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ITEM: |
PUBLIC HEARING |
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10. |
CONSIDER ADOPTION OF THE |
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Meeting Date: |
September 16, 2019 |
Budgeted: |
N/A |
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From: |
David J. Stoldt, |
Program/ |
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General Manager |
Line Item No.: |
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Prepared By: |
Larry Hampson |
Cost Estimate: |
N/A |
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General Counsel Review: No |
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Committee
Recommendation: N/A |
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CEQA Compliance: Exempt under CEQA § 15262 |
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SUMMARY: The Monterey Peninsula planning region is eligible to receive up to $4.2 million in grant funds from Proposition 1. MPWMD is the lead agency in the region and is currently preparing a grant application to the Department of Water Resources (DWR) for $2,370,940 in project implementation funds. However, one of the criteria for receiving funds from DWR for project implementation is to adopt an Integrated Regional Water Management Plan (IRWM Plan) that meets the 2016 DWR Guidelines. The IRWM Plan adopted by the MPWMD Board in 2014 does not meet the 2016 Guidelines. Over the past 12 months, the Big Sur Land Trust and the District, with assistance from Denise Duffy & Associates, have undertaken an update of the IRWM Plan with the cooperation and support of local stakeholders.
RECOMMENDATIONS: Staff recommends that the Board:
1. Receive public comment on the Draft Update of the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Bay and South Monterey Bay Integrated Regional Water Management Plan.
2. Direct the General Manager to consider and address the comments of the MPWMD Board and public in the Final Update to the IRWM Plan.
3. Make a finding that the IRWM Plan is exempt from further environmental review under Section 15262 of the California Environmental Quality Act.
4. Approve Resolution 2019-14 adopting the IRWM Plan (attached as Exhibit 10-A).
5. Authorize
the General Manager to make any minor or non-substantive modifications to the
IRWM Plan presented to the Board in order to accommodate clarifications
requested by other adopting entities and the Department of Water Resources.
6. Authorize
the General Manager to amend the list of projects eligible for inclusion in
future grant applications by the planning region.
DISCUSSION: The IRWM Plan is a comprehensive guide for developing, prioritizing, and implementing coordinated water resource plans and projects. It is a “living document” intended to be amended from time to time to meet the planning Region’s changing needs and priorities, incorporate new developments in water resource management, and to respond to project solicitations from state and federal funding agencies.
The Draft IRWM Plan Update can be downloaded at:
https://www.mpwmd.net/resources/irwm-program/
IRWM, the Central
Coast Funding Area, and the Monterey Peninsula Region
Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) is a collaborative effort to manage all aspects of water resources in a region. IRWM crosses jurisdictional, watershed, and political boundaries; involves multiple agencies, stakeholders, individuals, and groups; and attempts to address the issues and differing perspectives of all the entities involved through mutually beneficial solutions.
IRWM Plans are intended to provide a framework for agencies, non-profit groups, for-profit corporations and other stakeholders with missions and responsibilities to work together on common water management strategies, objectives, goals and projects. As such, the IRWM Plan takes into consideration the many plans and policies currently being implemented for water resource management, analyzes how these are interrelated and shows how projects and programs can have multiple benefits when grouped together. The focus of the IRWM Plan is to improve management of local water resources by proposing to implement and monitor a suite of projects that taken as a whole:
· incorporate water management strategies required under State IRWM guidelines;
· meet objectives and goals set by stakeholders;
· accomplish regional priorities;
· are technically and financially feasible; and
· assist in meeting Statewide priorities.
The Department of Water Resources (DWR) is charged by the legislature with disbursing State funds for the IRWM program and has divided the state into 12 hydrologic region-based funding areas and 48 sub-regions for planning purposes. Locally, the Central Coast Funding Area (CCFA) is comprised of coastal watersheds in the counties of Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, San Benito, Monterey, San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara. Within this area, there are six IRWM Plans covering the funding area (see figure below). The Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Bay, and South Monterey Bay planning region was initially defined in 2005 after discussions with MCWRA and formally designated by DWR in 2009. Since 2002, Californians have approved $17.5 billion for water bonds that have included IRWM grant funds of approximately $2 billion for planning, implementation, and stormwater flood management throughout California.
DWR issues updates to its IRWM Program Guidelines (Guidelines) in response to State legislation. The Guidelines establish how to develop an IRWM Plan and what needs to be included. The MPWMD Board adopted the first Monterey Peninsula IRWM Plan in November 2007, which met Proposition 50 IRWM standards. After Proposition 84 was approved in 2006, the District secured a grant from DWR in 2010 to update the IRWM Plan and adopted an updated plan in June 2014.
Proposition 1 Funds
Proposition 1, passed in 2016, provides $43 million in grant funds to the CCFA. By agreement among the CCFA regions to share these funds equitably, the Monterey Peninsula region share is $4.2 million.
In 2018, DWR funded $466,000 for local Disadvantaged Community projects. MPWMD will be requesting $2.4 million in the first round of general implementation projects (the current round). The remainder of funds would be awarded in future grant rounds.
The Monterey Peninsula planning region is the smallest geographical planning region in the Central Coast area at approximately 347 square miles. It consists of coastal watershed areas draining to Carmel Bay and south Monterey Bay between Pt. Lobos on the south and Sand City on the north. Its 38.3-mile crenulated coast includes three Areas of Special Biological Significance (Pt. Lobos, Carmel Bay, and Pacific Grove), several Marine Protected Areas, and a portion of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The area encompasses the six Monterey Peninsula Cities of Carmel-by-the Sea, Del Rey Oaks, Pacific Grove, Monterey, Sand City, Seaside, and extends into portions of the unincorporated area of Monterey County at the former Fort Ord, in the Carmel Highlands, Pebble Beach, the inland areas of Carmel Valley and the Laguna Seca area.
At the time of adoption of the 2014 IRWM Plan, the Regional Water Management Group, which guides and implements the IRWM Plan, consisted of the following entities:
· Big Sur Land Trust (BSLT), a 501 (c) 3 organization;
· City of Monterey;
· City of Seaside
· Monterey Regional Water Pollution Control Agency (MRWPCA – now Monterey One Water);
· Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA);
· Marina Coast Water District (MCWD);
· Resource Conservation District of Monterey County; and
· Monterey Peninsula Water Management District (MPWMD).
Proposition 1 IRWM Plan Update At their June 23, 2014 meeting, the MPWMD Board of Directors adopted a “Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Bay and South Monterey Bay Integrated Regional Water Management Plan Update” (2014 IRWM Plan) that met Proposition 84 requirements. With the passage of Proposition 1 (Prop 1) in 2016, IRWM Plan requirements have been revised and for the region to receive Prop 1 implementation grant funds, the 2014 IRWM Plan must be updated to meet the new standards.
As described in the draft IRWM Plan, several stakeholder meetings were held to receive input and guide MPWMD staff and consultants in preparing the update. The IRWM Plan is a comprehensive guide for developing, prioritizing, and implementing coordinated water resource plans and projects. As such, it is a “living document” that is intended to be amended from time to time to meet the planning Region’s continually-evolving water resource management needs and related project priorities. The IRWM Plan update contains planning objectives and identifies potential projects that address the Region’s identified needs in the areas of water supply, water quality, flood protection, water-related environmental enhancement, and other state-mandated and optional planning categories.
During discussions with stakeholders, the following key changes were agreed upon:
· remove the requirement that a member of the Regional Water Management Group have statutory authority over water resources or provide a unique service or benefit not provided by other members of the RWMG; add the following entities to the RWMG:
o California State University Monterey Bay
o Carmel Area Wastewater District
o Carmel River Watershed Conservancy
o Carmel Valley Association
o City of Carmel-by-the-Sea
o City of Del Rey Oaks
o City of Pacific Grove
o City of Sand City
o City of Seaside
o Monterey County Resource Management Agency
· incorporate the Stormwater Resource Plan (SRP) for the region into the IRWM Plan as an Appendix; however, projects in the SRP would be prioritized only if the project proponent completed a detailed Project Information Form
· split the Flood Protection/Erosion Prevention Goal into separate Goals
· add Watershed Management as a Goal
· several Objectives were changed; a TAC was appointed to refine Objectives; a record of the recommended changes is contained in Appendix 14 to the 2019 IRWM Plan Update; (note that objectives serve to guide project proponents in the development of projects, but also have a practical aspect when the RWMG scores and prioritizes projects); significant changes for the 2019 update include:
o water for environmental flows was added as an objective under Water Supply
o protecting coastal infrastructure from flooding as a result of sea level rise and promoting floodplain restoration were added as Objectives under Flood Protection
o three new Objectives were added to address Coastal and Streamside Erosion including managed retreat, restoring natural stream function and preventing downcutting in the Carmel River
o four Objectives were added under the Watershed Management Goal to restore the natural flow of water and sediment and fire frequency in headwater forests
o fuel management to prevent catastrophic wildfires was added as an Objective under Environmental Protection and Enhancement
o the Objective of evaluation of Climate Change was changed to implementation of measures to mitigate effects of climate change
· the region-specific GIS and Data Management System developed for the 2014 IRWM Plan Update was discontinued – portions of the hardware used for the system are obsolete and no longer supported by the providers; the region will rely on Central Coast and State databases
A major change in DWR’s criteria for Prop 1 IRWM funding eligibility is the exclusion of projects that are required as mitigation of environmental impacts. Thus, replacement water supply projects – one of the region’s top priorities – are not allowed in a grant application. This includes Cal Am’s Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project, the Pure Water Monterey project, and the District’s Aquifer Storage and Recovery projects.
It should be noted that MPWMD is the lead agency for development of the IRWMP and ensuring its execution. However, the institutional structure of the RWMG allows for agencies to rotate as members of the RWMG and any agency in the RWMG can be a lead agency for a grant application if a specific funding source is identified and the RWMG designates another lead agency.
During the project solicitation phase, five detailed project proposals were received and nine concept proposals were received. Of these, four project proposals are eligible to apply for an implementation grant while concept proposals must be developed further.[1] Details of the project solicitation process are contained in IRWM Plan Chapter 6.
CEQA COMPLIANCE: California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines for Section 15262 “Feasibility and Planning Studies” state as follows:
“A project involving only feasibility or planning studies for possible future actions which the agency, board, or commission has not approved, adopted, or funded does not require the preparation of an EIR or negative declaration but does require consideration of environmental factors.”
The MPWMD Board was previously provided a full copy of the IRWM Plan Update under separate cover.
It is MPWMD staff opinion that the evaluation of environmental factors contained in the IRWM Plan is adequate for this level of planning and that the Plan is exempt from further review under CEQA. But additional specific environmental review may be required for individual projects. It will be the responsibility of each project sponsor to identify a Lead Agency and to comply with requirements for additional environmental review under CEQA.
ADOPTION OF IRWM PLAN: In order to be eligible for State IRWM implementation grant funds under the California voter-approved Proposition 1, the IRWM Plan must meet the 2016 Guidelines and be adopted by the agencies that apply for grant funds. MPWMD is the lead agency in the region and is currently preparing a grant application to DWR for $1,894,400. Exhibit 10-A Resolution No. 2019-14 to adopt the 2019 IRWM Plan is attached.
EXHIBIT