BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 258
                                                                  Page 1


          ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
          AB 258 (Krekorian)
          As Amended June 1, 2007
          Majority vote 

           NATURAL RESOURCES   6-3         APPROPRIATIONS      12-5        
           
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |Ayes:|Hancock, Brownley, Laird, |Ayes:|Leno, Caballero, Davis,   |
          |     |Saldana, Wolk, Huffman    |     |DeSaulnier,               |
          |     |                          |     |Huffman, Karnette,        |
          |     |                          |     |Krekorian, Lieu, Ma,      |
          |     |                          |     |Nava, Solorio, Feuer      |
          |     |                          |     |                          |
          |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
          |Nays:|Fuller, Aghazarian, Keene |Nays:|Walters, Emmerson, La     |
          |     |                          |     |Malfa, Nakanishi, Runner  |
          |     |                          |     |                          |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
           SUMMARY  :  Establishes a plastic debris eradication program to  
          reduce the amount of preproduction plastics entering the marine  
          environment.  Specifically,  this bill:
           
          1)Defines "preproduction plastic" as plastic pellets, plastic  
            resin products, powdered coloring for plastics, plastic  
            additives, plastic materials, and plastic fragments. 

          2)Requires the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) and  
            regional water quality control boards (RWQCBs) to implement a  
            program to control discharges of preproduction plastic by  
            January 1, 2009. 

          3)In developing the program, SWRCB shall consult with any RWQCB,  
            with plastic manufacturing, handling, and transportation  
            facilities located within the RWQCB's jurisdiction, which has  
            already voluntarily implemented a program to control  
            discharges of preproduction plastic.

          4)Requires SWRCB to establish criteria for the submittal of the  
            "no exposure certification" requirement for plastic  
            manufacturing and processing facilities subject to the  
            National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)  
            permitting requirements.  If a facility is granted  
            certification, the facility is not required to comply with the  








                                                                  AB 258
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            Best Management Practices (BMPs) established pursuant to this  
            bill, unless required by SWRCB or a RWQCB.  

          5)Requires SWRCB to establish a fee schedule to fund the bill's  
            requirements. 

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  According to the Assembly Appropriations  
          Committee this bill has substantial one-time General Fund (GF)  
          costs, in the range of $1.3 million in 2008-09, to the SWRCB to  
          develop and implement the preproduction plastic discharge  
          control procedures for affected facilities.  This bill also has  
          moderate ongoing GF costs, in the range of $1 million starting  
          in 2008-09, to the SWRCB and RWQCBs to administer and enforce  
          the discharge control requirements. These costs will be covered  
          by revenue generated by fees SWRCB is authorized to impose.

           COMMENTS  :  According to the USEPA, marine debris has become a  
          problem along shorelines, coastal waters, estuaries, and oceans  
          throughout the world.  Marine debris can be life threatening to  
          marine organisms and can wreak havoc on coastal communities and  
          the fishing industry.  In general, there are two types of marine  
          debris that pollute our ocean and coastline in California.  The  
          first is from ocean sources, and includes waste discharged by  
          ships, recreational boaters and fishermen, and offshore oil and  
          gas exploration and production facilities.  The second, and by  
          far more environmentally destructive, type of marine debris is  
          from the land.  This type of debris includes stormwater runoff,  
          solid waste, floating structures, and poorly maintained garbage  
          bins and is transmitted to the marine environment by waterways.   
          Land based litter constitutes nearly 80% of the marine debris  
          found on our beaches and oceans, and 90% of it is plastic. 

          When debris from the land reaches the beaches and ocean, marine  
          life is often threatened because they confuse the debris for  
          food.  Small pieces of preproduction plastic, plastic cups,  
          bags, and cigarette filters are often found in the stomachs of  
          fish, birds, whales, and other marine creatures. Recent studies  
          by the Algalita Marine Research Foundation and the Southern  
          California Coastal Water Research Project have found that the  
          average mass of plastics in the seawater off the coast of Long  
          Beach is two and a half times greater than the average mass of  
          plankton.  After storms with excessive runoff, the mass of  
          plastics is even greater.  A similar study over seawater 1,000  
          miles west of San Francisco found the mass of plastics was six  








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          times the mass of plankton in drifts where marine animals  
          congregate for feeding on plankton.  

          According to the author's office, approximately 60 billion  
          pounds of preproduction plastic is manufactured annually in the  
          US.  These plastics are discharged into waterways during  
          transport, packaging, and processing when proper housekeeping  
          practices are not employed.  Because of their small size, these  
          materials are not generally captured through traditional storm  
          water catch basins. The plastics industry attempted to address  
          the release of preproduction plastics into the marine  
          environment by developing a voluntary program called Operation  
          Clean Sweep.  This program, developed by the Society of Plastics  
          Industry and the American Plastics Council, developed BMPs to  
          reduce discharges of preproduction plastic through proper  
          handling and cleanup.  Where implemented, Operation Clean Sweep  
          has been shown to reduce the release of preproduction plastic;  
          however, the program is voluntary and many plastic manufacturers  
          and processors have chosen not to implement its recommendations.  
           

           
          Analysis Prepared by  :  Elizabeth MacMillan / NAT. RES. / (916)  
          319-2092 


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