Cunningham, Provost & Pritchard Consulting Group
Sarah Puckett, American Rivers
Scott Bradford, US Department of Agriculture – ARS, SAWS Unit

Action Teams

Action Teams are collaborations of volunteer Flood-MAR Network members who seek to identify and advance a particular product, project, or initiative over the next one to two years. The six Action Teams emerged from discussions during the March 2023 quarterly Flood-MAR Network workshop, demonstrating a desire to leverage the collective resources of the Network, turn ideas into tangible outputs to benefit the Flood-MAR community, and ultimately advance Flood-MAR statewide.

The Action Teams are:

  • Estimating Recharge – seeks to identify best approaches for the practical estimation of aquifer recharge.
  • Incentives for Flood-MAR – expands information-sharing regarding existing and previous incentives programs and generates ideas for new incentives or strategies.
  • Water Quality Monitoring – identifies considerations for managing or mitigating contaminants under flooded conditions, and compiles data to support agencies in developing best practices, guidance, and models for Flood-MAR.
  • Instream Flows - considers how to balance water used for recharge and instream ecological needs during Flood-MAR project operations.
  • Assessing Policy – explores ways to further leverage opportunities and/or address barriers to effective State support and coordination.
  • Website – manages content and maintains updates to the floodmar.org website. The Flood-MAR website was formally released to the public October 10th, 2023 (read the Flood-MAR HUB press release here).

We invite you learn more and consider joining an upcoming meeting if your work (or your curiosity) intersects with the goals of an Action Team. Our work is improved when our expertise and experience are shared!

To join or be added to an Action Team email roster and learn of upcoming meetings and efforts, please drop us a note at [email protected].

A panoramic view of the water release from Lake Natoma at Nimbus Dam in Sacramento County, California as a precaution against flooding after an atmospheric river storm
dumped heavy rain and snow across Northern California (
DWR, 2019).

Network Related Events and Activities

Monthly Lunch-MAR Webinars

Lunch-MAR webinars take place the first Wednesday of each month. In these webinars, network members and invited guests present on and discuss a wide range of topics relevant to Flood-MAR, ranging from water rights to geophysics.

To join a Lunch-MAR Session, please use this registration link

Wednesday, October 2, 2024, 12:30PM -1:30PM

Managed Aquifer Recharge in Scott Valley: Exploring Benefits of Winter Recharge to Increase Instream Flows

The presentation will cover a brief history of the project, permitting and regulatory requirements, challenges in project implementation, and progress in evaluating benefits.

Presenter: Laura Foglia, PhD, UC Davis and Larry Walker Associates

Wednesday, November 6, 2024, 12:30PM -1:30PM

Aquifers and Ecosystem Services

Presenters: Kate Scow and Radomir Schmidt, UC Davis

Wednesday, December 4, 2024, 12:30PM -1:30PM

Consideration of Groundwater Dependent Ecosystems in the Flood-MAR context 

Presenter: Melissa Rohde, Rohde Environmental Consulting

 

Quarterly Flood-MAR Network Workshops

All Flood-MAR Network members are invited to attend quarterly workshops. These workshops provide opportunities for members to engage in conversations and collaborate on Flood-MAR projects. The next Workshop date is TBD. 

 

FIRO-MAR Learning Group

The FIRO-MAR learning group is dedicated to sharing information on the latest advancements in linking forecast-informed reservoir operations (FIRO) with Flood-MAR. This group meets the second Wednesday of each month.

Biennial Forums

Flood-MAR forums have been held biennually since 2017 to discuss and address the opportunities and challenges of implementing flood-MAR in California. Below is the summary and agenda for the 2023 Forum.

2023 Flood-MAR Forum | Flood-MAR in Action

The Flood-MAR Network hosted its fourth biennual Flood-MAR Public Forum on November 7 & 8, 2023, at the CSUS Harper Alumni Center in Sacramento.  Nearly 100 Flood-MAR practitioners gathered to share success stories and lessons learned from the landmark wet winter of 2022 – 2023 and identify areas for further preparation needed to implement projects that use floodwaters for managed aquifer recharge in future wet years, for the benefit of communities, ecosystems, and agriculture.  

  • Read the short summary document which synthesizes highlights of the event here. 
  • Watch recordings of the many excellent presentations and discussions from the event by clicking the links in the event agenda below. 

From this sharing of experiences and ideas, Forum discussions culminated in five main takeaways:  

  1. California is poised to scale up Flood-MAR as a significant strategy for addressing groundwater overdraft, but more work is needed. 
  2. Partnerships and collaboration among growers and water managers have been key to successful Flood-MAR.  
  3. Flood-MAR lends itself to multiple benefits beyond groundwater recharge and flood protection.  
  4. State support and coordination across agencies helps streamline and activate Flood-MAR.  
  5. Flood-MAR projects are a good investment for California. 

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"For me, [Flood-MAR] is the solution that provides the hope. That proves the solutions are on our land, if we work together, and are willing to take an integrated resource management approach and think about all the multi-benefits."
Karen Ross
CA Dept. of Food and Agriculture Secutiry

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2023 FLOOD-MAR FORUM | Flood-MAR in Action 

Tuesday, November 7, 2023, 12:00 PM – 6:30 PM 

Wednesday, November 8, 2023, 9:00 AM – 4:30 PM 

 

FORUM AGENDA | DAY 1

 

  • Mike Antos – Stantec  

 

  • Karla Nemeth California Department of Water Resources  

 

  • Aaron Fukuda – Tulare Irrigation District 

 

  • Christine Gemperle – Grower  

  • Mark Hutson – Grower, Hutson Farm 

  • Julia Barfield – The Nature Conservancy  

  • Andy Fisher – U.C. Santa Cruz  

  • Kristin Sicke – Yolo County Flood Control and Water Conservation District 

Table Discussions – Share Your Success Stories!

  • Moderator: Sarah Woolf Water Wise 

  • Chase Hurley – Water and Land Solutions 

  • Bill Stretch – Fresno Irrigation District 

  • David Guy – Northern California Water Association 

  • Mike Mierzwa – CA Department of Water Resources 

  • Mike Myatt– Environmental Defense Fund 

  • Daniel Mountjoy – Sustainable Conservation 

 

 

FORUM AGENDA | DAY 2 

 

  • Graham Fogg – UC Davis, Network Coordinating Committee Member  

  • Moderator: Ashley Boren – Sustainable Conservation  

  • Paul Gosselin – California Department of Water Resources  

  • Erik Ekdahl – State Water Resources Control Board  

  • Don Cameron California State Board of Food and Agriculture 

 

 

 

Table Discussions – What are your priorities to prepare for the next wet year?

 

  • Karen Ross – Secretary, California Department of Food and Agriculture 

 

 

 

______________________ 

 

Thank you to this 2023 Flood-MAR Forum Sponsors! 

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Coachella Valley Water District’s Thomas E. Levy Groundwater Replenishment Facility in Coachella, Calif.

Photo Credit: DWR