STATE WATER RESOURCES CONTROL BOARD
BOARD MEETING
SESSION--DIVISION OF WATER QUALITY
SUBJECT
CONSIDERATION
OF A RESOLUTION APPROVING WITH CLARIFICATIONS
AN AMENDMENT TO THE WATER QUALITY CONTROL PLAN FOR THE NORTH COAST
REGION ESTABLISHING A TOTAL MAXIMUM DAILY LOAD FOR SEDIMENT IN THE GARCIA RIVER
WATERSHED
DISCUSSION
The California Regional Water Quality Control Board,
North Coast Region (North Coast Regional Board), adopted the Water Quality
Control Plan for the North Coast Region (Basin Plan) on December 9, 1993. The adopted Basin Plan was approved by the
State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) on March
21, 1994 and by the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) on August 18, 1994. A narrative water quality objective for sediment
is contained in the Basin Plan. Federal
Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 303(d) requires the identification of water
bodies that do not meet water quality objectives and where attainment of the
objectives is not expected with implementation of technology based
controls. For such listed water bodies
the CWA requires the establishment of a total maximum daily load (TMDL) for the
relevant pollutant to ensure attainment of the objective. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(USEPA) placed Garcia River on the CWA Section 303(d) list in 1993 due to
impairment of beneficial uses by sediment from nonpoint sources of
pollution. The beneficial uses impacted
are cold freshwater habitat; spawning, reproduction and/or early development of
cold water fish, such as
coho salmon, and steelhead trout, and estuarine
habitat.
USEPA, in settlement of a lawsuit with Pacific Coast
Federation of Fishermen’s Associations committed to develop TMDLs on 18 water
bodies along the North Coast of California, including this TMDL for sediment in
the Garcia River watershed. USEPA
promulgated a TMDL for the Garcia River in March 1998. This proposed amendment incorporates the
USEPA TMDL and an implementation plan in the Basin Plan.
On May 28, 1998, the North Coast Regional Board adopted
Resolution No. 98-66 amending the Basin Plan to incorporate a TMDL for sediment
in the Garcia River watershed. On
December 10, 1998, the North Coast Regional Board adopted a revised Resolution
No. 98-66 to correct minor errors and inconsistencies (Attachment
A).
The amendment establishes numeric targets which are
expected to result in the Garcia River meeting the sediment water quality
objective by the compliance date
of 2049. In
order to meet the objective, three options are provided to landowners in the
watershed: (1) compliance with waste
discharge prohibitions that apply to the Garcia River watershed, (2)
compliance with approved erosion control and site-specific management plans, or
(3) compliance with an approved erosion control plan and the general Garcia
River Management Plan.
Subsequent to adoption of the amendment, staffs of
the SWRCB and North Coast Regional Board identified items in the amendment that
required clarification. The
clarifications discussed below do not change the intent of the North Coast
Regional Board action. Therefore, SWRCB
staff proposes to make these clarifications at this stage of the approval
process. The clarifications are:
1. The title of the amendment is unclear because it suggests that the document is a “summary” when in fact it is the complete amendment that will be codified in State regulations upon approval by the SWRCB and OAL. Therefore, staff recommends the title of the amendment be modified from: “Summary of the Garcia River Watershed Water Quality Attainment Strategy for Sediment” to “Garcia River Watershed Water Quality Attainment Action Plan for Sediment” (Attachment B). “Action Plan” is consistent with other Basin Plan site-specific programs. This clarification would also require that all references to the amendment as the “Strategy Summary” be modified to refer to the “Action Plan.”
2. The amendment makes a reference to the Mendocino County’s 1996 Report
“Garcia River Management Plan” and incorporates by reference its
recommendations for in-channel and off-channel gravel mining as requirements of
the amendment. Staff proposes to
clarify the amendment by placing those provisions directly into the amendment.
3. The amendment
incorporates by reference monitoring specifications and requirements from the
1997 “Garcia River Watershed Water Quality Attainment Strategy for Sediment.” Staff proposes to clarify the amendment by
placing the monitoring specifications and requirements into the amendment.
4. Miscellaneous deletions are also proposed for clarification throughout the amendment. All proposed changes are shown in “strike out” and “underline” format in Attachment B and listed in Attachment C.
This item was discussed at the November 1999 SWRCB Workshop,
at which time it was continued indefinitely to allow the North Coast Regional
Board to continue discussions with several landowners and the California Farm
Bureau. Since then the North Coast Regional
Board met with local property owners affected by the TMDL, the California Farm
Bureau, the University of California Cooperative Extension, and other
interested parties. As a result of
these meetings, a consensus emerged that the submittal of group Erosion Control
Plans and group Management Plans, as described in the TMDL, is an acceptable
method for complying with the TMDL and controlling erosion. The group plans will allow the members of
that group to retain a level of privacy, which was the major concern at the
November 1999 Workshop. Participation
in group plans is voluntary. In a
letter dated June 1, 2000, the North Coast Regional Board requested the SWRCB
to resume consideration of the Garcia River TMDL Basin Plan amendment. The letter included a statement in support
of the clarifications shown in Attachment B.
POLICY ISSUE
Should
the SWRCB:
1. Approve the amendment to the Water Quality Control Plan adopted under North Coast Regional Board Resolution No. 98-66 with the clarifications shown in “strike out” and “underline” format in Attachment B and listed in Attachment C. One of the clarifications is modifying the title of the amendment to: “Garcia River Watershed Water Quality Attainment Action Plan for Sediment”.
2. Authorize the
Executive Director to submit the regulatory provisions of the amendment adopted
under the North Coast Regional Board Resolution No. 98-66 as clarified to the
OAL for approval.
3. Authorize the Executive Director to submit the amendment adopted under North Coast Regional Board Resolution No. 98-66 as clarified to USEPA for approval, subsequent to OAL approval.
North
Coast Regional Board and SWRCB staff work associated with or resulting from
this action can be accommodated within budgeted resources.
RWQCB IMPACT
Yes,
North Coast Regional Board.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
That
the SWRCB:
1. Approves the amendment to the Water Quality Control Plan adopted under North Coast Regional Board Resolution No. 98-66 with the clarifications shown in “strike out” and “underline” format in Attachment B and listed in Attachment C. One of the clarifications is modifying the title of the amendment to: “Garcia River Watershed Water Quality Attainment Action Plan for Sediment”.
2. Authorizes the
Executive Director to submit the regulatory provisions of the amendment adopted
under the North Coast Regional Board Resolution No. 98-66 as clarified to the
OAL for approval.
3. Authorizes the Executive Director to submit the amendment adopted under North Coast Regional Board Resolution No. 98-66 as clarified to USEPA for approval, subsequent to OAL approval.
______________________________________________________________________________
REVISED DRAFT 9/5/00
STATE WATER RESOURCES CONTROL BOARD
RESOLUTION NO. 2000-___
APPROVING WITH CLARIFICATIONS AN AMENDMENT TO THE
WATER QUALITY CONTROL PLAN FOR THE NORTH COAST REGION ESTABLISHING A TOTAL MAXIMUM DAILY LOAD
FOR SEDIMENT IN THE GARCIA RIVER WATERSHED
WHEREAS:
1. The California Regional Water Quality Control Board, North Coast Region (North Coast Regional Board), adopted a revised Water Quality Control Plan for the North Coast Region (Basin Plan) on December 9, 1993, which was approved by the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) on March 21, 1994 and by the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) on August 18, 1994.
2. On May 28, 1998, the North Coast Regional Board adopted Resolution No. 98-66 (Attachment A) amending the Basin Plan by incorporating a total maximum daily load (TMDL) for sediment in the Garcia River watershed.
3.
On December 10, 1998, the North Coast Regional Board revised
Resolution
No. 98-66 to correct minor errors and inconsistencies.
4. The SWRCB finds that the Basin Plan amendment titled “Summary of the Garcia River Watershed Water Quality Attainment Strategy for Sediment” is in conformance with the requirements for TMDL development specified in Section 303(d) of the Federal Clean Water Act (CWA).
5. The SWRCB finds that the title and various provisions of the amendment warrant clarification. The North Coast Regional Board has expressed its support for the clarifications for the amendment and recommends approval of the amendment.
6.
This amendment as written permits groups of dischargers
with similar land management activities to develop and submit group Erosion
Control Plans and group Management Plans, and in such plans it does not require showing individual, interior
property lines within the area covered by the group plans. The North
Coast Regional Board held a meeting on May 25, 2000 where it reiterated to
landowners, as detailed in the Executive Officer’s Summary Report for that
meeting, that showing individual property
lines is not a requirement of the amendment.
7. The North Coast Regional Board staff prepared documents and followed procedures satisfying environmental documentation requirements in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act and other State laws and regulations.
8.
A Basin Plan amendment addressing surface water does not
become effective until approved by the SWRCB, the regulatory provisions are
approved by the OAL.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT:
The SWRCB:
1. Approves the amendment to the Water Quality Control Plan adopted under North Coast Regional Board Resolution 98-66 with the clarifications shown in “strike out” and “underline” format in Attachment B and listed in Attachment C. One of the clarifications is modifying the title of the amendment to: “Garcia River Watershed Water Quality Attainment Action Plan for Sediment”.
2.
Authorizes the Executive Director to submit the
regulatory provisions of the amendment adopted under the North Coast Regional
Board Resolution No. 98-66 as clarified to the OAL for approval.
3. Authorizes the Executive Director to submit the amendment adopted under North Coast Regional Board Resolution No. 98-66 as clarified to USEPA for approval, subsequent to OAL approval.
The undersigned, Administrative Assistant to the Board, does hereby certify that the foregoing is a full, true, and correct copy of a resolution duly and regularly adopted at a meeting of the State Water Resources Control Board held on September 21, 2000.
_____________________________________
Maureen Marché