Amended in Senate April 27, 2016

Amended in Senate April 4, 2016

Amended in Senate March 28, 2016

Senate Bill No. 1294

Introduced by Senator Pavley

(Coauthor: Senator Hertzberg)

February 19, 2016

An act to begin insert amend Section 42649.87 of, end insert begin insert to end insert add begin insert Section 42649.89 to, and to add end insert Division 45 (commencing with Section 75300) begin delete to end delete begin insert to, end insert the Public Resources Code, relating to the environment.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1294, as amended, Pavley. The Community Climate and Drought Resilience Program of 2016.

Existing law authorizes the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire) to implement a program in urban forestry to encourage better tree management and planting in urban areas to increase integrated, multibenefit projects by assisting urban areas with innovative solutions to problems, including greenhouse gas emissions, public health impacts of poor air and water quality, urban heat island effect, stormwater management, water shortages, lack of green space, lack of urban parks that are accessible to pedestrians, vandalism, and insufficient tree maintenance. begin delete Existing law authorizes the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) to develop a program to increase the use of compost products in agricultural applications. end delete

This bill would enact the Community Climate and Drought Resilience Program of 2016 and would require CalFire to review the urban forestry program and, if necessary, revise the program to provide funding priority to multibenefit carbon sequestration projects and to establish local or regional targets for urban tree canopy. begin delete The bill would require CalRecycle, by July 1, 2017, to develop and implement a program that provides incentives for certain projects that increase drought resilience and result in quantifiable reductions in the emissions of greenhouse gases through increased carbon sequestration in urban and rural areas. end delete

begin insert

Existing law requires the California Environmental Protection Agency, in coordination with the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, the State Water Resources Control Board, the State Air Resources Board, and the Department of Food and Agriculture, to develop and implement policies to aid in diverting organic waste from landfills by promoting the composting of specified organic waste and by promoting the appropriate use of that compost throughout the state. Existing law requires the agency and the Department of Food and Agriculture, with the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, the State Water Resources Control Board, and the State Air Resources Board, to perform specified functions, including developing recommendations for promoting organic waste processing and recycling infrastructure statewide.

end insert begin insert

This bill would require the agency and the Department of Food and Agriculture, with the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, the State Water Resources Control Board, and the State Air Resources Board, to additionally assess state programs to determine how those programs may increase the use of compost for specified purposes and develop recommendations for promoting the use of compost throughout the state. The bill would require that those recommendations be posted on the agency’s Internet Web site no later than January 1, 2018, and be updated annually thereafter. The bill would require an implementing agency, required to be identified with those recommendations, to develop a program to implement policies for promoting the use of compost throughout the state, if recommended, and, for purposes of that program, to prioritize projects that utilize the services of community conservation corps or other local nonprofit entities that employ underprivileged youth.

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

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

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

(a) California has been a global leader in reducing the emissions
of greenhouse gases through the California Global Warming
Solutions Act of 2006 (Division 25.5 (commencing with Section
38500) of Health and Safety Code) and the Governor’s Executive
Orders S-3-05 and B-30-15.

(b) The state has developed a comprehensive climate adaptation
strategy document titled “Safeguarding California: Implementation
Action Plans” and has established the Integrated Climate
Adaptation and Resiliency Program to further coordinate local and
regional efforts with the state climate adaptation strategies.

(c) The state’s existing investment in natural infrastructure,
including urban forest canopy, which helps accomplish both carbon
sequestration and climate resilience, is at risk due to existing
drought conditions.

(d) The drought has heightened awareness and underscored the
importance of sustainable water management.

(e) Improved water retention and infiltration can greatly reduce
reliance on potentially energy-intensive long-distance water imports
and thereby reduce emissions of greenhouse gases.

(f) Through carbon sequestration, the protection and
management of natural and working lands and organic waste
diversion are both integral to accomplishing the state’s policy to
reduce greenhouse gas levels.

(g) The state has recently developed a strategy to dramatically
increase the diversion of organic waste from landfills, with the
organic waste being used to create compost and mulch.

(h) Composting and use of organic waste in improved landscape
and healthy soil management have great potential to be cost
effective at reducing greenhouse gas levels through improved
carbon soil sequestration and may also greatly improve water
retention and infiltration of stormwater flows.

(i) Composting may also provide important environmental and
agricultural cobenefits, including reduction of naturally occurring
volatile organic compounds and ammonia, and may help the state
address agriculture, dairy, and forestry waste in a proper and
environmentally responsible manner.

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 42649.87 of the end insert begin insert Public Resources Code end insert begin insert is
amended to read: end insert

42649.87.  

(a) The California Environmental Protection
Agency, in coordination with the department, the State Water
Resources Control Board, the State Air Resources Board, and the
Department of Food and Agriculture, shall develop and implement
policies to aid in diverting organic waste from landfills by
promoting the use of agricultural, forestry, and urban organic waste
as a feedstock for compost and by promoting the appropriate use
of that compost throughout the state.

(b) In developing policies pursuant to subdivision (a), the
California Environmental Protection Agency shall promote a goal
of reducing at least five million metric tons of greenhouse gas
emissions per year through the development and application of
compost on working lands, which include, but are not limited to,
agricultural land, land used for forestry, and rangeland. The
California Environmental Protection Agency shall work with the
Department of Food and Agriculture to achieve this goal.

(c) The begin delete California end delete Secretary for Environmental Protection
Agency and the Secretary of Food and Agriculture shall ensure
proper coordination of agency regulations and goals to implement
this section. The California Environmental Protection Agency and
the Department of Food and Agriculture, with the department, the
State Water Resources Control Board, and the State Air Resources
Board shall do all of the following:

(1) Assess the state’s progress towards developing the organic
waste processing and recycling infrastructure necessary to meet
the state goals specified in Assembly Bill 341 (Chapter 476 of the
Statutes of 2011), Assembly Bill 1826 (Chapter 727 of the Statutes
of 2014), the State Air Resources Board’s May 2015 Short-Lived
Climate Pollutant Reduction Strategy concept paper, and the
Department of Food and Agriculture’s Healthy Soils Initiative.

(2) Meet at least quarterly and consult with interested
stakeholders, including, but not limited to, the compost industry,
local governments, and environmental organizations, to encourage
the continued viability of the state’s organic waste processing and
recycling infrastructure.

(3) Hold at least one public workshop annually to inform the
public of actions taken to implement this section and to receive
public comment.

(4)  begin insert (A) end insert begin insert   end insert Develop recommendations for promoting organic waste
processing and recycling infrastructure statewide, which shall be
posted on the California Environmental Protection Agency’s
Internet Web site no later than January 1, 2017, and updated
annually thereafter.

begin insert

(B) Develop recommendations for promoting the use of compost
throughout the state, which shall be posted on the California
Environmental Protection Agency’s Internet Web site no later than
January 1, 2018, and updated annually thereafter, and identify an
implementing agency for purposes of Section 42649.89.

end insert begin insert

(5) Assess state programs to determine how those programs
may increase the use of compost for purposes of increasing carbon
sequestration in urban and rural areas.

end insert

(d) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2021,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2021, deletes or extends that date.

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 3. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 42649.89 is added to the end insert begin insert Public Resources
Code end insert begin insert , to read: end insert

begin insert

begin insert 42649.89. end insert   

(a) The implementing agency identified pursuant
to paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) of Section 42649.87 shall
develop a program to implement policies for promoting the use of
compost throughout the state, if recommended pursuant to
paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) of Section 42649.87.

(b) For purposes of the program developed pursuant to
subdivision (a), the implementing agency shall prioritize projects
that utilize the services of community conservation corps, as
defined in Section 14507.5, or other local non-profit entities that
employ underprivileged youth.

end insert

begin delete SEC. 2. end delete

begin insert SEC. 4. end insert   

Division 45 (commencing with Section 75300) is added
to the Public Resources Code, to read:

 

Division 45.  Community Climate and Drought
Resilience Program of 2016

 

Chapter  1. General Provisions and Definitions

 

75300.  

In enacting this division, it is the intent of the
Legislature to do both of the following:

(a) Establish an innovative natural resource management
program that improves carbon sequestration, improves drought
preparedness, and helps California communities address the effects
of climate change through increased urban forest canopy, carbon
soil sequestration, multibenefit stormwater management, organic
waste diversion, and community greening.

(b) Enable opportunities for employment of California’s at-risk
youth in climate-friendly landscape management strategies,
especially in disadvantaged communities.

75301.  

The Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and
the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, in
implementing this division, shall promote policies and incentives
that advance all of the following:

(a) Help urban and rural communities adapt to the effects of
climate change.

(b) Improve water management and drought preparedness.

(c) Provide workforce training to young men and women in
disadvantaged communities.

(d) Maximize carbon sequestration and ensure the associated
greenhouse gas reduction benefits are maintained through both of
the following:

(1) Improvement and continued management of urban forest
canopy and carbon soil sequestration.

(2) Development and application of compost made from organic
waste that is diverted from landfills.

75305.  

For purposes of this division, the following definitions
apply:

(a) “CalFire” means the Department of Forestry and Fire
Protection.

(b) “CalRecycle” means the Department of Resources Recycling
and Recovery.

(c) “Disadvantaged communities” means communities identified
pursuant to Section 39711 of the Health and Safety Code.

 

Chapter  2. Urban Forestry

 

75310.  

(a) CalFire shall review the urban forestry program
implemented pursuant to the California Urban Forestry Act of
1978 (Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 4799.06) of Part 2.5
of Division 4), and revise the program, if necessary, to do both of
the following:

(1) Provide funding priority to multibenefit carbon sequestration
projects. Eligible project categories shall include, but are not
limited to, all of the following:

(A) Mulching, watering, or pruning.

(B) The use of onsite water capture, recycled water, and other
local water sources.

(C) Emergency drought response measures that reduce tree
mortality, ensure optimal tree health, and preserve the carbon
sequestration and climate resilience benefits of the urban forest.

(2) Establish local or regional targets for urban tree canopy,
especially in disadvantaged communities that tend to be most
vulnerable to urban heat island effect. These targets shall include
urban forest diversity, tree species’ adaptability to anticipated
climate change impacts, and other relevant factors.

(b) CalFire shall develop or update its regulations, as necessary,
to implement the requirements of the chapter and shall provide
both of the following:

(1) Planning and technical assistance for eligible applicants
assisting disadvantaged communities.

(2) Guidance to grantees and local governments regarding best
practices and metrics for maintaining urban forest health.

begin delete

 

Chapter  3. The Use of Compost in Farming and
Landscaping Practices

 

75320.  

(a) By July 1, 2017, CalRecycle, in consultation with
relevant state agencies, shall develop and implement a program
that provides incentives for the use of compost from organic waste
in farming and landscaping practices that increase drought
resilience and result in quantifiable reductions in the emissions of
greenhouse gases through increased carbon sequestration in urban
and rural areas.

(b) In implementing this program, CalRecycle shall enter into
an agreement with state-certified conservation corps to assist
community outreach, compost delivery and application, and other
urban greening projects that are eligible under the program.

(c) CalRecycle shall develop and update regulations for the
implementation of this chapter.

end delete