Survey of California Water Agencies - Water Resources Center Archives

Survey of California Water Agencies
The history and prosperity of California is intimately connected to the development of its water resources. The Water Resources Center Archives (WRCA), at the University of California, Berkeley, has received a grant to conduct a survey of historical and current records held by California water and irrigation districts. The purpose of the survey is to collect information about each district and to survey the extent and type of records and documents that each district may have, storage conditions, accessibility, etc. This information will be compiled by WRCA as a centralized Internet-based resource that will be available to the districts. The database will also provide summary information regarding each district. This survey should be completed by the person(s) in your organization who is the most knowledgeable about your records.
Complete as much of the form as possible, even if only a few questions apply. It may take approximately 20 minutes to complete this form, but it is vital to the success of this project that the data be as comprehensive and accurate as possible. Due to the time constraints of the project, we need the questionnaire submitted to us by as soon as possible.
The information you provide is important to us and we will be making follow-up calls to ensure as complete a response as possible. By returning this survey, you will assist us in documenting this unique part of California’s history. We thank you in advance for your assistance in this important project.
Please call 510-642-2666 if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Linda Vida,
Library Director
lvida@library.berkeley.edu

District Information
District Name:
Physical Address
Street address:
City:
County:
Zip code:
Mailing Address (if different)
Street or Post Office Box:
City:
County:
Zip code:
Telephone number:
Fax number:
Public Information Officer:
Name: Email:
District's URL address:
Former name(s) of district:

Formation date (mm/yyyy):
County(ies) where district is located:

Business hours:
Services:

(ex. municipal or county water supply; agriculture, domestic, or industrial service; sewage service; irrigation)
Population of area served:
Amount of water served (acre-feet per year):
Source(s) of water: (Mark all that apply)
State Water Project
Central Valley Project
Groundwater (name of aquifer):
Surface Water (name of river, creek, or reservoir):
Sacramento - San Joaquin Delta
Other (specify):
(ex. Sacramento River, Tehama-Colusa Canal, Little Rock Creek)
Type of district (Act):
Other:
Name(s) of person(s) administering organization’s historical records program/collection:
Name: Title:
Telephone:
Email:
Name: Title:
Telephone:
Email:
Name of person completing questionnaire (if different):
Name: Title:
Telephone:
Email:
General Information
Note: While it may be difficult to “measure” your collections exactly, please give your best estimate in answering the following question. If your collections are unorganized, estimate how much space the historical records would occupy if they were in boxes or on shelves. Use the following chart to calculate the volume of your collections in linear feet/cubic feet (lf/cf).
1 Bankers Box^® (approx. 15" x 12" x 10") = 1 lf/cf
1 transfer box (approx. size of a filing cabinet drawer) = 2 lf/cf
1 filing cabinet drawer = 2 lf/cf
Volume of collection (in lf/cf):
Date range of collection:
Collections available for research?
Yes
No
Copying permitted?
Yes
No
Restrictions to the collection:
Requirements for access to the records:
Access to Collections (Mark all that apply)
Through which of the following are users able to locate descriptions of your historical records?
Typewritten registers / inventories / finding aids
Printed guide to whole collection
Computer catalog accessible in-house
Other (specify):
Are any of the following significant impediments to the use of your historical records?
Cannot physically locate them
Lack of indexes or other finding aids
Necessary equipment not available (i.e. microform readers, tape players)
Records are deteriorated beyond use
Other (specify):
What portion of your historical records are documented in a finding aid?
Less than 25%
25-49%
50-74%
75-100%
Records Format Information (Mark all that apply)
Administrative Records
Correspondence
Minutes
Annual Reports
Bylaws
Histories of the District
Books
Reports
Scrapbooks
Clippings
Financial Records
Budgets
Other:
Media Records
Photographs
Slides
Transparencies
Audio Recordings
Oral Histories
Films
Video Recordings
Microfilm / Microfiche
Computer Media (tapes, diskettes, CD-ROMs)
Promotional Materials (brochures, pamphlets, etc.)
Yes
No
Reports
EIR/EIS
Technical Reports
Project Files
Maps
Architectual Drawings
Drawings
Blueprints
Plans
Specifications
Field Notes
Legal Materials
Contracts
Permits
Estimates
Bids
Articles of Incorporation
Formation Papers
District Newsletters
Yes
No
Other:
Facilities and Equipment (Mark all that apply)
Where are your historical records stored?
Office area(s)
Storage room(s)
Attic / Basement
Warehouse
Off-site storage
Other (specify):
What portion of the total storage area(s) are equipped with the following? (Mark closest estimate for each)
Year-round temperature controls
All75%50%25%None
Year-round humidity controls
All75%50%25%None
Fire detection (smoke/heat alarms)
All75%50%25%None
Fire suppression (sprinklers, Halon)
All75%50%25%None
What equipment does your organization have available for use in managing or making your historical records available?
Photocopiers
Computers
Microfilm / Microfiche readers(s)
Tape / Video player(s)
Digital scanner(s)
Microfilm camera(s)
Digital camera(s)
Web site
Copying equipment for photographs
Other (specify):
Preservation and Conservation
Has your organization ever experienced loss of historical records due to any of the following?
Water (floods, leaks)
Fire
Misfiles
Theft
Other (specify):
Have you ever undertaken any of the following preservation/conservation measures, either in-house or through an outside contractor?
Microfilming
Disaster recovery
Rebinding / book repair
Optical imaging and scanning
Document conservation / repair
Other (specify):
If you are especially concerned about the physical condition of any portion of your collections, please explain briefly:
Needs and Priorities
Please rank each of the following priorities for improving the management of your historical records and making them available for use: (Mark one for each: 3 = major priority; 2 = moderate; 1 = minor; 0 = not a priority)
Increase capacity of storage space: 3 2 1 0
Improve storage conditions (HVAC system, security): 3 2 1 0
Improve staff training or expertise: 3 2 1 0
Encourage greater use of collection: 3 2 1 0
Improve finding aids: 3 2 1 0
Create online inventory: 3 2 1 0
Reformat collections (microfilm, imaging): 3 2 1 0
Preservation / conservation of collections: 3 2 1 0
Develop natural disaster plan: 3 2 1 0
Introduce/improve records management in organization: 3 2 1 0
Increase management’s commitment to record maintenance: 321 0
Other:3 2 1 0
What is the most pressing problem confronting your organization’s historical records collection?

Where do you go for advice and assistance on archival matters?
Federal government agency (specify):
State government agency (specify):
Local government agency (specify):
Professional organizations (specify):
Colleagues in other districts
Vendors of supplies/equipment
Paid consultants
Other (specify):
Please use this text box for any further comments you might have.

Final Request
If you have a published or written history of your district, please consider sending a copy to:
Water Resources Center Archives
University of California
410 O'Brien Hall
Berkeley, CA 94720-1718
Or email it as a separate attachment to lvida@library.berkeley.edu
Thank you for taking time to complete and submit this survey.