Soil Mottling Drought Policy Update | News | Well & Septic | Permit Sonoma

Released: June 2, 2021

On April 21, 2021, Governor Gavin Newsom declared an emergency drought in Sonoma and Mendocino counties. On April 27, 2021, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors also declared Sonoma County a drought emergency. Due to the declared drought emergency in Sonoma County, Permit Sonoma is making the following two policy changes:

  • The dry weather season for well yield tests begins June 1, 2021. The typical dry weather season runs from July 15 to October 1 each year. It is at the discretion of the Permit and Resource Management Director to extend the dry weather season in accordance with Section 7-12 (1) (c) of the Sonoma County Code. Due to the current drought, this year’s time frame will be extended from June 1, 2021 to October 1, 2021.
  • The groundwater determination method of soil patch formation is now approved for new or replaced sewage treatment plants regardless of the stage of development of a parcel or site. Two criteria apply: Soil properties that are suitable for soil stains must be present in the soil and both the expert and the approval authority agree that these soil properties are present in the soil. The soil properties are assessed visually and / or by texture on site. A laboratory-based soil sampling / analysis for iron or other components is not required.

These two policy changes will apply during the declared drought or as noted above. The dry weather season will be re-evaluated at the end of September 2021 and can be extended if the drought persists. The changes in soil spotting will be assessed in the near future and the policy changes can be incorporated into the OWTS manual.

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