Insight and Information for the Environmental & Natural Resource Industry
As part of implementation of its Final Adopted Winery General Order, the State Water Resources Control Board (“SWRCB” or “Board”) will be holding a Winery General Order Fees Stakeholder Meeting on March 15 from 1:00-3:00 PM via Webcast. The updated notice for the Fees Stakeholder Meeting can be found here.
In addition…
In July, we blogged about the State Water Resources Control Board’s (“State Water Board’) release of proposed General Waste Discharge Requirements for Winery Process Water Treatment Systems (see: July 15, 2020 blog post on proposed General Order and July 20, 2020 blog post on noticed stakeholder meetings). The State Water Board recently issued a revised…
On March 19, 2020, California issued Executive Order N-25-20, a statewide shelter in place order in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, significantly altering operations of both state agencies and private businesses. However, California’s water regulators, including the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB), the Regional Water Quality Control Boards, and the Department of Water Resources (DWR), have committed to maintaining critical deadlines, compliance requirements, and agency operations in the interest of public health and safety.
Importantly, the SWRCB’s Division of Water Rights continues to require all surface water users to submit annual reports to meet the April 1, 2020 deadline for reporting 2019 water use. As of the publication of this alert, although the Division of Water Rights has postponed non-essential file review, the Division of Water Rights is maintaining limited hours to view essential records, by appointment only.
Additionally, the SWRCB and the nine Regional Water Quality Control Boards (collectively “Water Boards”) issued a guidance statement providing that in the interest of protecting public health, safety, and the environment, timely compliance with all Water Board orders and requirements is required. This includes compliance with regulations, permits, contractual obligations, primacy delegations, and funding conditions that are in effect.Continue Reading State Water Agencies Expect Water Use Reporting to Continue as Normal as California Shelters in Place
On November 6, 2018, the State Water Resources Control Board adopted an amendment to the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System General Permit for Storm Water Discharges Associated with Industrial Activities (General Permit). The General Permit Amendment addresses the implementation of previously-adopted Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs), the new federal Sufficiently Sensitive Methods Rule, and statewide Compliance Options. These changes take effect on July 1, 2020.
Continue Reading 2018 IGP Amendments – Everything You Need to Know
On October 10, 2017, the California State Water Resources Control Board (“Water Board”) issued the second version of an order to modify agricultural waste discharge requirements (“Proposed Order”), under the Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program (“ILRP”). Through the ILRP, the Water Board regulates discharges from irrigated agricultural lands across the state, especially within California’s Central Valley. Regulation of agricultural water discharges is important because such discharges can affect water quality by transporting pollutants, including pesticides, sediment, nutrients, salts, pathogens, and heavy metals, from cultivated fields into surface waters.
Continue Reading How Low Can You Go? Proposed Agricultural Waste Discharge Requirements Impose Even More Stringent Demands on Central Valley Farmers
California’s newer groundwater regulatory structure, the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act of 2014 (“SGMA”), was signed by Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. on September 16, 2014. The State Water Resources Control Board (“SWRCB”) is the enforcement agency for SGMA. SGMA requires the SWRCB to establish a schedule of fees sufficient to recover the costs incurred by…
On April 7th, Governor Jerry Brown issued an executive order that lifts the drought emergency in fifty-four of the fifty-eight California counties. After six years of a prolonged drought in California, Executive Order B-40-17 lifts the drought emergency in all California counties except Fresno, Kings, Tulare and Tuolumne.
While the drought is declared over for…
On January 19, 2017, three oil industry trade groups filed suit against the California Department of Conservation and the Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources (“DOGGR”) (jointly “Department”) in Kern County Superior Court alleging that DOGGR’s oil field wastewater injection regulations violate operators’ constitutional rights. Western States Petroleum Association, California Independent Petroleum Association, and Independent Oil Producers Agency (collectively “Plaintiffs”) seek “declaratory and injunctive relief to prevent the arbitrary and unlawful shut-in of potentially thousands of Class II injection wells in violation of Plaintiffs’ members’ due process rights.” Complaint at 1.
Continue Reading Oil Industry Caught in “Catch-22” with New Wastewater Injection Approval Requirements; Files Suit Against California Agencies
California has moved one step closer to implementing the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (“SGMA”), California’s landmark groundwater legislation. On Wednesday, May 18, the California Water Commission adopted a set of regulations that will govern the creation of groundwater sustainability plans (“GSPs”) by local Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (“GSAs”). The emergency regulations, developed by the Department of Water Resources (“DWR”), take effect in June.
The new regulations will have some real impacts on GSAs and their implementation of SGMA. The most significant requirements include:
Continue Reading New Regulations for California Groundwater Management
October 11, 2015, marked the deadline by which Governor Brown had to act on legislation submitted to him by the legislature in September. In addition to those bills the Governor signed, we note below legislation that has been identified as two-year legislation. Stoel Rives’ Water Law Team has been monitoring water-related legislation, especially given California’s historic drought. We will continue to monitor bills identified as two-year bills, as well as any bills introduced in the second half of the 2015-2016 Legislative Session. We will provide periodic updates as these bills move through the legislative process. Below is the status and summary of some of the bills Stoel Rives is monitoring.
Supply and Groundwater
AB-307 (Mathis): Graywater: groundwater recharge
STATUS: Currently identified as a two-year bill.
If passed by the legislature and signed into law, AB-307 would state the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to explicitly permit the usage of residential, commercial and industrial graywater for the recharge of a groundwater basin or aquifer.
AB-453 (Bigelow): Groundwater Management
STATUS: Currently identified as a two-year bill and pending in the Senate.
If passed by the legislature and chaptered, this bill would authorize, until a groundwater sustainability plan is adopted, a local agency to amend an existing groundwater management plan in furtherance of, and consistent with, the groundwater management plan’s objectives.
AB-647 (Eggman): Beneficial use: storing of water underground
STATUS: Currently identified as a two-year bill and pending in the Senate.
If signed into law, this bill would:
On August 28, Earthjustice filed a petition with the State Water Resources Control Board (“Water Board”) seeking to overturn a Central Valley Regional Water Board (“Regional Board”) order allowing an oil and gas wastewater disposal company to maintain their ongoing waste water operations, which can employ unlined disposal pits in Kern County.
Valley Water Management…
