ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE
4.	Consider Expenditures for Permitting of a New Carmel River Fish Counting Weir
Meeting Date:		August 13, 2018	Budgeted:	Yes
From:		Dave Stoldt, General Manager	Program/	Protect Environmental Quality
			Line Item No.:	Program – Aquatic Resources Fisheries
Prepared By:		Kevan Urquhart	Cost Estimate:	$ 15,000
General Counsel Approval: N/A
Committee Recommendation: The Administrative Committee reviewed this item on August 13, 2018 and recommended _______________________
CEQA Compliance: The primary project is Categorically Exempt under the California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines section 15306, and the remaining actions do not constitute a project as defined by the California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines section 15378.

SUMMARY: The District needs to take three actions to begin the permitting process required to install a new fish counting weir that will enumerate the full annual run size of Carmel River steelhead: 1) approve a Notice of Exemption (NOE) under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA); 2) approve an expenditure for the fee the California Department of Fish & Wildlife (CDFW) requires for a Lake & Streambed Alteration Agreement (LSAA) permit; and 3) approve a reimbursement agreement between Denise Duffy & Associates (DD&A) and the District to assist in acquiring other State and local permits or waivers.

RECOMMENDATION: The committee should recommend that the Board of Directors: (1) approve the CEQA NOE; (2) approve an expenditure of $2,170.50 for the CDFW LSAA five–year permit fee; (3) authorize the General Manager to enter into an agreement with DD&A for a not-to-exceed amount of $7,829.50 for assistance with permit acquisition; and (4) include a $5,000 contingency for a total expenditure of $15,000.

BACKGROUND: The District budgeted for a new fish-counting weir to be built in the winter of 2018-2019 at River Mile ~0.5. It will be placed between the banks of the Carmel River on property owned by the Carmel Area Wastewater District and the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea. It will be removed and reinstalled annually for up to a six month monitoring season from December – May. The design is a resistance board weir, attached with sand anchors to the substrate, where the center panels are hinged, allowing them to lay down and flatten out under high flows, so that debris can be pass over the structure. The weir includes a trap for adult steelhead on one bank.

The District originally maintained a DIDSON hydro-acoustic sound camera on loan from the CDFW for this purpose, upstream of this location, but the use of that device in the lower river has been rendered ineffective by the large number of striped bass that now regularly move up and down the river, which cannot be distinguished from steelhead with existing hydro-acoustic technology.

Preliminary consultations with CDFW and National Marine Fisheries Service staff operating these types of weirs from Santa Cruz County to the Oregon border, and in the Sacramento Valley, suggest that other Counties and the State Coastal Commission (SCC) are not exerting permit jurisdiction over these kinds of seasonal temporary installations elsewhere, and we may simply have to notify the parties and request a waiver. CDFW’s Central Region has indicated they will likely require a LSAA, which also requires the District to conduct CEQA compliance, and the Monterey County Water Resources Agency requires formal consultation on any structures placed in the Carmel River flood plain.

ACTION #1: The Board should approve a CEQA NOE, attached as Exhibit 4-A, since the action is Categorically Exempt under Title 14. Natural Resources; Division 6. Resources Agency; Chapter 3: Guidelines for Implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act: Article 19. Categorical Exemptions; Section 15306. Information collection [Section 21084, Public Resources Code] “consists of basic data collection, research, experimental management and resource evaluation activities which do not result in a serious or major disturbance to an environmental resource. These may be for strictly information gathering purposes, or as part of a study leading to an action which a public agency has not yet approved, adopted or funded”.

ACTION #2: The Board should approve an expenditure of $2,1750.50 to acquire a CDFW LSSA for the next five years of weir operations.

ACTION #3: The Board should authorize the General Manager to enter into an agreement with DD&A for a not-to-exceed amount of $7,829.50 for assistance with permit acquisition. Attached as Exhibit 4-A is a proposed reimbursement agreement between Denise DD&A and the District. DD&A would be responsible for developing the County and SCC permitting of the weir, if either agency exerts jurisdiction, or acquiring documented waivers, if they do not. MPWMD would be the Lead Agency for California Environmental Quality Act compliance; acquire CDFW LSAA permits for the project; and supervise installation by a specialized biological consulting firm to be selected as a result of a future bid process.

IMPACT TO STAFF/RESOURCES: Funds for the permits and to retain the services of DD&A are in the FY 2018-2019 Fisheries Program Budget under account 24-04-785851 “2-3-4 Monitoring of Adult Steelhead Counts: C. Resistance Board Weir Construction (Permitting)” Staff time will also be needed to for CEQA and CDFW LSAA compliance, and to oversee the project.

EXHIBIT

4-A Letter proposal from Denise Duffy &Associates

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