BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2529
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Date of Hearing: April 13, 2004
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON WATER, PARKS AND WILDLIFE
Joseph E. Canciamilla, Chair
AB 2529 (Kehoe) - As Introduced: March 31, 2004
SUBJECT : California Ocean Plan
SUMMARY : Requires the State Water Resources Control Board
(SWRCB) to revise the California Ocean Plan (Ocean Plan) to
require control of the water quality in discharges into the
ocean and allocates Proposition 50 funds to serve that purpose.
Specifically, this bill :
1)States the intent of the Legislature to improve water quality
in coastal and marine waters, particularly those waters that
affect marine protected areas and marine managed areas.
2)Requires SWRCB to update the Ocean Plan by February, 2006, to
include among the beneficial uses of ocean waters all of the
following:
a) Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and Marine Life Reserves
(Reserves).
b) State marine reserves, state marine parks, state marine
conservation areas, state marine cultural preservation
areas, and state marine recreational management areas.
3)Requires SWRCB to include in the Ocean Plan numeric standards
for water quality to protect the beneficial uses in the areas
described above.
4)Requires SWRCB to consult with the Department of Fish and Game
(DFG) and the Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR).
5)Authorizes projects that restore and protect the water quality
and environment of marine managed areas, as defined in the
Ocean Plan.
6)Requires SWRCB to give priority to projects that treat or
remove existing waste discharges or prevent probable waste
discharges, into areas of special biological significance.
7)Establishes the Marine Managed Areas Program (MMA Program).
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8)Allocates an unspecified amount of funds from Proposition 50
to SWRCB for grants to local public agencies and nonprofit
organizations for the purposes of the MMA Program.
9)Requires that projects funded through grants must be able to
contribute to sustained, long-term water quality or
environmental restoration for a period of 20 years, address
the causes of degradation rather than the symptoms, and be
consistent with water quality control plans and resource
protection plans developed by other responsible agencies.
10)Requires that an applicant for funding submit to SWRCB a
monitoring and reporting plan with specified information.
11)Requires that, upon completion of a project, a grant
recipient submit a report to SWRCB.
12)Sets other conditions upon the award of grants.
13)Requires SWRCB to appoint a MMA water quality task force
comprised of individuals representing breadth and diversity of
coastal communities, interested nonprofit groups, and marine
resource users, to review all proposals for grant funding.
EXISTING LAW requires the Board to formulate and adopt a water
quality control plan for ocean waters of the state, and requires
the Board to review the Ocean Plan every three years.
FISCAL EFFECT : This bill allocates an unspecified amount of
funds from Chapter 5 of Proposition 50, which contains an
available amount of $80 million. Five percent of the bond funds
may be used for administrative costs.
COMMENTS : Clean water is essential to the health of marine
resources. Pollution that threatens that health can come from
direct (or "point source") discharges or from runoff from the
land ("non-point source" discharges). Plumes of contaminated
runoff can float on top of heavier seawater and have been shown
to extend 25 miles or more offshore. Nutrient pollution can
create toxic algae blooms or "red tides". Many of these sources
of pollution depend on activities and practices on nearby land
areas or along streams that flow into the ocean.
There are many programs at the state, federal, and local levels
devoted to monitoring and assessing sources of pollution in the
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ocean. The state's Bay Protection and Toxic Cleanup Program and
Mussel Watch Program, the the San Francisco Bay Regional
Monitoring Program, the Southern California Bight Regional
Study, and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric
Administration's Status and Trends Program are a few of the
programs.
Monitoring and assessment information from these programs is
used to determine compliance with state and federal statutes
such as the federal Clean Water Act and the state's
Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, as well as with permit
regulations and water quality standards protecting marine
resources and their habitats. Also, the state has the Ocean
Plan, a water quality control plan administered by SWRCB.
SWRCB is charged with updating the Ocean Plan every three years.
The last update process was from 1999 through 2002. The next
update will be conducted from 2003 through 2005. This bill
requires SWRCB to place an emphasis on improving water quality
in California's MMAs. This will involve identifying and
reducing or eliminating point and non-point source discharges of
pollutants into ocean waters. The bill does not specify how far
upstream SWRCB may go to identify and eliminate these
pollutants.
The bill allocates an unspecified amount of Proposition 50 funds
to the MMA Program. The funds would come from Chapter 5 of
Proposition 50, specifically from Water Code Section 79543.
This section provides $100 million for "the purpose of financing
projects that restore and protect the water quality and
environment of coastal waters, estuaries, bays and near-shore
waters, and groundwater." At least $20 million is already
earmarked for the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Plan.
By targeting MMAs, the bill emphasizes those areas designated by
the state as the most sensitive and important coastal and marine
areas. However, other coastal areas, such as recreational
beaches, for instance, may have greater needs for water quality
improvement and may have a more difficult time finding funding
if a large amount of funds are set aside specifically for MMAs.
The general practice of the Legislature with respect to
Proposition 50 has been to let the administrative agencies
identify problems and needs, and award grants through a
competitive process to those projects that show the greatest
benefit.
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REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
The Ocean Conservancy (sponsor)
Defenders of Wildlife
San Diego BayKeeper
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Jeffrey Volberg / W., P. & W. / (916)
319-2096