STATE WATER RESOURCES CONTROL BOARD
WORKSHOP SESSION--DIVISION
OF WATER QUALITY
ITEM 9
SUBJECT
CONSIDERATION OF A PROPOSED RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TO ENTER INTO AN INTERAGENCY AGREEMENT WITH THE U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY FOR AMBIENT GROUNDWATER MONITORING
DISCUSSION
The State Legislature augmented the State Water Resources Control Board’s (SWRCB) Fiscal Year (FY) 1999-00 baseline budget with $1,000,000 in General Funds for ambient water quality monitoring. One-fourth of this augmentation ($250,000) has been allocated to expand the existing toxicity testing program to test all priority watersheds identified by SWRCB in its annual priority watershed list where such testing would be beneficial. An equal amount ($250,000) has been allocated to expand the existing Toxic Substances Monitoring Program, the State Mussel Watch Program, and the Coastal Fish Contamination Study. The remaining $500,000 has been allocated for groundwater monitoring. Approximately 10 percent of these allocations, for a total of $100,000, will be used to support 0.9 Personnel Year for program administration, oversight, data assessment, and coordination with other entities involved in water quality monitoring. SWRCB staff proposes to enter into an interagency agreement with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for groundwater monitoring.
SWRCB
has no ongoing statewide ambient groundwater monitoring. SWRCB’s Division of Clean Water Programs
(DCWP) and the Regional Water Quality Control Boards (RWQCB) have groundwater
monitoring efforts at underground storage tank sites, U.S. Department of
Defense facilities, waste disposal sites, and pesticide applicator sites. Other State agencies such as the Department
of Water Resources (DWR), Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), and
Department of Health Services (DHS) also have groundwater monitoring
efforts. For instance, DPR conducts
groundwater monitoring for currently registered pesticides pursuant to Assembly
Bill 2021 (Pesticide Contamination Prevention Act). DHS collects drinking water well monitoring data from water
purveyors for contaminants which have State or federal Maximum Contaminant
Levels pursuant to the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act. In the past, SWRCB has annually supplemented
DWR’s groundwater monitoring budget through interagency agreement.
Federal agencies, such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and USGS, have conducted ambient groundwater monitoring in a few groundwater basins in California as part of the national groundwater surveys. The USEPA survey involved a national assessment of groundwater contamination with pesticides and nitrate. In 1991, the U.S. Congress directed the USGS to conduct the National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program to assess the quality of the nation’s streams and groundwater. The NAWQA Program includes three study units in California – the Sacramento River Basin, San Joaquin-Tulare Basins, and Santa Ana River Basin.
Groundwater
is a very valuable resource in California.
Water pumped from wells in a typical year provides 25 to 30 percent of
the State’s water needs. During
droughts, groundwater aquifers provide as much as 60 percent of a year’s supply
for agricultural and municipal needs.
Half of all Californians rely on groundwater for at least a portion of
the water flowing from their taps. The
conjunctive use of surface and groundwater is gaining momentum at a time when
the groundwater is becoming contaminated with nitrate from fertilizers,
confined animal feeding operations, septic systems, fuels and especially the
gasoline additive methyl tertiary butyl ether from leaking underground storage
tanks, agricultural pesticides, and industrial solvents such as
trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene.
Some groundwater basins in California have naturally occurring
pollutants such as boron, arsenic, selenium, mercury, chromium and radon. In some coastal areas such as Monterey,
groundwater quality has been impaired by seawater intrusion due to overdraft.
With the FY 1999-2000 monitoring budget augmentation, SWRCB intends to contract with USGS for $450,000 to conduct groundwater monitoring. This activity will be coordinated with the ongoing groundwater programs at SWRCB (DCWP), RWQCBs, and other State and federal agencies, such as DWR, DPR, DHS, and USEPA.
POLICY ISSUE:
Should SWRCB adopt a resolution authorizing the Executive Director or his designee to enter into an interagency agreement with USGS to conduct ambient groundwater monitoring for up to $450,000 in FY 1999-00?
The contract amount of $450,000 for this interagency agreement with USGS is in the SWRCB’s FY 1999-00 general fund budget.
RWQCB IMPACT:
Yes. All RWQCBs.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
That the SWRCB adopt a resolution authorizing the Executive Director or his designee to enter into an interagency agreement with USGS to conduct ambient groundwater monitoring for up to $450,000 in FY 1999-00.
______________________________________________________________________________________________
October 25, 1999 DRAFT
STATE WATER RESOURCES
CONTROL BOARD
AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR TO ENTER INTO
AN INTERAGENCY AGREEMENT WITH THE U.S. GEOLOGICAL
SURVEY FOR AMBIENT GROUNDWATER MONITORING
WHEREAS:
1. The mission of the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) is to preserve and enhance the quality of California’s water resources, and ensure their proper allocation and efficient use for the benefit of present and future generations.
2. Ambient water quality monitoring provides valuable information to assess the potential impacts of pollutants on the beneficial uses of water.
THEREFORE
BE IT RESOLVED THAT:
The
SWRCB authorizes
the Executive Director or his designee to enter into an interagency agreement with
USGS to conduct groundwater monitoring under contract for up to $450,000 in FY
1999-00.
The
undersigned, Administrative Assistant to the Board, does hereby certify that
the foregoing is a full, true, and correct copy of a resolution duly and
regularly adopted at a meeting of the State Water Resources Control Board held
on November 18, 1999.
_____________________________________
Maureen
Marché