Utility Wildfire General Order

Project Subject
Utility Wildfire and Similar Operations and Maintenance Activities Clean Water Act Section 401 Certification and Waste Discharge Requirements General Order (Utility Wildfire General Order)

On June 28, 2024, State Water Board Staff released the Utility Wildfire and Similar Operations and Maintenance Activities Clean Water Act Section 401 Certification and Waste Discharge Requirements General Order (Utility Wildfire General Order) and related draft Environmental Impact Report (Draft EIR). The State Water Board held a hearing to accept oral comments on August 20, 2024. Written comments were accepted between June 28 and September 13, 2024.

Responses to comments on the June 2024 draft Utility Wildfire General Order and Draft EIR are provided below. The State Water Board has also revised the draft Utility Wildfire General Order in response to comments.

The State Water Board is currently accepting written comments on the revised draft Utility Wildfire General Order. Key dates and links to document links, including redlined copies showing revisions between the revised Utility Wildfire General Order and the June 28, 2024, draft, are provided below.

Key Dates:

Document Links: – Posted on March 28, 2025

Please note that the State Water Board is not accepting additional comments on the June 28, 2024 Draft EIR:

Notice of Preparation and CEQA Scoping – February 18, 2022:

Ex Parte Disclosure
The Utility Wildfire General Order is subject to ex parte communication disclosure requirements of Water Code section 13287, as explained in a Memo from the Office of the Chief Counsel. Any communications between interested persons and Board Members (other than at a noticed Board Meeting or submitted as a comment letter in compliance with the public notice) must be disclosed by the interested person within seven days of the communication.