Butte County outlines monitoring, well‑installation and water‑system projects; board keeps staff support for GSAs

Cammy Loeser, director of the Butte County Water and Resource Conservation Department, gave the commission an overview of departmental priorities for the year, focusing on monitoring, reporting, project management and outreach.

Kelly Peterson described the county monitoring network (about 135 wells), a shallow‑well installation program that identifies 10 zones (five in phase one) for targeted monitoring, and a new video‑logging camera to inspect well interiors and improve data quality.

Peterson also summarized the Feather Ridge Estates Water Systems Improvement Project in Berry Creek: a $1,750,000 construction effort to replace fire‑damaged infrastructure with two deep bedrock wells (up to 500 feet), two 15,000‑gallon tanks, pumps, piping and chlorination to restore service for about 38 parcels; she said roughly a dozen residents currently live there.

Elaine McSpadden, environmental health division director, briefed the commission on a Rural Water Safety Project (a state block‑grant effort) that includes a well and wastewater ordinance update and other drought‑resilience actions.

Commissioners discussed the county’s relationship with the Vina and Wyandotte Creek GSAs. Staff described an existing cost‑share agreement that funds a GSA program manager housed in the county and provides technical assistance; the Board of Supervisors directed continuation of that arrangement through 2028 and asked that staff bring the topic back for review in 2027.

Next steps: staff will continue to process monitoring data, pursue agreements for shallow‑well installations with landowners and DWR, post project closeout materials online and present additional updates at future Water Commission meetings.