Agenda Item Wording:
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Request for the Council to confirm the City entering in to 3 management zone participation agreements with the Kaweah Water Foundation, contribute the annual fees for participating in the program, and appropriate up to $30,000 from the Waste Water Treatment Plant fund for the first year costs.
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Deadline for Action: 5/2/2022
Submitting Department: Administration
Contact Name and Phone Number: Leslie B. Caviglia, 713-4332
Department Recommendation:
It is recommended that the Visalia City Council confirm the City’s participation with the Kaweah Water Foundation through 3 management zone participation agreements and authorize the payment of the annual fees as billed. The first year cost is $27,000. Future costs will vary depending on needs and requirements.
Background Discussion:
The City of Visalia has three permits through the Regional Water Quality Board to discharge nitrates. All three permits, the Waste Water Treatment Facility, the Visalia Biosolids Application Project, and the Visalia Water Recycling Project, are associated with the City’s Water Reclamation Facility.
In May, 2018, the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board (Water Board), adopted plans for several basins to incorporate a Central Valley-Wide Salt and Nitrate Control Program. (CV-SALTS) The Plan amendments were adopted by the State Water Resources Control Board, and the Office of Administrative Law. Some portions of the Plan already are in effect, others are pending approval from the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
The Kaweah Sub-Basin has been identified as one of the six priority basins, and agencies, organizations and businesses with permits to discharge nitrates in this area must now have a program to control and permit nitrate discharges to groundwater. The City has received a notice to comply with the regulations, and can choose to either participate in a comprehensive, organized program, or can develop its own program. Given the complexity of the requirements, staff is recommending that the City enter into agreements with the local organization to contribute and cooperate with Kaweah Water Foundation to comply with the required Nitrate Control Program.
The Kaweah Water Foundation (KWF) was established as a California nonprofit public benefit corporation on October 19, 2020, covering the Kaweah Subbasin region of Tulare County, California, known as the Kaweah Management Zone. It is currently managed through a contract with Provost and Prichard, an engineering consulting firm that has an office in Visalia. For more information on the Foundation, go to: <http://www.kaweahwater.org/index.html>.
The KWF is responsible for compliance with the requirements of the Central Valley Salinity Alternatives for Long-Term Sustainability Nitrate Control Program.
CV-SALTS has developed the Central Valley’s Nitrate Control Program to address historical nitrate problems affecting groundwater, which is a main source of drinking water in rural and disadvantaged communities throughout the Kaweah Subbasin. The Nitrate Control Program’s three primary goals consist of:
1. Provide safe drinking water, particularly for residents in affected areas, as quickly as possible
2. Reduce nitrate impacts to water supplies
3. Restore groundwater quality where feasible
Fiscal Impact:
Estimated first year cost is $27,000. The annual fees will vary based on actual costs to run the program.
Prior Council Action: N/A
Other: N/A
Alternatives: To operate an independent program.
Recommended Motion (and Alternative Motions if expected):
recommendation
I move to confirm the City entering in to 3 management zone participation agreements with the Kaweah Water Foundation and to appropriate up to $30,000 from the Waste Water Treatment Fund to pay for the annual fees for participation in the program.
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Environmental Assessment Status: N/A
CEQA Review: N/A
Attachments: Copies of agreements