BILL ANALYSIS �
-----------------------------------------------------------------
| |
| SENATE COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER |
| Senator Fran Pavley, Chair |
| 2011-2012 Regular Session |
| |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
BILL NO: SB 1340 HEARING DATE: March 27, 2012
AUTHOR: La Malfa URGENCY: No
VERSION: Introduced CONSULTANT: Dennis O'Connor
DUAL REFERRAL: No FISCAL: Yes
SUBJECT: Appropriation of water: Sewerage Commission Oroville
BACKGROUND AND EXISTING LAW
Under existing law:
Any person or entity may apply to the State Water Resources
Control Board (SWRCB) for a permit to appropriate water.
The board may issue a permit to appropriate water to any
applicant provided, among other things, that the water is put
to a reasonable and beneficial use, the exercising of the
rights under the permit would not harm any other legal water
rights holder, and the exercising of the right would not
unreasonably harm fish and wildlife. The State Water Board is
further authorized to impose conditions on the permits to
ensure those protections are realized.
The board must reject an application to appropriate water when
in its judgment the proposed appropriation would not best
conserve the public's interests.
The owner of a waste water treatment plant has the exclusive
right to the treated wastewater.
Also under existing law, there is a clearly delineated process
for:
Petitioning the board to change the point of water diversion
and/or place of use of appropriated water.
Petitioning the board to transfer or exchange water or water
rights on either a short term or long term basis.
Petitioning the board to change the point of discharge, place
of use, or purpose of use of treated wastewater.
PROPOSED LAW
This bill would:
Authorize the Sewarage Commission Oroville (SCOR) to apply for
a permit to appropriate an amount of water up to the amount of
1
treated wastewater that is discharged into the Sacramento
River.
Authorize the SWRCB to grant the permit subject to the terms
and conditions as in the board's judgment are necessary for
the protection of the rights of any legal user of the water.
Require the SWRCB to comply with the provisions of the water
code governing the appropriation of surface water and other
applicable law, and authorize the board to impose terms and
conditions authorized under those laws.
Allow water appropriated under the provisions of this bill to
be sold or utilized for any beneficial purpose.
2
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT
According to the author, "SB 1340 will offer an additional
procedural option for Sewerage Commission Oroville to
potentially realize the benefit of its treated wastewater. It
will authorize SCOR to file an application with the State Water
Board for a permit to appropriate an amount of water equal to
the amount produced and discharged into the Feather River by
SCOR. The water may then be sold for any beneficial purpose."
"The appropriation option is important because revenue from
water sales will partially offset cost for treatment, thus
stabilizing costs for ratepayers in Oroville's chronically
depressed local economy, perhaps providing some stimulus for
economic development in the region."
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION: None Received
COMMENTS
Its D�j� Vu All Over Again. The new section added by this bill
is virtually the same language as AB 134 (Dickenson), which
granted the same authorities to the Sacramento Regional County
Sanitation District. This committee's analysis of AB 134 made a
number of comments that are just as germane here. These
include:
Is This Bill Necessary? Current law already authorizes
everything authorized in this bill and all actions the sponsor
purportedly is contemplating. It is not clear what additional
powers, duties, or authorities this bill would create, if any.
Camel's Nose? A number of other upstream Sacramento River
interests have expressed interest to the sponsors, either
directly or indirectly, in having similar authorizations as
provided by this bill. Should this bill be enacted, it would
not be surprising to see similar such bills introduced in the
not so distant future.
Based on �1485. The new section added by this bill is
patterned after �1485, which granted similar authorities to
any wastewater treatment plants that disposed of water into
the San Joaquin River. That section was created in 1961 and
last amended in 1967 - before water law was expanded to
address issues of water recycling, short and long term water
transfers, etc.
Does Location Matter? Two agencies, Sacramento Regional County
3
Sanitation District and the City of Stockton, both have under
current law and intend to use the authorities proposed by this
bill. They both discharge water into the Delta. This bill
would extend these authorities to an agency significantly
further up in the watershed. It is not obvious whether or not
it makes sense to limit the granting of these authorities to
agencies in a specific geographic area, such as just those in
the Delta.
Cumulative Impacts. Just as it is not clear what additional
powers, duties, or authorities this bill would create, if any,
it is also not clear what the cumulative effect of Sacramento
Regional County Sanitation District, the City of Stockton, and
potentially the Sewerage Commission Oroville, all exercising the
authorities provided by this bill would be on water rights,
instream flows, or water quality. This is especially a concern
if the trend of granting these authorities to more and more
agencies continues. It would be helpful if the SWRCB were to
provide a report assessing the potential cumulative impacts.
(See Suggested Amendment).
SUGGESTED AMENDMENT
On page 2, between lines 24 and 25, insert:
SEC. 2. Water Code Section 1488 is added to read:
1488. (a) The board shall prepare a report to be submitted
to the Legislature assessing the potential cumulative effects of
the application of this Article, on the following:
(1) The use of water rights by current water rights
holders.
(2) The ability to meet or exceed instream flow standards
for the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers.
(3) The ability to meet or exceed water quality standards
for the Delta and the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers.
(b) On or before July 1, 2013, the board shall submit to
the Legislature its report required under subdivision (a).
(c) (1) The requirement for submitting a report imposed
under this subdivision is inoperative on July 1, 2017, pursuant
to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code.
(2) A report to be submitted pursuant to this subdivision
shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the
Government Code.
On page 2, line 25, delete "SEC. 2" and insert:
SEC. 3
4
SUPPORT
Sewerage Commission Oroville Region (Sponsor)
Lake Oroville Area Public Utility District (Sponsor)
Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District
OPPOSITION
None Received
5