The Marin County Flood Control and Water Conservation District was formed in 1955 by an Act of the State Legislature. The Marin County Board of Supervisors sits as Board of the District and the District is staffed by the Department of Public Works. The boundaries of the District are contiguous with those of the County of Marin. Zone #1 is a relatively large flood control zone that encompasses the entire city of Novato plus a sizeable amount of unincorporated area around the City. The Zone?s boundary is essentially the entire watershed tributary to Novato and Rush Creeks. Novato Creek is a substantial perennial stream that extends approximately 17 miles from San Pablo Bay to its headwaters at Stafford Lake. This creek, along with its numerous tributaries including Bowman Creek, Simmons Creek, Warner Creek and Arroyo Avichi, drains an approximately 27,500-acre watershed. When major storms come in from the northwest this large watershed can produce enough runoff to fill Stafford Lake and overwhelm the downstream reaches. As the area developed over the years, drainage improvements did not keep up with community growth and it became apparent that areas then experiencing occasional inconvenience would begin to suffer major damage if something wasn?t done and Flood Control Zone 1 was formed in 1970 to address this issue

The Zone?s regular activities include the periodic maintenance dredging of portions of Novato Creek, Warner Creek and Arroyo Avichi, an annual creek clearance program carried out by the Marin Conservation Corps under the direction of District staff, operation and maintenance of four stormwater pumping stations, and on-going consultation with the City of Novato regarding development proposals and their related flood control issues.