The San Luis Rey River stretches inland for 51 miles from its mouth at Oceanside, California to its headwaters near Mount Palomar. Within its boundaries are located 24 separate and unique resource conservation areas as identified by the County of San Diego.
This river is not like an eastern river, filled year-round with deep, flowing water. This is a western river, the product of an arid climate. It is thrifty with its resources. It has never flaunted its riches; this river hoards its water, stores it underground, not for a rainy day but for the dry times. This is a practical river, and it is a river that is familiar with change. It is this aspect of the river, its ability to adjust, and its long history of adjustment to human activity, that make this river such a unique national treasure.
The San Luis Rey watershed lies between two of California's greatest areas of development, Los Angeles (125 miles north) and San Diego (50 miles south). The plant communities, both natural and agricultural, are some of the most threatened in the country. In terms of its naturally occurring species, the San Luis Rey watershed presents a southerly face of the flora and fauna of the Great Valley and Sierra Nevada biological systems. The uniqueness and importance of this area are enumerated in numerous studies of the biology, botany, geology, and hydrology of the watershed. These studies, primarily by the County of San Diego and the Army Corps of Engineers, both quantify and qualify the singular nature of the area. The watershed along Magee Ridge includes the only remaining Mountain Lion corridor linking the Coast Range with Camp Pendleton to the inland mountains of the Cleveland National forest.
The San Luis Rey watershed is a major contributor to the economic well being of southern California.
The river and its adjacent areas still function as a vital transportation corridor, carrying the ever-increasing traffic of State Highway 76 and Interstate 15 from the inland urban basin of southern Riverside County to the coast. This traffic increasingly mixes with the large-scale, intensive agricultural production. Approximately 30% of the watershed is involved in some type of agricultural use and the value of the crops produced here contribute a major portion of San Diego's billion-dollar-a-year agricultural industry. It is this contemporary agricultural use of the watershed that gives the area its predominantly rural character. The river links our recreational resources at the beach in Oceanside with Palomar State Park and Cuyamaca State Park in the mountains. Future projects might include purchasing sites for historic designations; encouraging new opportunities for business growth such as ecotourism; and encouraging the use of new water conservation technologies.
Currently the City of Oceanside is pumping, treating, and delivering over two million gallons of water per day from the river to its community, with immediate plans to expand its treatment plant to handle over six million gallons per day.
The Pala Indian Reservations draws all its drinking water from the groundwater supply which is less than one mile from a proposed privately owned/operated solid waste landfill.
There is a study underway by the San Diego County Water Authority to utilize the underlying basins for storage facilities. Water would be stored during wet years and drawn out during dry periods. This would eliminate the need for building dams and reservoirs in this area. However, it would not be feasible if the aquifers are seriously contaminated by the proposed solid waste landfill.
The need for this river and its valley to continue functioning as a transportation corridor is obvious. The potential for development as a framework for a regional if not national greenway, or river parkway is vital.
Possibilities for the new economic future of the San Luis Rey River include scenic rest stops with signs explaining both our cultural history and our environmental systems. Ecotourism will be the heart of future economic development of this river.
Wednesday, June 21, 2000 , the San Diego Board of Supervisors
vote to rescind the permit given to Rosemary's Mountain quarry
following a Court order.
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