STATE WATER RESOURCES CONTROL BOARD MEETING

BOARD MEETING SESSION – SANTA ANA REGIONAL BOARD

FEBRUARY 2, 2000

 

 

ITEM  1

 

SUBJECT

 

AMENDING California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Santa Ana REGION, CEASE AND DESIST ORDER NO. 99-65 FOR CONCENTRATED ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATIONS

 

DISCUSSION

 

On October 7, 1999, the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Santa Ana Region (Regional Board), held a public hearing to consider adoption of an amendment to Cease and Desist Order No. 99-65.  The amendment to Cease and Desist Order No. 99-65 was not adopted at the meeting, as only four Regional Board members were able to vote.  The Regional Board again has a quorum, but does not have five members who are able to vote on this issue.  In a memorandum dated October 13, 1999, the Regional Board requested the SWRCB to take this matter up on its own motion, as authorized by Water Code section 13320.  The Regional Board has stated that the amendment to the cease and desist order is a critical component of the Regional Board’s Dairy Regulatory Program.

 

On August 20, 1999, the Regional Board adopted Order No. 99-11, NPDES No. CAG018001, General Waste Discharge Requirements for Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) Within the Santa Ana Region.  On August 20, 1999, the Regional Board also adopted Cease and Desist Order No. 99-65 requiring operators enrolled under Order No. 99-11 to comply with certain provisions in accordance with various time schedules.  Order No.  99-11 required CAFOs to develop and fully implement an Engineered Waste Management Plan (EMWP).  Order No. 99-65 included an Attachment “A”, listing several CAFOs that were required to comply forthwith with the requirement to develop and implement an EWMP.  Attachment “A” included CAFOs that had previously been requested to develop and implement an EWMP, and should have already done so.  Since the remaining CAFOs had not yet been requested to develop and implement an EWMP, Order No. 99-65 required those CAFOs that were not included in Attachment “A” to develop and implement an EWMP in accordance with a time schedule to be adopted by the Regional Board at a later date.  The proposed order includes a time schedule for the development and implementation of EWMPs for those CAFOs not included in Attachment “A”.

 

A time schedule for complying with the requirement for developing and implementing EWMPs, rather than requiring compliance immediately, is appropriate because of the limited number of experienced consultants currently available in the Santa Ana Region to prepare EWMPs and the current limited amount of resources available for Regional Board staff to review those plans.  Therefore, this order proposes to phase in the requirement for the development and implementation of the plans over a three-year period.  The time schedule is divided into three phases, with the first group required to develop and implement an EWMP in 2000, the second group in 2001, and the third group in 2002.  This schedule is also consistent with US EPA’s National Guidelines for CAFOs, which include a goal for all CAFOs to have Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plans (CNMPs), which are similar to EWMPs, completed by January 2003.

 

Each CAFO will be placed in one of the three phases (groups) based on the CAFO’s geographical location.  The last phase (third group) would consist of CAFOs that are generally located in the area of the Agricultural Preserve in the Chino Basin that has been experiencing the most severe flooding problems from the large amount of storm water runoff that originates from the highly developed areas to the north.  This area is bounded on the west by Euclid Avenue, on the north by Riverside Drive, on the east by the Cucamonga Creek Channel, and on the south by Merrill Avenue.  The San Bernardino County Flood Control District is currently constructing improvements that are expected to alleviate some of the flooding experienced by many of the CAFOs in this area.  Placing CAFOs that are in this area in the last phase of the time schedule would allow these CAFOs to benefit from some of the improvements being made by the District, prior to these CAFOs constructing any additional waste containment facilities that may be necessary.

 

The second phase would consist of CAFOs that are located in the Chino Basin, east of the Cucamonga Creek Channel.  The southern portion of this area is currently experiencing intense urban encroachment.  Several CAFOs in the southern portion of this area have already sold their land to developers, and will be leaving within the next three years.  Those CAFOs that will be leaving within the next three years would be eligible to petition the Board to extend the compliance date for up to 12 months, as noted in the draft order, and would not have to prepare an EWMP if they cease operations by the end of the extended compliance date.  The first phase would consist of all CAFOs located in the San Jacinto Basin (Lake Elsinore drainage area) and all CAFOs that are located in the Chino Basin, west of the Cucamonga Creek Channel and south of Merrill Avenue.  This area of the Chino Basin includes CAFOs in the Agricultural Preserve that are located closest to the Santa Ana River and the Prado Flood Control Basin.

 

This proposed order also updates Attachment “A” to more accurately reflect the CAFOs that have previously been requested to develop and implement an EWMP, and must comply with the requirement for an EWMP forthwith.

 

POLICY ISSUE

 

Should the SWRCB adopt the order in response to the Regional Board’s

inability to do so?

 

FISCAL IMPACT

 

None.  Activities covered under budgeted resources.

 

REGIONAL BOARD IMPACT

 

Santa Ana Regional Board.

 

STAFF Recommendation

           

Staff recommends that the SWRCB adopt the proposed order.

Note:  Santa Ana Regional Board Order 99-65 available in Word.

 

January 11, 2000 DRAFT

 

AMENDING California Regional Water Quality Control Board,
Santa Ana REGION, CEASE AND DESIST ORDER NO. 99-65
FOR CONCENTRATED ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATIONS

WATER QUALITY ORDER NO. 2000 - ___

 

The State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) finds that:

 

1.  On October 7, 1999, the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Santa Ana Region (Regional Board), held a public hearing to consider adoption of an amendment to Cease and Desist Order No. 99-65.  The Regional Board did not adopt the amendment due to the lack of a sufficient number of Board Members eligible to vote on the item.

 

2.  The Regional Board now has a quorum, but does not have five members who are eligible to vote on this issue.  Therefore, the Regional Board cannot presently reconsider adoption of the amendment.  As a result, in a memorandum dated October 13, 1999, the Regional Board requested that the SWRCB take the matter up on its own motion, as authorized by Water Code section 13320.

 

3.  The amendment is a critical component of the Regional Board’s Dairy Regulatory Program.  Therefore, it is appropriate for the SWRCB to adopt an order amending Cease and Desist Order No. 99-65, as requested by the Regional Board.  The Regional Board will be able to rescind, amend, or modify this order, as necessary.

 

4.  On August 20, 1999, the Regional Board adopted Order No. 99-11, NPDES No. CAG018001, General Waste Discharge Requirements for Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) Within The Santa Ana Region.

 

5.  On August 20, 1999, the Regional Board also adopted Cease and Desist Order No. 99-65 requiring operators enrolled under Order No. 99-11 to comply with certain provisions in accordance with various time schedules.

 

6.  Discharge Specification A.2. of Order No.  99-11 specifies:

 

2.  The discharger shall develop and fully implement an Engineered Waste Management Plan (EMWP) acceptable to the Executive Officer. The EMWP shall be developed by a registered professional engineer, or other qualified individual, in accordance with the guidelines specified in Attachment “B” of this order.  The Executive Officer is hereby authorized to make necessary revisions to the guidelines for the preparation of an EWMP outlined in Attachment “B”.

 

7.  Item 1 of Cease and Desist Order No. 99-65 states:

 

1.  Compliance with Discharge Specification A.2. shall be achieved as follows:

 

a)  The following dischargers shall achieve compliance with Discharge Specification A.2. forthwith: (See Attachment “A” for a list of these dischargers.)

 

i)                    Dischargers who have developed and implemented an acceptable Engineered Waste Management Plan (EWMP),

 

ii)                  Dischargers who were required to develop and implement an acceptable EWMP pursuant to Provision D.3. of Order No. 94-7, or

 

 

iii)  Dischargers who were required by law to submit a report of waste discharge and who were informed by the Executive Officer that the report of waste discharge was to include an acceptable EWMP.

 

b)  Those dischargers not included in item 1.a., above, shall develop and implement an acceptable EWMP and achieve compliance with Discharge Specification A.2. in accordance with a time schedule to be adopted by the Board at a later date.

 

5.  It is appropriate to require those dischargers who have already developed and implemented EWMPs, who were required to develop and implement EWMPs pursuant to Order
No. 94-7, and/or who were required by law to submit a report of waste discharge and who were informed by the Regional Board’s Executive Officer that the report of waste discharge was to include an acceptable EWMP, to comply with Discharge Specification A.2. forthwith.

 

6.  It is appropriate to revise the list of dischargers identified in Attachment “A” to Cease and Desist Order No.99-65 to more accurately reflect those dischargers specified in Finding 5, above. 

 

7.  It is appropriate to provide time schedules for the development and implementation of EWMPs for those dischargers currently enrolled to discharge waste under Order No. 99-11 and not identified in the revised Attachment “A”.

 

8.  Due to the limited number of experienced consultants available to prepare EWMPs and the limited amount of resources available for Regional Board staff to review those plans, it is appropriate to phase the requirement for the development and implementation of the plans over a three-year period.

 

9.  The SWRCB has notified interested parties of its intent to adopt this amendment to the cease and desist order.

 

10.  The SWRCB, at a public hearing held on January 20, 2000, received evidence and considered all relevant information pertaining to this amendment to the cease and desist order.

 

11.  This enforcement action is being taken for the protection of the environment and, as such, is exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (Public Resources Code, Section 21000 et seq.) in accordance with Section 15321, Article 19, Division 3, Title 14, California Code of Regulations.

 

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Cease and Desist Order No. 99-65 is amended as follows:

 

1.  Attachment “A” to Cease and Desist Order No. 99-65 is replaced with the revised Attachment “A”, included with this order.

 

2.  Section “b.” of Item 1 is replaced with the following:

 

i)  b.  All dischargers listed in Attachments “B”, “C”, and “D” shall develop and implement an acceptable EWMP and achieve compliance with Discharge Specification A.2 in accordance with the time schedules specified in those attachments.[1],[2]

 

3.  All other provisions of Cease and Desist Order No. 99-65 remain unchanged.

 

CERTIFICATION

 

The undersigned, Administrative Assistant to the SWRCB, does hereby certify that the

foregoing is a full, true, and correct copy of an order duly and regularly adopted at a

meeting of the State Water Resources Control Board held on February 2, 2000.

 

AYE:

 

NO:

 

ABSENT:

 

ABSTAIN:

 

 

Maureen Marché

Administrative Assistant to the Board

 


[1] It is recognized that some dischargers plan to terminate operations within the next few years.  Dischargers who are listed on any of the attachments to this order, and can document that they will terminate operations within 12 months of the compliance date for developing and implementing an EWMP, may petition the Board for a compliance date that may be extended for up to 12 months.  However, dischargers with facilities still in operation after the extension date without a fully implemented EWMP will be considered in violation of this cease and desist order.

 

[2] Recognizing that a large number of EWMPs will be submitted within a narrow timeframe, Board staff will strive to provide comments on draft and final plans as soon as possible after receipt from the dischargers.  The staff goal will be to respond to submittals within 30 days.  It should also be recognized that staff resources may be directed towards enforcement related to non-submittal of required EWMPs and this may result in some delays in staff reviews of EWMPs, depending on available resources.