California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 2639


Introduced by Assembly Member Eduardo Garcia

February 19, 2016


An act to amend Section 13050 of the Water Code, relating to water quality.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2639, as introduced, Eduardo Garcia. Water quality: Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act.

Under existing law, the State Water Resources Control Board and the California regional water quality control boards prescribe waste discharge requirements in accordance with the federal Clean Water Act and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act (state act). The state act defines various terms for its purposes.

This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to these definitions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P1    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 13050 of the Water Code is amended to
2read:

3

13050.  

As used in this division:

4(a) “State board” means the State Water Resources Control
5Board.

6(b) “Regional board” means any California regional water
7quality control board for a region as specified in Section 13200.

P2    1(c) “Person” includes any city, county, district, the state, and
2the United States, to the extent authorized by federal law.

3(d) “Waste” includes sewage and any and all other waste
4substances, liquid, solid, gaseous, or radioactive, associated with
5human habitation, or of human or animal origin, or from any
6producing, manufacturing, or processing operation, including waste
7placed within containers of whatever nature prior to, and for
8purposes of, disposal.

9(e) “Waters of the state” means any surface water or
10groundwater, including saline waters, within the boundaries of the
11state.

12(f) “Beneficial uses” of the waters of the state that may be
13protected against quality degradation include, but are not limited
14to, domestic, municipal, agricultural and industrial supply; power
15generation; recreation; aesthetic enjoyment; navigation; and
16preservation and enhancement of fish, wildlife, and other aquatic
17resources or preserves.

18(g) “Quality of the water” refers to chemical, physical,
19biological, bacteriological, radiological, and other properties and
20characteristics of waterbegin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert affect its use.

21(h) “Water quality objectives” means the limits or levels of
22water quality constituents or characteristicsbegin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert are
23established for the reasonable protection of beneficial uses of water
24or the prevention of nuisance within a specific area.

25(i) “Water quality control” means the regulation of any activity
26or factorbegin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert may affect the quality of the waters of the
27state and includes the prevention and correction of water pollution
28and nuisance.

29(j) “Water quality control plan” consists of a designation or
30establishment for the waters within a specified area of all of the
31following:

32(1) Beneficial uses to be protected.

33(2) Water quality objectives.

34(3) A program of implementation needed for achieving water
35quality objectives.

36(k) “Contamination” means an impairment of the quality of the
37waters of the state by waste to a degree which creates a hazard to
38the public health through poisoning or through the spread of
39disease. “Contamination” includes any equivalent effect resulting
P3    1from the disposal of waste, whether or not waters of the state are
2affected.

3(l) (1) “Pollution” means an alteration of the quality of the
4waters of the state by waste to a degree which unreasonably affects
5either of the following:

6(A) The waters for beneficial uses.

7(B) Facilitiesbegin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert serve these beneficial uses.

8(2) “Pollution” may include “contamination.”

9(m) “Nuisance” means anythingbegin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert meets all of the
10following requirements:

11(1) Is injurious to health, or is indecent or offensive to the senses,
12or an obstruction to the free use of property, so as to interfere with
13the comfortable enjoyment of life or property.

14(2) Affects at the same time an entire community or
15neighborhood, or any considerable number of persons, although
16the extent of the annoyance or damage inflicted upon individuals
17may be unequal.

18(3) Occurs during, or as a result of, the treatment or disposal of
19wastes.

20(n) “Recycled water” means waterbegin delete whichend deletebegin delete,end deletebegin insert that,end insert as a result of
21treatment of waste, is suitable for a direct beneficial use or a
22controlled use that would not otherwise occur and is therefor
23considered a valuable resource.

24(o) “Citizen or domiciliary” of the state includes a foreign
25corporation having substantial business contacts in the state or
26begin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert is subject to service of process in this state.

27(p) (1) “Hazardous substance” means either of the following:

28(A) For discharge to surface waters, any substance determined
29to be a hazardous substance pursuant to Section 311(b)(2) of the
30Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. Sec. 1251 et seq.).

31(B) For discharge to groundwater, any substance listed as a
32hazardous waste or hazardous material pursuant to Section 25140
33of the Health and Safety Code, without regard to whether the
34substance is intended to be used, reused, or discarded, except that
35“hazardous substance” does not include any substance excluded
36from Section 311(b)(2) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
37because it is within the scope of Section 311(a)(1) of that act.

38(2) “Hazardous substance” does not include any of the
39following:

P4    1(A) Nontoxic, nonflammable, and noncorrosive stormwater
2runoff drained from underground vaults, chambers, or manholes
3into gutters or storm sewers.

4(B) Any pesticidebegin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert is applied for agricultural purposes
5or is applied in accordance with a cooperative agreement authorized
6by Section 116180 of the Health and Safety Code, and is not
7discharged accidentally or for purposes of disposal, the application
8of which is in compliance with all applicable state and federal laws
9and regulations.

10(C) Any discharge to surface water of a quantity less than a
11reportable quantity as determined by regulations issued pursuant
12to Section 311(b)(4) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act.

13(D) Any discharge to landbegin delete whichend deletebegin insert thatend insert results, or probably will
14result, in a discharge to groundwater if the amount of the discharge
15to land is less than a reportable quantity, as determined by
16regulations adopted pursuant to Section 13271, for substances
17listed as hazardous pursuant to Section 25140 of the Health and
18Safety Code. No discharge shall be deemed a discharge of a
19reportable quantity until regulations set a reportable quantity for
20the substance discharged.

21(q) (1) “Mining waste” means all solid, semisolid, and liquid
22waste materials from the extraction, beneficiation, and processing
23of ores and minerals. Mining waste includes, but is not limited to,
24soil, waste rock, and overburden, as defined in Section 2732 of
25the Public Resources Code, and tailings, slag, and other processed
26waste materials, including cementitious materials that are managed
27at the cement manufacturing facility where the materials were
28 generated.

29(2) For the purposes of this subdivision, “cementitious material”
30means cement, cement kiln dust, clinker, and clinker dust.

31(r) “Master recycling permit” means a permit issued to a supplier
32or a distributor, or both, of recycled water, that includes waste
33discharge requirements prescribed pursuant to Section 13263 and
34water recycling requirements prescribed pursuant to Section
3513523.1.



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