California Code of Regulations
Title 23 - Waters
Division 4 - Regional Water Quality Control Boards
Chapter 1 - Water Quality Control Plans, Policies, and Guidelines
Article 3 - Central Coast Region
Section 3929.4 - Soquel Lagoon Watershed Total Maximum Daily Loads and Implementation Plan for Fecal Coliform, Domestic Animal Waste Discharge Prohibition, Human Fecal Material Discharge Prohibition, and Shellfish Harvesting Beneficial Use Removal from Soquel Lagoon
On May 8, 2009, the Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Coast Region (Central Coast Water Board) adopted Resolution No. R3-2009-0024, amending the Water Quality Control Plan for the Central Coast Region. The State Water Resources Control Board approved the amendment under Resolution No. 2010-0031, on July 6, 2010.
Resolution No. R3-2009-0024 establishes Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for fecal coliform in the Soquel Lagoon, Soquel Creek and Noble Gulch (Soquel Lagoon Watershed), adds the Soquel Lagoon Watershed to the human fecal material discharge prohibition and the domestic animal waste discharge prohibition, and removes the shellfish harvesting beneficial use from the Soquel Lagoon.
The Central Coast Water Board set wasteload and load allocations for subwatersheds, and numeric targets for receiving waters, based on the Basin Plan water quality objectives for fecal coliform in waters supporting body contact recreation. Implementation of the TMDLs relies on non-point discharger compliance with prohibitions against the discharge of domestic animal waste and human fecal material. Responsible parties will need to demonstrate compliance with the prohibitions through reporting to the Central Coast Water Board or its Executive Officer. Additionally, the Central Coast Water Board will rely upon existing National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits and Waste Discharge Requirements to insure that implementing parties carry out implementation actions.
The Basin Plan amendment removes Shellfish Harvesting as a beneficial use in Soquel Lagoon. The Central Coast Water Board determined that this beneficial use designation was unsupportable based on background water quality, habitat conditions and the absence of any shellfish harvesting currently or historically in the Lagoon.
Central Coast Water Board staff plan to conduct triennial reviews of implementation actions, monitoring results, and evaluations submitted by responsible parties of their progress towards achieving their allocations. The compliance schedule for achieving the TMDLs and the numeric target for fecal coliform concentration is 13 years after the TMDLs are approved by the Office of Administrative Law.
1. New regulation summarizing amendments to basin plan filed 9-15-2010; amendment approved by State Water Resources Control Board Resolution No. 2010-0031 on 7-6-2010; amendment approved by OAL pursuant to Government Code section 11353 on 9-15-2010 (Register 2010, No. 38).
