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Infiltration basins are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.

Double K Ranch

Earthworks For Agroforestry

~ Design & Implementation ~

Design

Location: Pismo, CA

Land & Climate Characteristics: 10 acre homestead property located in Pismo on California’s central coast. Significant maritime influence. Long, hot, dry summers, followed by cool and winters. Property had ~ 5 acres of flat bottom land formerly in pasture as animal paddocks, and ~5 acres of progressively steeper land moving up into a small valley bowl. Soils are sticky, expansive clay. Predominant ecotone is anchored by coast live oaks.

Client Vision And Goals: The clients are working to establish a regenerative, multi-family homestead, complete with perennial food production systems, long-term timber plantings, livestock and a market garden. Excess produce is to be sold and distributed through the owner’s local yoga studio.

Existing run-on situation from up-watershed ag fields. Note the coffee colored water – laden with silt and bed load from the tilled fields.
Existing ag field run-off running straight through the middle of the property.

The earthworks design for Double K Ranch was implemented during a 5 day earthworks course led by Warren Brush of Resilience Design Consultants and co-facilitated by Jesse Smith of White Buffalo Land Trust, Brenton Kelly of Quail Springs Permaculture and myself. The following elements were installed to create a top-to-bottom passive water harvesting infrastructure to solve the annual flooding issue (including fixing it for the neighboring farm) and increase the amount of water infiltration on an annual basis.

Design Elements

  • Water
    • Passive water harvesting earthworks including:
      • Rolling dip drain connecting up-valley 19 acre catchment with the formerly isolated stock pond via a 1.5% grade earthen drain.
      • Pond-remodeling to increase storage capacity by 100% and re-set freeboard to a safe height.
      • Installation of a pond spillway to link the pond to the lower water harvesting structures.
      • A network of branched detention swales designed to bank water during high-flow events as it passed through the center of the lower fields, holding onto it and allowing it to infiltrate.
      • Sediment deposition basin at the run-on point from the neighboring agricultural fields – accessible by tractor during the dry months to harvest sediment and use it throughout the property.
      • Level-sill exit designed to maximize system storage while eliminating flooding to the shared driveway.
  • Access
    • Four-seasons vehicle access to the lower fields.
    • Elevated livestock pen area.
  • Living Systems

Implementation Gallery

  • Pond during site assessment.
  • Infiltration basins are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Pond remodel.
  • Infiltration basins are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Remodeling the old pond – going deeper and building the wall a bit higher to increase its holding capacity.
  • Excavator remodeling pond dam wall at DKR.
  • Infiltration basins are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Finished remodeled pond prior to mulching the dam wall at DKR.
  • Midway through the course.
  • Pond remodel pano.
  • Pond dam wall being raised to safe freeboard level.
  • Infiltration basins are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Bulldozer cutting another detention basin.
  • Infiltration basins are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Full swales following first rain event.
  • Infiltration basins are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Detention basin full after first rain.
  • Infiltration basins are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Infiltration basin at entry point of run-off from neighboring broccoli field. Armored sill in the foreground is marks the property line.
  • Swales are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Flatland swale system panorama – linked central drain diverts laterally into infiltration basins.
  • Swales are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Sandbag diversion from central drain into swale basin
  • Swales are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Sandbag diversion from central drain into swale basin.
  • Infiltration basins are a type of water infiltration earthwork used to passively harvest water and infiltrate it into the soil.
    Porous sandbag diversion doing its job – diverting water to fill the detention basins while permitting overflow down the main channel. Note the source of the inbound run-off, the neighboring broccoli field, in the background.
  • Double K Ranch – urbanite armored level-sill spillway leading from remodeled pond down to future agroforestry zone.
  • Double K Ranch level sill spillway leading to lower agroforestry zone.
  • Earth repair machines.
  • Armored level-sill spillway discharging from the pond to the lower swale system made of urbanite infilled with lava rock.
  • Spillway leading to infiltration basin at start of swale system.
  • Newly remodeled dam wall mulched and seeded to cover crop.
  • Dozer and excavator did the bulk of the work.
  • 1.5% diversion drain from the driveway rolling dip linking 19 acres of up-valley catchment to the pond.
  • 1.5% diversion drain at the steep transition section. Note the urbanite and lava rock armoring to stabilize this section and prevent erosion.
  • 1.5% diversion drain from driveway to pond.
  • Looking up valley part way through the course.
Infilration basins slow, spreading and sinking water.
DKR infiltration basins full after heavy rain with cover crop up.