Departments

Specific groups within the Alameda County Public Works Agency take on the challenging work of the Flood Control District. Staff from these groups map flood plains; plan, design, and build new flood control structures to serve specific watersheds; maintain historic and current maps; use rainfall and stream flow data to update and calibrate stream flow models and rainfall statistics; maintain and repair existing facilities; and strive to minimize the adverse impacts of construction and new development:

• Engineering and Construction
  (Flood Control Division and Construction Division)
• Maintenance and Operations
• Development Services
• Administration

» Engineering and Construction

The Engineering and Construction Department plans, designs, constructs, and inspects flood control projects including:

• New infrastructure
• Upgrades and repairs to older facilities
• Restoration and enhancements to natural creeks or flood control channels and lakes

Engineering and Construction staff also review preliminary Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Flood Insurance Studies, the basis for production of FEMA's Flood Insurance Rate Maps. Flood Control District input on these maps has saved thousands of property owners the cost of unnecessary flood insurance.

To supplement the Flood Control District's network of rainfall gauges, the department oversees collection of rainfall data by volunteers throughout the county.

» Maintenance and Operations

The Maintenance and Operations Department keeps rainwater moving quickly from community streets to the San Francisco Bay by:

• Inspecting over 500 miles of conduit, channel, and natural creeks and approximately 3,750 drop inlets
• Maintaining storm water flow in flood control facilities by clearing excess vegetation, sediment, and debris and keeping fences intact,
• Inspecting and repairing, as needed, the Flood Control District's 22 pump stations,
• Inspecting and maintaining over 3,700 County tidegates, and
• Working with other District staff to plan flood control infrastructure upgrades.

Maintenance and Operations staff keep the public safe by:

• Providing hazardous spill response,
• Inspecting damaged trees and reducing fire hazards,
• Providing sand bag supplies, and
• Serving as an Emergency Response Unit during natural disasters.

» Development Services

Groups within the Development Services Department that support the District's goals are the Land Development Division and the Clean Water Division.

The Land Development Division works to maintain the flood control system's integrity by ensuring that all private and public developments in the county's unincorporated areas comply with accepted engineering standards, environmental requirements, and Flood Control District ordinances. Development Services staff review design documents and issue permits for new developments in the unincorporated areas.

The District's Clean Water Program oversees the Alameda Countywide Clean Water Program and represents the county's unincorporated areas as one of 17 co-permittees on a federal NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) permit mandating pollution control standards. Clean Water Division staff also oversee permit compliance activities for the Flood Control District and unincorporated county areas, two of the 17 co-permittees.

» Administration

The Administration Department handles the Flood Control District's human resources, accounting, information technology and other administrative services.