West Sacramento Facility
Inside the West Sacramento CAWSC Facility: A Hub for Innovation, Field Science, and Collaboration
In the Field & On the Ground
Preparing Field Collections for Laboratory Analysis
Tucked into an industrial stretch of Ramco Street, the West Sacramento CAWSC facility is one of the California Water Science Center’s most capable, and lesser known, scientific assets. Step inside, and it becomes immediately clear why so many teams rely on this space to launch field campaigns, build new tools, and train the next generation of hydro technicians.
Built for Doing Science — Every Step of It
The West Sacramento facility isn’t just a staging area; it’s an end-to-end science hub where complex monitoring programs are conceived, built, tested, deployed, and analyzed under one roof.
As hydrologic technician Lawrence Fujiwara explains:
The biggest asset of the facility is the capability of planning, creating, testing, conducting, and analyzing science. Basically, we are able to do every step of the scientific method in-house.
With storage capacity for more than a dozen 20-foot boats, multiple unmanned surface vehicles, and “tons of scientific gear and tools,” the site is scaled for large, multi-year field operations. Teams fabricate infrastructure for gaging stations, install and maintain continuous monitoring systems, calibrate water-quality sensors, collect sediment samples, and process LiDAR and bathymetry data. Training happens constantly — from electrical-systems refreshers to GIS workshops to informal science talks.
Who Works Here
A diverse set of specialists call the facility home, including:
- Hydrologic technicians
- Hydrologists
- Physical scientists
- Biologists and fish biologists
- Research biologists
- IT specialists
- Administrative and operations staff
Their work extends across every major component of modern water science: flow gaging, water-quality monitoring, sediment transport, ecological sampling, mapping and spatial analysis, datalogger programming, instrument design, and 3D printing.
The energy is palpable — as science communications specialist Steve Ackley, who visited shortly after the facility opened put it, “CAWSC operations are humming along… the building is larger than the old office, and there’s still room to grow.”
A Resource for Partners Across California
As the facility moves through a period of transition, its capabilities continue to support partners across California. The teams based here support monitoring networks and scientific studies across the Delta, Central Valley, and beyond — producing reliable, defensible data that local, state, federal, and Tribal partners depend on.
By showcasing the full range of work at West Sacramento, CAWSC affirms that the facility is active and well-positioned for future collaboration.
As CAWSC considers options for a new formal name for the site, one thing is already certain: the West Sacramento facility plays a vital role in advancing water science for California’s communities and ecosystems.