Waste Discharge Requirements for timberlands owned by Humboldt Redwood Company, LLC in the Elk River Watershed
The Elk River, one of the primary tributaries of Humboldt Bay and an important salmon spawning and rearing habitat, has been utilized for rural residential, grazing, and timber harvesting since the 1850s. In 1997, the Regional Water Board and other state agencies began to receive reports from downstream residents of increased turbidity, channel filling, and flood frequency. In December 1997, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), California Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW, then California Department of Fish and Game), California Geological Survey (CGS) and the Regional Water Board determined, based on field observations and aerial photograph data, that the Elk River Watershed was one of five watersheds owned by PALCO that were significantly cumulatively impacted by sediment discharges following the large storm events in late 1996 and early 1997. Elk River was identified in 1998 as impaired due to excessive sedimentation/siltation and was subsequently placed on the federal Clean Water Act section 303(d) list.
In 2008, Humboldt Redwood Company, LLC (HRC) acquired all of PALCO's timberlands, including approximately 22,000 acres in the Elk River watershed. All Regional Water Board Orders that pertain to HRC's current activities were originally issued to PALCO and amended by Order No. R1-2008-0100 to reflect HRC's ownership of the former PALCO holdings.
Nonpoint source discharges from HRC's timber harvesting and associated activities are currently regulated under Order No. R1-2006-0039, Elk River Watershed-specific Waste Discharge Requirements (WWDR) issued by the Regional Water Board in 2006 to the Pacific Lumber Company, the previous landowner. Among other requirements, the WWDR includes receiving water limitations on peak flow increases and sediment discharge from harvest-related landslides, and rate of harvest limitations based on two scientific models.
The existing WWDR is not tailored to the management practices of HRC, and does not comprehensively address HRC's obligations for cleanups and TMDL implementation. It needs to be updated to reflect current conditions and provide a more comprehensive and readable permit. In addition, the remaining requirements for erosion control from Cleanup and Abatement Orders for HRC's timberlands in the North and South Fork of Elk River will be incorporated in this Order for a more efficient management of related monitoring and reporting.
The WDR establishes enforceable general and specific requirements, including:
- Limits on the harvesting intensity and areal extent of timber harvesting;
- Methods to prevent sediment discharge from road use, construction, reconstruction, decommissioning, repair and maintenance;
- Methods to prevent sediment discharge from landslides by implementation of hillslope prescriptions designed to minimize impacts to slope stability and review by a Professional Geologist of all proposed harvesting and road construction or reconstruction;
- Inventory and treatment of controllable sediment discharge sources from roads, skid trails, landslides, and other sources related to timberland management;
- Retention and protection of riparian vegetation to preserve and restore shade, prevent increases in solar radiation, and meet the temperature objective;
- In-stream and riparian zone restoration;
- A monitoring and reporting program that includes watershed trend monitoring, annual work plans describing HRC's planned activities for each upcoming year, and an annual summary report of activities conducted during the previous year.
This proposed Order is informed by the Elk River Sediment Technical Analysis for the UER (Tetra Tech, 2015), attached to the Order as Attachment B.
The Initial Study and Mitigated Negative Declaration analyze potential impacts from the Order. Attachment A of the Initial Study provides additional best management practices designed to mitigate potential impacts from stream restoration. Restoration and remediation efforts in the UER as well as the impacted reach combined with the additional layer of environmental protection provided by the Order are expected to ensure that adverse impacts to the water quality in the Elk River watershed improve over time.
Persons wishing to receive additional notices related to the draft Order and Mitigated Negative Declaration must subscribe to the respective email list, under Resources, Email Subscription on the left side of the Regional Water Board's main web page at https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/northcoast.
November 30, 2016 Board Meeting Adopted Documents
- Order No. R1-2016-0004
- Mitigated Negative Declaration for Draft Order No. R1-2016-0004
- Initial Study
- Attachment A – Watershed Map
- Attachment B – Elk River Sediment Technical Analysis (Tetra Tech, 2015)
- Attachment C – North Fork Master Sediment Reduction and Master Treatment Schedule (zip file)
- Attachment C – South Fork Master Sediment Reduction and Master Treatment Schedule (zip file)
- HRC's August 28, 2015, Report of Waste Discharge (zip file)
November 30, 2016 Board Meeting Supporting Documents
- Notice of Public Hearing and Notice of Intent
- Executive Officer's Summary Report
- Order No. R1-2016-0004
- Order No. R1-2016-0004 underline-strikeout (comparison of November 30, 2016 and August 30, 2016 drafts)
- Regional Water Board response to comments
Proposed Order Attachments
- Attachment A – Watershed Map
- Attachment B – Elk River Sediment Technical Analysis (Tetra Tech, 2015)
- Attachment C – North Fork Master Sediment Reduction and Master Treatment Schedule (zip file)
- Attachment C – South Fork Master Sediment Reduction and Master Treatment Schedule (zip file)
- Attachment D – HRC's Report of Waste Discharge (zip file)
- March 11, 2016 HRC ROWD revised table 4.3
- Initial Study
- Initial Study (redline-strikethrough comparing August 30, 2016 and April 7, 2016 drafts)
Initial Study Attachments
- Attachment A - Best Management Practices for Discharges of Waste Resulting from Stream Restoration Activities in the Elk River Watershed Associated with the Initial Study and Mitigated Negative Declaration for Order No. R1-2016-0004
- Attachment B - Draft Order No. R1-2016-0004
Comment letters received during the August 30 – September 29, 2016 Public Comment period:
- Kristi Wrigley , Elk River resident
- Jesse Noel, Elk River resident
- Jerry Martien, Friends of Elk River
- Mike Miles, Humboldt Redwood Company (HRC)
- Dennis Thibeault, HRC
- Rob DiPerna, Environmental Protection Information Center
- Vivian Helliwell, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations and Institute for
Fisheries Resources - Ken Pimlott, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE)
The following letters were received outside the designated comment period. Regional Water Board members have received the comments, and they will be made part of the record for this proceeding. No written response will be provided:
- Mike Mile October 28, 2016 Sensitive Area Letter
- HRC October 5, 2016 proposed sensitive area map
- Dennis Thibeault October 20, 2016 Public Process Letter
June 16, 2016 Board Meeting Supporting Documents
Revised Notice of Public Hearingto Adopt a Mitigated Negative Declaration
and
Proposed Order No. R1-2016-0004 Waste Discharge Requirements and General Water Quality Certification
for
Nonpoint Source Discharges and Other Controllable Water Quality Factors Related to
Timber Harvesting and Associated Activities Conducted by
Humboldt Redwood Company, LLC
in the Upper Elk River Watershed, Humboldt County
- Executive Officer's Summary Report
- ORDER NO. R1-2016-0004
- ORDER NO. R1-2016-0004 - underline/strikeout
- Attachment 2a
- Attachment 2b
- Attachment 3
- Attachment 4
- Attachment 4a
- Attachment 5 - Additional Elk River Watershed Monitoring Activities
May 12, 2016 Board Meeting Supporting Documents
- Revised Notice of Public Hearing (posted 4/27/2016)
- Notice of Public Comment Period, Public Hearing and Notice of Intent
- Notice of Meeting Location Change
- Supplemental Notice of Public Comment Period
- Executive Officer's Summary Report
- Order No. R1-2016-0004
- Order No. R1-2016-0004 underline/strikeout
- Attachment A – Watershed Map
- Attachment B – Elk River Sediment Technical Analysis (Tetra Tech, 2015)
- Attachment C – North Fork Master Sediment Reduction and Master Treatment Schedule (zip file)
- Attachment C – South Fork Master Sediment Reduction and Master Treatment Schedule (zip file)
- Attachment D – HRC's Report of Waste Discharge (zip file)
- March 11, 2016 HRC ROWD revised table 4.3
- Initial Study and Mitigated Negative Declaration for Draft Order No. R1-2016-0004
- Attachment A - Best Management Practices for Discharges of Waste Resulting from Stream Restoration Activities in the Elk River Watershed Associated with the Initial Study and Mitigated Negative Declaration for Order No. R1-2016-0004
- Attachment B - Draft Order No. R1-2016-0004
- Audio for February 5, 2016 Public Workshop