Double K Ranch

~ Level 2 Whole Site Design ~

~ Level 3 Passive Water Harvesting Earthworks Implementation ~

Level 2 – Whole Site Design

Location: Pismo, CA

Project Scope: 7th Gen was invited to develop a Level 2 Whole Site Design for the newly acquired 10 acre Double K Ranch property during the spring of 2017. The property that had fallen into disrepair during the preceding decades.

The property was experiencing flooding every year during the wet season in the lower 5 acres, which made the area impassable and was degrading the shared driveway used by the owners and several neighbors. A mix of both flat and steep land, along with significant water run-on sources from the west and north held great potential to create a giant living sponge capable of absorbing large influxes of seasonal precipitation and improving water quality down-watershed.

The clients envision creating a productive, beautiful and resilient homestead that provides food, medicine, timber, fuel, income, energy and year round beauty via multi-layered agroforestry and water reticulation systems. Specific elements like a multi-species orchard, silvopasture systems yielding fruit, nuts, timber and livestock yields, and extensive shade plantings were overlaid on top of an extensive passive water harvesting earthworks mainframe design that provided four seasons vehicle access to the formerly flooded fields and added 19 acres of run-on catchment to a remodeled pond catchment.

View from the property’s highest point, overlooking southeast Edna Valley.

Work Performed

  • Full Site Work up and assessment of existing Water, Access, and Structures mainframe.
  • Facilitation of Minimum Holistic Goal creation and subsequent detailed elements list.
  • Extensive passive water harvesting earthworks mainframe design, including:
    • Rolling dip installation on driveway.
    • 1.5% grade drain connection driveway and 19 acres of up-valley catchment to a previously isolated stock pond.
    • Remodeling of stock pond to increase storage capacity by 100%.
    • Pond spillway connected to lower mainframe detention swales.
    • Lower 5 acres remodeled to spread, retain and infiltrate the seasonally flood water coming from the broad acre agricultural fields immediately to the northeast with a series of branched detention swales.
    • Exit sill to maximize storage capacity while still protecting the driveway from flooding.
  • Detailed agroforestry planting lists and guilds.
  • Water tank placement and secondary dwelling siting and orientation.

Typical seasonal flood pattern before earthworks.

Design Maps

DKR – Silvopasture paddocks arranged around mainframe water harvesting detention swales
DKR – Whole Site Design map.

Level 3 – Double K Ranch Earthworks Implementation

Project Scope: 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 Spring Permaculture and 7th Generation Design. 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.

Elements installed included:

  • 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.
  • Silvopasture paddocks between the detention swales.
  • Four-seasons vehicle access to the lower fields.
  • Elevated livestock pen area.
  • 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.
Digging one of the branching detention swales.
Upland portion of the property.

Work Performed

  • Full Site Work up and assessment of existing Water, Access, and Structures mainframe.
  • Facilitation of Minimum Holistic Goal creation and subsequent detailed elements list.
  • Extensive passive water harvesting earthworks mainframe design, including:
    • Rolling dip installation on driveway.
    • 1.5% grade drain connection driveway and 19 acres of up-valley catchment to a previously isolated stock pond.
    • Remodeling of stock pond to increase storage capacity by 100%.
    • Pond spillway connected to lower mainframe detention swales.
    • Lower 5 acres remodeled to spread, retain and infiltrate the seasonally flood water coming from the broad acre agricultural fields immediately to the northeast with a series of branched detention swales.
    • Exit sill to maximize storage capacity while still protecting the driveway from flooding.
  • Detailed agroforestry planting lists and guilds.
  • Water tank placement and secondary dwelling siting and orientation.

Typical seasonal flood pattern before earthworks.

Earthworks Implementation Gallery