Scott Valley, Calif. — Looking at the future of agriculture
in Siskiyou County, Save Our Shasta and Scott Valleys (SOSS)
met Monday to discuss the upcoming Waste Discharge
Requirements (WDR) for the Klamath Basin.
WDRs are part of the overall state program regarding
nonpoint source pollution (NPS) control. An NPS is a source
of pollution with an ill-defined point-of-entry to a
waterway, with agricultural runoff and timber harvest
activities commonly used as examples.
Plans for controlling NPS pollution are directed both by the
Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act and the Policy for
Implementation and Enforcement of the Nonpoint Source
Pollution Control Program (NPCP), as well as various other
acts related to water quality targets.
The NPCP states that the State Water Resources Control Board
and the regional water quality control boards are tasked
with addressing “all discharges of waste that could affect
the quality of the waters of the State, including potential
nonpoint sources of pollution.”
In order to do so, the NPCP states, the water quality
control boards are given authority by the Porter-Cologne Act
to establish water quality objectives and protect uses of
water, create WDRs and waivers of WDRs, make basin plan
prohibitions and to define options for enforcing the
permitting requirements.
WDR waivers are applicable for dischargers who meet certain
guidelines adopted for watershed regions under WDR programs.
The SOSS group met to discuss the WDR program for the
Klamath Basin, which is still under development, according
to the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, the
agency responsible for developing this region’s WDRs and
associated waivers.
The north coast board met in June to discuss the timeline
for adopting a WDR plan for the Klamath River Basin, with
the deadline for adoption of an NPS pollution control plan
set in December 2012.
According to presentation materials from that meeting,
throughout the next two years, scoping meetings will be
held, advisory groups formed and public workshops
facilitated before drafting a public review document in May
2012, with a three-month window for responses to comments
and revisions.
While no plan has been drafted yet, the NPCP gives five
elements for implementation programs, including descriptions
of management plans for dischargers, a specific time
schedule for measuring progress toward requirements,
feedback mechanisms for the public and other aspects.
All specifications and information can be found at
http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/northcoast/.
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