Carlsbad Watershed
The Carlsbad Hydrologic Unit (HU) is approximately 210 square miles in area extending from the headwaters above Lake Wolhford in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and from Vista and Oceanside in the north to Solana Beach, Escondido, and the community of Rancho Santa Fe to the south. The cities of Carlsbad, San Marcos, and Encinitas are entirely within this HU. There are numerous important surface hydrologic features within the Carlsbad HU including four unique coastal lagoons, three major creeks, and two large water storage reservoirs. The HU contains four major, roughly parallel hydrologic areas. From north to south they are the Buena Vista (901.2), the Agua Hedionda (904.3), the Batiquitos (904.5), and the San Elijo (904.6) HAs. Two smaller HAs, the Loma Alta (904.1) and the Canyon de las Encinas (904.4) are also within the Carlsbad HU.
The largest jurisdictions in terms of land area in the Carlsbad HU are the unincorporated San Diego County areas (66 sq. miles), the cities of Carlsbad (39 sq. miles) and San Marcos (24 sq. miles), and an approximately 27 square mile portion of the City of Escondido. The cities of Carlsbad, San Marcos, and Encinitas are located entirely within the HU. Approximately 48% of the Carlsbad HU is urbanized. The dominant land uses are residential (29%), commercial/ industrial (6%), freeways and roads (12%), agriculture (12%), and vacant/ undeveloped (32%).
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| Hydrologic Areas: |
Loma Alta, Buena Vista Creek, Agua Hedionda, Encinas, San Marcos, Escondido Creek
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| Major Water Bodies: |
Loma Alta Creek, Buena Vista Creek, Buena Vista Lagoon, Agua Hedionda Creek, Agua Hedionda Lagoon, San Marcos Creek, Batiquitos Lagoon, Escondido Creek, San Elijo Lagoon, and Lake Wolhford
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If you would like to select one of these major water bodies as your collection site, follow these instructions to get the information you will need for the registration form:
- Go to iTouchMap.com.
- If possible, enter the zip code of the area where you are collecting your sample in the "Address" field at the top of the page. If you don't know the zip code, enter the name of the watershed or city and state. Then, click the "Go" button. The comic book bubble will show the latitude and longitude on the map on that same page.
- The first number is the latitude. The second is the longitude. These are the numbers you'll need to enter into the Collection Site Information section of the registration form.
The following is an example screen shot of longitude and latitude results:
If you need assistance in selecting a collection site, please contact us. We'll be happy to help you find a site that's as close to your group' or school's location as possible.
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