AB 2480, as amended, Bloom. Source watersheds: financing.
Existing law establishes various state water policies, including the policy that the Legislature consider other works as may be necessary to develop water to satisfy the requirements of the watershed in which water originates whenever the Legislature authorizes the construction or acquisition of a project that will develop water for use outside that watershed, as specified.
This bill would declare it to be state policy that source watersheds are recognized and defined as integral components of California’s waterbegin delete system.end deletebegin insert infrastructure.end insert Thebegin delete bill,end deletebegin insert
bill would state the particular importance to maintaining the reliability of California’s water supply of the source watersheds that supply the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project and,end insert to the extent feasible, would requirebegin delete source watershedend deletebegin insert
theend insert maintenance and repairbegin insert of these watershedsend insert
to receive financing consideration on the same basis with other water collection and treatment infrastructure, and would specify that the maintenance and repair activities that are eligible are limited to certain forest ecosystem management activities.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 108.5 is added to the Water Code, to
2read:
(a) It is hereby declared to be the established policy of
4the state that source watersheds are recognized and defined as
5integral components of California’s waterbegin delete system. Toend delete
6
begin insert infrastructure.end insert
7begin insert(b)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertThe source watersheds that supply the state and federally
8operated systems, the State Water Project and the federal Central
9Valley Project, collectively provide 80 percent of state reservoir
10capacity
and are of particular importance to maintaining the
11reliability of California’s water supply. Toend insert the extent feasible, the
12maintenance and repair ofbegin delete sourceend deletebegin insert theseend insert watersheds and associated
13projects shall receive financing consideration on the same basis
14with other water collection and treatment infrastructure.
15(b)
end delete
16begin insert(c)end insert Eligible maintenance and repair activities pursuant to this
17section are limited to the following forest ecosystem management
18activities:
19(1) Upland vegetation management to restore the watershed’s
20productivity and resiliency.
21(2) Wet and dry meadow restoration.
22(3) Road removal and repair.
23(4) Stream channel restoration.
24(5) Conservation of private forests to preserve watershed
25integrity through permanent prevention of conversion and
26degradation, achieved through conservation easements.
27(6) Other projects with a demonstrated likelihood of increasing
28conditions for water and snow attraction, retention, and release
29under changing climate
conditions.
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