Amendment to General Waiver - Addendum to Negative Declaration

Amendment to General Waiver - Addendum to Negative Declaration

This environmental document is an Addendum to the Initial Study/Negative Declaration (IS/ND) (State Clearing House Number 2002101068) adopted by the Central Coast Water Quality Control Board (Central Coast Water Board) in Resolution R3-2002-0015 (2002 General Waiver). The 2002 General Waiver has since been revised and readopted in 2008, 2014, and most recently in 2019 with Order No. R3-2019-0089 (General Waiver). Order R3-2023-0044 (Amending Order) amends Order No. R3-2019- 0089 to conditionally waive waste discharge requirements for discharges of residual wastewater from reverse osmosis (RO) drinking water supply treatment systems for small water systems and private domestic wells where the water provided exceeds the primary maximum contaminant level (MCL) for nitrate or is under threat of not meeting the MCL for nitrate. This document addresses the potential environmental impacts due to the addition of this waste category to the General Waiver. Since the adoption of the IS/ND, minor changes to the General Waiver have been made in subsequent renewals (2008, 2014 and 2019) and this Amending Order in 2023. The Central Coast Water Board, as lead agency under California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), adopted an addendum to the IS/ND in 2019 and has considered the Amending Order’s proposed changes to the General Waiver. The Central Coast Water Board concludes that the changes will not result in any new significant environmental impacts. As such, the IS/ND continues to serve as the appropriate document addressing the environmental impacts from the General Waiver under CEQA, and a subsequent negative declaration and/or subsequent Environmental Impact Report (EIR) does not need to be prepared.

Arroyo Grande, Atascadero, Buellton, Cambria, Capitola, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Carpinteria, Del Rey Oaks, Gilroy, Goleta, Gonzales, Greenfield, Grover Beach, Guadalupe, Hollister, King City, Lompoc, Marina, Monterey, Morgan Hill, Morro Bay, Nipomo, Pacific Grove, Paso Robles, Pismo Beach, Region 3 Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board Area, Salinas, San Juan Bautista, San Luis Obispo, Sand City, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Santa Maria, Scotts Valley, Seaside, Soledad, Solvang, Watsonville

Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz

Countywide

California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Bay Delta Region 3 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, South Coast Region 5 (CDFW), California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), California Department of Parks and Recreation, California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, California Department of Transportation, District 12 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 4 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 5 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 7 (DOT), California Department of Water Resources (DWR), California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC), California Natural Resources Agency, California State Lands Commission (SLC), State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Water Quality

Other (Adds RO discharge to septic for nitrate treatment to waiver)

Amendment to General Waiver for Specific Types of Discharges

Aesthetics, Agriculture and Forestry Resources, Air Quality, Biological Resources, Cultural Resources, Cumulative Effects, Drainage/Absorption, Flood Plain/Flooding, Geology/Soils, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Growth Inducement, Hazards & Hazardous Materials, Hydrology/Water Quality, Mineral Resources, Population/Housing, Public Services, Recreation, Septic System, Sewer Capacity, Solid Waste, Tribal Cultural Resources, Utilities/Service Systems, Vegetation, Wetland/Riparian