Basin Plan
Water quality control plans (basin plans) provide the basis for protecting water quality in California. Basin Plans are mandated by both the Federal Clean Water Act (CWA) and the State Porter-Cologne Water Quality Act (Porter-Cologne). Sections 13240-13247 of Porter-Cologne specify the required contents of a regional basin plan.
Each plan must contain water quality objectives, which in the judgment of the Regional Water Board will ensure the reasonable protection of beneficial uses and the prevention of nuisance, and a program of implementation for achieving those objectives, including a description of the nature of actions that are necessary to achieve the objectives, time schedules for the actions to be taken, and a description of surveillance to be undertaken to determine compliance with objectives.
- The goal of the Basin Plan is to provide a definitive program of actions designed to preserve and enhance water quality and to protect beneficial uses of water in the North Coast Region.
The Basin Plan is used as a regulatory tool by the Regional Water Board's technical staff. Regional Water Board orders cite the Basin Plan's water quality standards and prohibitions applicable to a particular discharge. The Basin Plan is also used by other agencies in their permitting and resource management activities. It also serves as an educational and reference document for dischargers and members of the public.
BASIN PLAN AMENDMENTS & PROJECTS
The Regional Water Board amends the Basin Plan as needed. The following is a list of current Basin Plan Amendments and projects. Please click on the link for more information.
- Proposed Revision of the Dissolved Oxygen Water Quality Objective
- Editorial Basin Plan Amendment
- Regional Excess Sediment Basin Plan Amendment
- Klamath TMDL
- Stream and Wetlands System Protection Policy
- Low Threat Discharge Amendment
- Sediment TMDL Implementation
- Triennial Review
TO RECEIVE NOTICES & UPDATES
To receive public notices and updates about the Basin Plan, amendments, and related projects via e-mail, please sign up for e-mail updates here.
To receive public notices and updates via the mail, please contact Rebecca Fitzgerald at 707-576-2220 or rfitzgerald@waterboards.ca.gov.
TO ORDER A COPY OF THE BASIN PLAN
We encourage users to download or print sections of interest from the Internet, by clicking here.
The Basin Plan is also available in print form. Call 707-576-2220 or e-mail rfitzgerald@waterboards.ca.gov to have a copy mailed to you (charges for postage may apply).
TO CONTACT US
Technical staff contact information for specific planning projects are posted with the project links on this web page. If you have general questions about the content of the Basin Plan or the plan amendment process, please contact the Regional Water Board’s Program Manager, Holly Lundborg, at 707-576-2220 or hlundborg@waterboards.ca.gov.
(last updated:09/18/2007)