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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/19/2010, C5 - HYDROMODIFICATION PLAN, JOINT EFFORT PARTICIPATION counat IM.&BDY 1-19-10 j arenas wpoin h.N=b� G� CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO FROM: Jay Walter, Director of Public Wqrks Prepared By: Barbara Lynch, City Engine SUBJECT: HYDROMODIFICATION PLAN,JOINT EFFORT PARTICIPATION RECOMMENDATION Authorize staff to proceed with the development of a Hydromodification Management Plan under the conditions of the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board's joint effort proposal. DISCUSSION Background The City is mandated under federal regulations relating to clean water to have and enforce a Stormwater Management Plan. The City is enrolled under the state's General Stormwater Permit via the approval of the Stormwater Management Plan by the Regional Water Quality Control Board, the regional arm of the State Water Board. The State Water Board is tasked with the enforcement of the Clean Water Act by the federal Environmental Protection Agency. Under the approved Stormwater Management Plan, the City has an obligation to produce a Hydromodification Management Plan over the course of five years. In addition, an interim hydromodification plan must be adopted by June of this year. The Regional Board is now proposing an alternative path for agencies to achieve hydromodification regulation to be done as a "joint effort" through the Regional Board. If the City participates in the joint effort, the final plan is anticipated to be complete in two years. Although this is sooner than under the City's existing permit, the City would not have to adopt an interim plan by June 2010: The City will be expected to encourage Low Impact Development (LID) techniques in new projects and provide resources to developers on LID. LID methods are intended to minimize impacts to the landscape and methods are available from multiple sources for developers to consider in designing their projects. What is Hydromodification and why should the City be concerned? The term hydromodification is used to describe the alteration of the natural flow of water through landscape. When changes to the land take place, such as those that occur with development — compacting soils, changing vegetative cover, adding impervious surfaces, altering drainage patterns — natural hydrologic processes of absorption, infiltration and run off, are altered. These changes can result in increased creek channel instability, degraded water quality, reduced ground water recharge, and changes in riparian and aquatic habitats. CS Hydromodification Joint Effort Participation Page 2 Hydromodification has been under study for a number of years, but until more recently, was not regulated. In early 2003, agencies in the San Francisco Bay Area were directed to begin development and implementation of hydromodification requirements. As part of the July 2009 approval of the City's Stormwater Management Plan, the City is now under obligation to produce and enforce requirements regarding hydromodification that occurs as a result of development and redevelopment. The Environmental Protection Agency is also looking at new regulations to require these types of plans. The local Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Board) recently established through its goal setting process a goal of"Healthy Watersheds."They have defined that as: 1. Rainfall surface run off is at pre-development levels 2. Watershed storage of run off, through infiltration, recharge, baseflow, and interflow, is at pre-development levels 3. Stream banks are stable, within a natural range 4. Sediment supply and transportation occur within a natural range 5. Riparian and aquatic habitats are optimal, including stream flow and biotic conditions The Regional Board has determined that to achieve healthy watersheds, hydromodification regulation for development and redevelopment is needed. That has translated into the requirements for a Hydromodification Management Plan within the City and all other regional agencies. The Joint Effort When the requirement for hydromodification first appeared in a letter to local agencies, local agencies and private organizations were extremely concerned. That concern was voiced on numerous occasions and some softening of the original requirements was made. Municipalities expressed concerns with the scope of the work involved to develop these plans for which they have neither the staff expertise nor the resources to hire consultants. Plans, such as these, can cost on the order of$400,000 for an agency of the City's size. At the urging of, and with the help of the Low Impact Development Center (LIDC), the Regional Board developed a program titled the "Joint Effort." The Regional Board secured a $600,000 grant to develop regional hydromodification control methodology. The Regional Board is providing the grant to the LIDC who will hire experts to develop the methodology. The Regional Board has extended an invitation to all agencies in the region to participate in this effort. The region roughly encompasses Monterey, San Luis Obispo, and Santa Barbara counties. The Joint Effort is just what it sounds like. It is a unified approach, including any agency wishing to participate, guided by the Regional Board and using the expertise of the LIDC to develop a regional plan. Water Board staff believes that a joint effort could provide numerous environmental and other benefits by developing scientifically valid criteria, improving regional consistency in control implementation, leveraging limited municipal resources and fostering community buy-in essential for long lasting changes in stormwater management. Ultimately, the City will have a set of performance based requirements that can be implemented by new and redevelopment, and guidelines for when the requirements are not appropriate. (26' a Hydromodification Joint Effort Participation Page 3 The Regional Board has listed the following items and advantages of participation: 1. Focuses on reasonable scientifically based techniques with clear outcomes 2. Provides State funding for the first phase of the technical work 3. Saves staff time and agency costs as a result of working with others under the same schedule and receiving implementation assistance from the LIDC 4. Dispenses with interim criteria, due in one year, and focuses on final criteria 5. Ensures better consistency in the outcomes for Phase II communities (lower population cities and counties), both technical and regulatory 6. Provides greater certainty for the development community of what is required and the basis for those requirements 7. Addresses the unique conditions of each community; one methodology—differing criteria 8. Allows municipalities to focus on their strengths (process and implementation), and delegates the highly technical, scientific work to subject area experts. 9. Changing requirements twice in a few years (as currently required in the City's Stormwater Management Plan) will introduce complications for project applicants requiring additional time for project review and approval. 10. Adoption of interim criteria (currently required), that may not fully reflect local hydrologic conditions may introduce unnecessary costs for developers and municipalities. 11. Participants will have input in the determination of the Maximum Extent Practicable standard determination 12. Participants will likely undergo a streamlined review process of their implementation measures and hydromodification criteria since measures and criteria will be developed through collective municipality involvement and Regional Board staff participation 13. Municipalities not participating may incur additional costs while undergoing Regional Board staff review due to the need to individually demonstrate equivalent effort and effectiveness of their implementation measures and hydromodification criteria Joint Effort Scope Phase 1 of the work will include preliminary engineering and geomorphologic analysis, and the development of a methodology that the City can use to determine its landscape specific hydromodification control criteria. During Phase 2 of the work, the methodology will be applied to the City specifically to determine land specific control criteria. The LDIC is working with the State Water Board to use the methodology developed under this effort on a Statewide basis, to create a consistent approach to this type of regulation. The scope of work for the LIDC is: 1. Assist municipalities in obtaining funding and resources to conduct analysis and revision to municipal codes, including implementation of a small grant program, and training for municipalities on how to integrate LID into codes 2. Provide sample LID ordinances the City can incorporate into its local regulatory framework 3. Provide LID Technical optimization guidance - assist new and redevelopment project stakeholders in determining whether they have made adequate effort to incorporate LID Into their site designs 4. Provide an education tool that municipal stormwater program staff can use to understand and communicate what is involved in the development of applicability thresholds CS-3 I Hydromodification Joint Effort Participation Page 4 5. Work with the Regional Board staff and municipalities to identify acceptable LID Best Management Practices manuals that can be used for design and hydrologic analysis 6. Launch the virtual LIDC website in partnership with the California Stormwater Quality Association to provide information on LID and its implementation Terms Participating agencies are required to provide labor in support of the effort through information ! data provision specific to the jurisdiction, and meet specific milestones on items such as municipal code review and revision, training, and implementation of LID. The City will need to dedicate staff resources to meet these milestones in a timely manner. This work would be required whether the City participated or not. Participation merely dictates an earlier timeframe. The City's permit language will need to be revised and approved by February 2010. Staff will need to be available to provide comments on work products as the Regional Board makes draft work available. The City will also be responsible for completing Phase H work if additional grant funding is not found to fund continued work by the LIDC. Staff has submitted the declaration of intent to participate included in the Attachment; however, that declaration is not binding until such time as the revisions to the Stormwater Management Plan are submitted and approved, which will follow Council action on this item. Deny Participation The City would then shoulder the whole cost for its plan and possibly have a plan that is not consistent with other agencies, making it more difficult for the development community to comply with applicable standards. The City will also likely face more in depth review of its plan by the Regional Board because the Regional Board staff will not be as closely involved in the scoping and preparation. CONCURRENCES City staff is currently active in a County Technical Advisory Committee (an affiliation of municipalities, consultants and developers) formed to work together on implementation of the hydromodification requirements. At the most recent committee meeting, it was reported that 30 of the 38 Phase H communities (small agencies) are intending to participate in the Joint Effort. FISCAL IMPACT The total cost to complete a joint effort for all Central Coast Phase communities is estimated to be between $1.5 and $2 million. The State Water Board Cleanup and Abatement Account is funding $600,000 of the total amount. The Central Coast Water Board is actively seeking additional funding including Central Coast Water Board Settlement Funds, and American Recovery and Reinvestment Act dollars, and will support agency applications for Proposition 84 funds should they become available. If the Regional Board is unable to obtain additional funds, agencies will either need to continue to band together to complete the work, or they will have the results from the first portion of the Y Hydromodification Joint Effort Participation Page 5 work, completed with the available $600,000, to move forward on their own to complete the work. The one down side of participation is that funding for completion may be needed sooner rather than later to complete the work. Staff currently shows a $200,000 projected commitment for 2011-12 in the 2009-11 Financial Plan. Through the local Hydromodification Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), a draft Memorandum of understanding is under discussion for local communities to continue the joint effort with the LIDC in the event the additional funds are not forthcoming from other sources. Agencies represented at the local Technical Advisory Committee believed there would be support from their political bodies for such an effort. Staff believes this type of continued joint effort would keep the cost to a minimum. The committee will be working on language for a Memorandum of Understanding between agencies in the event it is needed. That Memorandum would be brought to each political body for authorization. Staff agrees with the Regional Board that ajoint effort is a cost effective way to generate these new requirements for development and re-development, and will provide a much more consistent set of requirements across the region for implementation by the development community. ALTERNATIVE The Council may decide not to participate. This alternative is not recommended since the City will still be required to produce these work products at some point, and not participating will result in higher costs, additional staff work effort, and a more challenging approval process with the Regional Board. ATTACHMENT Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board Joint Effort Participation Letter Ocouncil agenda reportsfyublic works wA2010)zdminlbydrornodificafionV effort rpt.doc .� A.' Ch . lU California Regional Water Quality Control Board Linda S.Adams Central Coast Region V Agency Secretary Arnold Schwar[enegger Internet Address: http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/centmlcoast Governor 895 Aerovista Place,Suite 101,San Luis Obispo,California 93401-7906 Phone(805)549-3147•FAX(805)543-0397 October 20, 2009 «First Name» «AgencyName» «AgencyMai li ng Address» «AgencyCity», CA «AgencyZip» Dear «First Name,,: NOTIFICATION TO TRADITIONAL, SMALL MS4 DISCHARGERS REGARDING OPPORTUNITY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE JOINT EFFORT FOR DEVELOPING HYDROMODIFICATION CONTROL CRITERIA IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE MUNICIPAL STORMWATER PERMIT This letter provides Phase II municipal stormwater dischargers with the opportunity to participate in a Joint Effort to develop hydromodification control criteria as an alternative to the current requirements for developing interim criteria found in municipalities' Storm Water Management Plans (SWMPs). Water Board staff is providing this opportunity in response to concerns, expressed by municipalities, about achieving compliance with current requirements for developing interim hydromodification control criteria and enforceable mechanisms by the end of Year 1 of SWMP implementation. This letter provides some background and outlines the process by which Water Board staff will work with those municipalities choosing to participate in the Joint Effort. The process described below includes the following: • The terms and declaration of participation in the Joint Effort; • The steps and schedule for amending SWMPs; and • The new best management practices that will be amended to SWMPs. Additionally, this letter includes a discussion of factors to consider in deciding whether to participate in the joint effort. BACKGROUND The Joint Effort for Hydromodification Control is an effort to create a methodology for developing hydromodification control criteria; derive criteria by applying that methodology; and support implementation of the resulting criteria for new and redevelopment projects. The effort includes oversight and funding by the Water Board for a team of subject area experts to develop the methodology. The Joint Effort is expected to span a period of two years, commencing with the start date for consulting contracts with subject area experts, anticipated to be the first week of November, 2009. Water Board staff will replace the current requirements for developing interim California Environmental Protection Agency �. Recycled Paper !moi W v Attachment «First_Name» -2- October 20, 2009 and long-term hydromodification control criteria with new requirements for municipalities participating in the Joint.Effort. The Water Board has secured $600,000 for the Joint Effort from the State Water Board's Cleanup and Abatement Account. These funds have been allocated to the Central Coast Low Impact Development (LID) Center for securing contracts with subject area experts and for providing contract management and technical oversight of these consultants. The scope of work for these funds will include the development of a methodology that municipalities can use. to determine their landscape-specific hydromodification control 'criteria. The scope of work will also include preparation of the preliminary engineering and geomorphologic analyses required to determine the hydromodification control criteria. Water Board and LID Center staff will provide more detailed information regarding the scope of work for this first phase of the Joint Effort to participating municipalities via meetings in early November. During the second year of the Joint Effort, each municipality will apply the methodology to determine its landscape-specific hydromodification control criteria. Most critically, the Joint Effort includes an implementation strategy to ensure successful use of LID and effective controls on hydromodification. Water Board staff has designed the requirements of the implementation strategy to be consistent with municipalities' existing SWMP requirements. For example, as with current requirements for interim criteria, municipalities participating in the Joint Effort must develop applicability thresholds to determine to which projects the new criteria will apply. Also similar to current requirements, the Joint Effort requires municipalities to develop enforceable mechanisms for implementing hydromodification controls in new and redevelopment projects. The Joint Effort also requires guidance and training for those enforcing, and those subject to, requirements for hydromodification control and LID. The Joint Effort implementation strategy can also serve to initiate municipalities' compliance with SWMP requirements for long-term watershed protection, since the implementation strategy and long-term watershed protection are both based on a foundation of enforceable mechanisms, quantifiable measures, and adequate guidance and training for those enforcing, and those subject to requirements. The necessary steps to implement LID and effective hydromodification were the focus of a series of charettes conducted this fall by Water Board staff and attended by 115 municipal stormwater stakeholders. The outcomes of these charettes include specific milestones that Water Board staff will establish as requirements for the participating municipalities to complete throughout the two-year Joint Effort to prepare for successful implementation. (See Attachment 1: Best Management Practices for Joint Effort Participants). The language of the milestones provides municipalities with flexibility to implement their programs in a manner that works for them, while also helping to provide assurance that municipalities will implement effective programs. PROCESS FOR THE JOINT EFFORT Terms of Participation Summary This letter is intended to solicit participation in the Joint Effort and to make clear the terms of participation. The terms of participation include a municipality agreeing to: 1) work with a consultant team to ensure that accurate information about local hydrologic conditions is used in developing the methodology during the first phase of the project, and 2) develop final California Environmental Protection Agency Recycled Paper /p Attachment «First_Name» -3- October 20, 2009 hydromodification control criteria, and 3) execute a strategy to implement hydromodification controls and LID. Municipalities will "participate" in the Joint Effort by taking specific actions that will be codified in changes to SWMPs. For those choosing to participate, the Water Board staff requires a written declaration of the municipality's intent to meet the terms of participation. A template Declaration Form is attached to facilitate a municipality's agreeing to the terms and notifying the Water Board (Enclosure). To allow the consultants to efficiently schedule their work, Water Board staff requires that each municipality choosing to participate indicate its intentions by sending a completed Declaration Form to the Water Board by November 30, 2009. Process and Schedule for Amending SWMPs Each municipality participating in the Joint Effort must amend their SWMPs to include the Best Management Practices (BMPs) in Attachment 1, and remove and/or revise existing SWMP language that duplicates or conflicts with the language in the new BMPs. For example, existing BMPs for developing interim hydromodification control criteria in one year would be removed and replaced with the BMP to develop criteria in two years. The process and schedule for amending the SWMPs is as follows: Water Board staff will assist municipalities in amending their January 4-21, 2010 SWMPs. Prior to the month of January, Water Board staff will contact municipality representatives to schedule meetings. January 29, 2010 Municipalities must submit a copy of amended SWMP pages (in track changes) to the Water Board. Water Board staff will review the revised SWMP pages to verify that February 1-9, 2010 the revisions have been correctly incorporated and will notify the municipality of any additional necessaryrevisions. February 19, 2010 Municipalities must re-submit a final version of their SWMPs in word format and portable document format (pdf). February 22-26, 2010 Water Board Executive Officer sends letters to municipalities approving SWMP revisions. The cities of Santa Maria, Lompoc, and Santa Barbara have existing BMPs requiring them to submit interim hydromodification control criteria before January 29, 2010. Should these cities choose to participate in the Joint Effort, they must amend their SWMPs to incorporate the Joint Effort BMPs and submit their amended SWMPs by their Year 1 Annual Report submittal date, or January 29, 2010, whichever date comes sooner. The time periods for review, revision, and approval of the updated SWMPs for these cities will match the time periods described above (one week for Water Board staff review, one week for municipality revision and re-submittal, and one week for Water Board Executive Officer approval). Water Board staff will identify specific dates for each of these cities following receipt of their Declaration Form. Best Management Practices Participants in the Joint Effort will develop the capacity to implement hydromodification control and LID based on a foundation of enforceable mechanisms, numeric performance standards and applicability criteria, and adequate guidance and training for those enforcing, and those subject to requirements. As participants build this foundation, they will also promote LID in California Environmental Protection Agency Recycled Paper CS-r ' Attache aFirst_Name)) -4- October 20, 2009 projects subject to their approval. The BMPs included in Attachment 1 codify the steps to building this foundation, and municipalities participating in the Joint Effort will amend their SWMPs to incorporate these BMPs. Attachment 1 also provides context for the BMPs.and reflects the input of municipal stormwater stakeholders in the Central.Coast Region. Schedule for Completing BMPs and Measurable Goals Several of the Measurable Goals are dependent on the completion of earlier milestones. The schedule for completing the Measurable Goals is therefore based on the presumption that these milestones stay on track, e.g., methodology is developed in the first year; Water Board staff vets and recommends LID guidance manuals for use by municipalities in the second quarter; the Central Coast LID Center provides assistance on municipal code revisions in the second quarter. As the Joint Effort progresses, Water Board staff will evaluate scheduling conflicts resulting from circumstances beyond the control of participating municipalities and make necessary adjustments. FACTORS TO CONSIDER IN DECIDING WHETHER TO PARTICIPATE IN THE JOINT EFFORT The Phase II Municipal General Permit's Minimum Control Measure for Post-Construction Stormwater Management "requires long-term post-construction BMPs that protect water quality and control runoff flow, to be incorporated into development and significant redevelopment projects." The Joint Effort represents the Water Board staff's responsiveness to the challenges faced by municipalities in achieving compliance with this requirement, and it is a strategy that improves the likelihood of success in establishing effective post-construction stormwater controls. In deciding whether to participate in the Joint Effort, municipalities must consider whether compliance with this Permit requirement is more achievable and effective through participation in the Joint Effort, or through implementation of the existing BMPs in their SWMPs. Advantages of Participation Specific advantages of participation to consider are that the Joint Effort:. • Focuses on reasonable scientifically based techniques with clear outcomes • Provides State funding for the initial part of the technical work ($600K) • Dispenses with Interim Criteria, due in one-year, and focuses on more robust, final criteria • Ensures better consistency in the outcomes for Phase II communities; both technical and regulatory • Provides greater certainty for the development community of what is required and the basis for those requirements • Addresses the unique conditions of each community; one methodology—differing criteria • Provides multiple benefits of working with others on the same schedule (saves costs and time) • Allows municipalities to focus on their strengths (process and implementation), and delegates the highly technical, scientific work to subject area experts Cost Factors The cost of compliance with the SWMP post-construction stormwater requirements will vary depending on each municipalities' unique conditions, including size, growth rate, and current capacity to implement BMPs. In deciding whether to participate in the Joint Effort, the relevant question with respect to costs is whether compliance with post-construction requirements could California Environmental Protection Agency Recycled Paper cs-9 Attachment _ «First_Namep ; 5- October 20, 2009 be achieved more affordably through the Joint Effort or through existing SWMP requirements. The cost factors to consider in evaluating that question are both direct cost factors, and risk related cost factors. For example: Development of Criteria, Applicability Thresholds, and Enforceable Mechanisms Direct Cost Factors • Direct cost savings of Joint Effort: The Joint Effort provides State funding for developing a methodology and for compiling the information for derivation of criteria ($600K). Risk Related Cost Factors • Establishment of long-term criteria necessitates at least the same level of effort as the Joint Effort (possibly more because individual municipalities will have to contract, coordinate, review and integrate products on their own). In addition to the cost of long term criteria, each municipality must also pay for establishment and use of interim criteria. • A Joint Effort to develop a single set of hydromodification control criteria, enforceable mechanisms, and applicability thresholds in a period of two years, should be more cost effective than developing Interim Criteria, enforceable mechanisms, and applicability thresholds in one year, then Long-Term Criteria in two to four years (existing requirements) for the following reasons: - Municipalities will likely incur additional costs to develop and then replace Interim Criteria with Long-Term Criteria; these costs may accrue when making changes to enforceable mechanisms as well as guidance and training to implement the Long-Term Criteria. - Changing requirements twice in a few years will introduce complications for project applicants requiring additional resources by municipal staff for project review and approval. - Adopting Interim Criteria that do not fully reflect local hydrologic conditions may introduce unnecessary costs for developers and municipalities. This has been the case in some jurisdictions that applied controls developed for other regions only to repeal the requirements once they were determined to be unnecessary. • At this time costs to an individual municipality for development of acceptable Long-Term Criteria under existing requirements can not be estimated with any more certainty than costs of deriving criteria from the methodology developed through the Joint Effort. Implementation Strategy Direct Cost Factors: • Direct cost savings of Joint Effort: Potential savings in time and money should be realized for Joint Effort participants due to the multiple benefits of working with others on the same schedule and receiving implementation assistance from the Central Coast LID Center. • Through the Joint Effort, municipalities will be able to focus their resources on the implementation strategy, and delegate the highly technical, scientific work to subject area experts funded by the State. Risk Related Cost Factors The Water Board evaluates compliance with General Permit post-construction stormwater requirements based on the Maximum Extent Practicable standard. Participants in the.Joint Effort could be at a potential advantage by helping determine how the Water Board defines this dynamic standard. For example, participants in the Joint Effort will likely undergo a streamlined review process of their implementation measures and hydromodification criteria, since the measures and criteria will be developed through collective municipality involvement and close. Water Board staff participation. Municipalities not participating in the Joint Effort, on the other hand, may California Environmental Protection Agency Recycled Paper CS'�� Attachment «First_Namen -6- October 20, 2009 incur additional costs while undergoing the Water Board staff review process when they must individually demonstrate equivalent effort and effectiveness of their implementation measures and hydromodification criteria. Municipalities' Role in Developing Methodology for Hydromodification Control Criteria Municipalities will have the opportunity to review the draft methodology and provide comments to Water Board staff before Water Board staff approves a final methodology for application in municipalities throughout the Central Coast Region. Municipal staff will also work directly with the project consultants to ensure that accurate information about local hydrologic conditions is used in developing the methodology during the first phase of the project. Water Board staff will also provide stakeholders with status reports on the progress of the Joint Effort throughout the Region via websites and other methods of communication. Project consultants will provide more detailed information regarding the scope of work for developing the methodology in a series of meetings in the northern, central, and southern portions of the Central Coast Region. These meetings will communicate the purpose, scope, goals and objectives of the tasks for developing the methodology to municipalities, the engineering/development community, and/or other stakeholders. The meetings will also initiate interaction between municipalities and the consultant team who will be working together (along with Water Board staff) to ensure success on this project. The presentations are currently anticipated for the week of November 16`h, prior to the due date for submittal of the Declaration Form. Water Board staff will send notices with meeting locations and times to participating municipalities and interested stakeholders when they become available. Implementation Assistance Available The Water Board established a Low Impact Development Endowment Fund (LID Fund) in 2008 to fund the services of the Central Coast LID Center. The Central Coast LID Center 2009-2010 Work Plan includes tasks for providing assistance that directly supports municipalities' implementation of Joint Effort BMPs. These tasks include: • Assist municipalities in obtaining funding and resources to conduct analysis and revisions to municipal code. This includes implementation of a small grant program, and training for municipalities on how to integrate LID into codes. Funds for the small grant program will come from the LID Fund. • Provide sample LID ordinances that MS4s can incorporate into their local regulatory framework. • Provide LID Technical Optimization Guidance: Assist new and redevelopment project stakeholders in determining whether they have made adequate effort to incorporate LID into their site designs. • Provide an education tool that municipal stormwater program staff can use to understand and communicate what is involved in the development of Applicability Thresholds. • Work with the Water Board staff and municipalities to identify acceptable LID BMP manuals that can be used for BMP design and hydrologic analysis. • Launch the Virtual LID Center website, in partnership with the California Stormwater Quality Association, to provide information on LID and its implementation. Water Board staff anticipates the Central Coast LID Center work plan for 2010-2011 will include additional tasks to support municipalities in the second year of the Joint Effort toward successful implementation of LID and hydromodification controls. California Environmental Protection Agency 10 Recycled Paper W/ 41 Attachment «First_Name" - 7- October 20, 2009 Opportunity to Address the Central Coast Water Board At any time, participants in the Joint Effort may elect to bring issues and concerns directly to the Central Coast Water Board. The first such opportunity will be the October 23, 2009 Water Board meeting in the City of Santa Barbara. A discussion of the status of the Joint Effort is included in the Executive Officer's Report for this meeting. See Item 21 on the meeting agenda at: http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/centralcoast/board_info/ NOTIFICATION OF DECLARATION TO PARTICIPATE IN THE JOINT EFFORT Please return the attached Declaration Form to indicate your intention to participate in the Joint Effort by November 30, 2009. If you have any questions regarding this letter, please contact Dominic Roques, at dro4ues0waterboards.ca.gov or at (805) 542-4780, or Phillip Hammer at Phammer@waterboards.ca.gov or at (805) 549-3882. Also, please visit our website for helpful documents about the Joint Effort under the banner, "Announcements" see at: http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/centralcoast/ Sincerely, Roger W. Briggs Executive Officer cc: Interested Parties List Attachment 1: Best Management Practices for Joint Effort Participants Enclosure: Declaration Form SAStormwater\_Stormwater Program\_Municipal Program\Phase II\Hydromod Criteria\Joint EffortWoint Effort Particip Ltr Final.doc California Environmental Protection Agency ,� Recycled Paper Attachment 1 Attachment 1 Attachment 1: Best Management Practices for Joint Effort Participants Joint Effort participants must amend their SWMPs to include the BMPs in Table 1, and remove and/or revise existing SWMP language that duplicates or conflicts with the language in the new BMPs. The following provides a description of the schedule, intent, and scope of the BMPs in Table 1. Enforceable Mechanisms: Municipal Codes Municipalities shape land use development through planning that in turn relies on codes, regulations, standards and other enforceable mechanisms applied to projects throughout the review and approval process. To effectively implement hydromodification controls and LID, municipalities will need to develop and/or modify these enforceable mechanisms. To accomplish this, the first step is to analyze all applicable codes, regulations, standards, and/or specifications to identify changes needed to implement hydromodification controls and LID. Once identified, making the necessary changes requires direct involvement by the various municipal officials responsible for enforcing different parts of the municipal codes. For these officials, outreach and education about the stormwater management objectives of code changes will be essential to establish effective code to implement LID and hydromodification controls. Finally, municipalities must follow their approval process for code revisions. Therefore, Joint Effort participants have two full years to approve new and/or modified codes and regulations. Though final hydromodification control criteria may not be available until the end of the two-year period, municipalities can work toward adoption of ordinances prior to their availability. Several Central Coast stormwater entities have adopted stormwater ordinances in advance of having specific post-construction criteria by incorporating by reference a companion document that will, at a future date, include such criteria. Water Board staff will re-evaluate the timing of ordinance adoption after the first year of the Joint Effort. Hydromodification Control Criteria Participating municipalities will have two years and technical assistance in developing hydromodification control criteria. In the first year, the Water Board will pay consultants to develop a methodology and compile information necessary to derive criteria. Municipalities will need to coordinate with the consultant team as it develops the methodology to ensure that the resulting methodology addresses local hydrologic conditions. Municipalities will have the opportunity to review the methodology and provide comments to the Water Board before it adopts the methodology for application in the Central Coast Region. In the second year of the Joint Effort, municipalities will apply the methodology to derive criteria suited to their hydrologic and watershed conditions. Measurable Goals for this BMP include producing hydromodification control criteria by the end of the two-year Joint Effort, and application of the criteria by the end of the following quarter. Applicability Thresholds Applicability Thresholds are the specific conditions that determine whether a development project is subject to hydromodification controls. As with current SWMP requirements for preparing Applicability Thresholds (or Criteria), municipalities participating in the Joint Effort must compile and analyze information on the scale, type and potential for new and redevelopment. Then, once hydromodification control criteria become available, municipalities can evaluate the criteria relative to their development patterns and potential, and derive appropriate Applicability Thresholds that will be consistent with long-term watershed protection goals. They must be complete by the end of the two-year Joint Effort period — a schedule that California Environmental Protection Agency Recycled Paper Attachment 2 Attachment 1 allows for the simultaneous development of hydromodification control criteria and Applicability Thresholds with optimal cross communication to ensure a cohesive product. The Central Coast LID Center will provide education and assistance to municipalities for developing Applicability Thresholds as part of the Joint Effort. Charette participants also gave examples of some specific steps and possible schedules (quarters, 'Q,' when completed) for completing the Applicability Threshold BMP. These include: • Research existing criteria from other guidance manuals to determine if it can be used (Q1) • Identify historical project scale data (i.e., square footage areas of green space and impervious cover) to determine municipal growth, development, and redevelopment patterns • Complete an existing parcel inventory and review General Plan for planned growth to determine what types of projects are coming (Q1 to Q-4) • Compile, review, summarize statistics of current development trends and future development sites (01 to Q-4) • Match hydromodification control criteria against future projects to establish thresholds (Q5 08) Implementation Strategy for LID and Hvdromodification Control This BMP requires the municipality to develop and enact a strategy for implementing LID and hydromodification control for new and redevelopment projects. The strategy will provide appropriate education and outreach for all applicable target audiences, and will include specific guidance for LID BMP design and for complying with hydromodification control criteria. The strategy will also apply LID principles and features to new and redevelopment projects during the two-year period preceding adoption of hydromodification control criteria. The following Measurable Goals are specific milestones for completing this BMP. Guidance LID BMP Design Guidance This Measurable Goal requires the municipality to develop, advertise and make available LID BMP Design Guidance suitable for all stakeholders by the end of the first year of the Joint Effort. To assist municipalities in completing this BMP-, the Central Coast LID Center will recommend existing BMP manuals that provide appropriate guidance for municipal staff and project applicants. Municipalities will need to tailor the guidance for their local circumstances, possibly emphasizing different BMPs based on local conditions and development patterns. However, early identification of appropriate LID guidance will support the related Measurable Goal of interim LID implementation (see below). Hydrologic Analysis Guidance This Measurable Goal requires the municipality to develop specific guidance on how to meet. and demonstrate compliance with new hydromodification control criteria and LID requirements; and to make the guidance available to new and redevelopment project applicants by the end of the Joint Effort. Water Board staff supports developing hydrologic analysis guidance which provide developers a simple and clear path to use to comply with hydromodification control criteria. We also recognize that guidance cannot be finalized until the specific hydromodification control criteria are known; therefore the guidance is not required to be complete until the end of the Joint Effort.. Water Board staff recognizes municipalities will need to be strategic in integrating hydromodification control criteria, applicability thresholds, and hydrologic analysis guidance during the second year of the Joint Effort. Staff finds that the schedule for completion of these Measurable Goals by the end of the two-year period will promote the necessary integration and California Environmental Protection Agency Recycled Paper Attachment 3 Attachment 1 is an appropriate target. Central Coast LID Center assistance for implementation will also be provided throughout the Joint Effort. Examples of helpful guidance were provided by charette participants, and include: • Checklists for BMP applicability • Guidelines, standard conditions of approval, required documentation • Decision-making process, checklists, decision tree for development process • Site specific options for developers • Identify what BMPs/LID techniques are applicable • Example calculations using hydromodification control criteria • BMP sizing factors for achieving hydromodification criteria • Client Assistance Memos for specific designs, e.g., parking lots • Standards and stock conditions of approval for plans • Pre-construction field meetings and pamphlets; training for maintenance; train people on requirements (updates to codes and standards) Education and Outreach Municipalities participating in the Joint Effort have considerable flexibility in designing and conducting education and outreach to support implementation of LID and hydromodification requirements. However, this Measurable Goal requires them to document goals, schedules, and target audiences for education and outreach for the following strategic objectives: enforceable mechanisms, hydromodification control criteria, applicability thresholds, LID BMP design, and compliance with LID and hydromodification control criteria. Documentation will be through a Tracking Report indicating the municipality's accomplishments in education and outreach supporting these objectives. The Central Coast LID Center will provide education and outreach assistance for the following objectives: municipal code analysis and revision, Applicability Thresholds, and LID BMP design guidance. This assistance may include training modules that can be used by municipalities in their education and outreach effort. Additionally, charette participants suggested a variety of goals for education and outreach, including: • Plan and establish training program; create credential programs • Conduct outreach to internal stakeholders for municipal code revisions • Conduct outreach and education on hydromodification control criteria • Attend training, if available, on fundamentals of developing Applicability Thresholds • Conduct outreach for Establishing Applicability Thresholds - Hold a workshop with development community for input on what implementations are cost-effective and feasible • Conduct outreach for Interim LID Implementation to development community, planning commission, city council, and staff • Implement LID Capital Improvement Pilot Projects and demonstrations Interim Implementation While several municipalities in the Central Coast Region have successfully integrated LID into development projects, it remains challenging to do so for most projects in most municipalities, since the municipalities typically lack a clear process and adequate guidance for their staff and the development community. The measurable goal for Interim LID Implementation requires municipalities to identify applicable projects and apply LID principles and features during the two-year period that precedes the availability of enforceable mechanisms for LID. Municipalities will have flexibility in defining applicable projects, but they will also be required to track and report on their effectiveness in requiring implementation of LID during this interim period. California Environmental Protection Agency Recycled Paper U/5//J _ Attachment 4 Attachment 1 A significant challenge for municipalities currently is the fragmented development review and permitting process. One possible measure to address this challenge is to select and disseminate LID guidance among the multiple units within municipal government to ensure more awareness among staff in these units and consistency in the specific requirements they impose on development projects. The Central Coast LID Center will recommend LID manuals in the second quarter of the Joint Effort that could serve as appropriate guidance for interim LID implementation. Municipalities' experience with requiring LID over the two-year period will facilitate a smooth transition toward the enforceable requirements that come at the end of the Joint Effort. Table 1: Best Management Practices and Measurable Goals for Joint Effort Partici ants BMP Measurable Goals Schedule* Quarters Enforceable Mechanisms Develop and/or modify enforceable An analysis of all applicable codes, Q2 mechanisms that will effectively regulations, standards, and/or implement hydromodification controls specifications that identifies and LID. Enforceable mechanisms modifications and/or additions may include municipal codes; necessary to effectively implement regulations, standards, and hydromodification controls and LID specifications.. Approved new and/or modified 08 enforceable mechanisms that effectively resolve regulatory conflicts and implement hydromodification controls and LID in new and redevelopment projects Apply new and/or modified enforceable Q9 mechanisms to all applicable new and redevelopment projects Hydromodification Control Criteria Derive municipality-specific criteria for Hydromodification Control Criteria 08 controlling hydromodification in new and redevelopment projects using Water Board-approved methodology developed through the Joint Effort. Applicability Thresholds Select Applicability Thresholds for Applicability Thresholds Q8 applying Hydromodification Control Criteria to new and redevelopment projects. Applicability thresholds will be consistent with long-term watershed protection. California Environmental Protection Agency 40 Recycled Paper Attachment 5 Attachment 1 Implementation Strategy for LID and Guidance Hydromodification Control 1. Develop, advertise and make Q4 Develop and enact a strategy for available LID BMP Design Guidance implementing LID and suitable for all stakeholders hydromodification control for new and 2. Specific guidance on how to achieve Q8 redevelopment projects. The strategy and demonstrate compliance with will provide appropriate education and the hydromodification control criteria outreach for all applicable target and LID requirements made audiences, and will include specific available to new and redevelopment guidance for LID BMP design and for project applicants complying with hydromodification Education and Outreach control criteria. The strategy will also 1. Documentation of goals, schedules, Q2 apply LID principles and features to and target audiences for education new and redevelopment projects during and outreach the municipality will the two-year period preceding adoption conduct in support of the following of hydromodification control criteria. strategic objectives: enforceable mechanisms, hydromodification control criteria, applicability thresholds, LID BMP design, and compliance with LID and hydromodification control criteria 2. Tracking Report indicating Q8 municipality's accomplishments in education and outreach supporting implementation of LID and hydromodification control for new and redevelopment projects Interim LID Implementation 1. Apply LID principles and features to Q2-8 all applicable new and redevelopment projects. 2. Tracking Report, for the period Q2 to Q9 Q8, identifying LID design principles and features incorporated into each applicable new and redevelopment project The schedule refers to the eight quarters of the two-year Joint Effort and the first quarter following. Quarter 1 will begin November 1, 2009 with commencement of the Joint Effort. YEAR 1 Q1 = Nov 1, 2009 - Jan 31, 2010 02= Feb 1, 2010 - April 30, 2010 03 = May 1, 2010 -July 31, 2010 Q4= Aug 1, 2010 - Oct 30, 2010 YEAR 2 Q5= Nov 1, 2010 -Jan 31, 2011 Q6 = Feb 1, 2011 -April 30, 2011 California Environmental Protection Agency Recycled Paper Attachment 6 Attachment 1 Q7= May 1, 2011 -July 31, 2011 08 = Aug 1, 2011 - Oct 30, 2011 YEAR 3 09 = Nov 1, 2011 - Jan 31, 2012 Based on this schedule, Measurable Goals for a municipality participating in the Joint Effort must be completed by: April 30, 2010, October 30, 2010, October 30, 2011, and January 31, 2012. This last date is the date by which the municipality needs to be implementing their post- construction controls on all applicable new and redevelopment projects. Reporting on completion of all BMPs will be included in the municipalities' Annual Reports. California Environmental Protection Agency Recycled Paper J Attachment DECLARATION FORM DATE: TO: Central Coast Water Quality Control Board 895 Aerovista Place, Suite 101 San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 ATTENTION: Dominic Roques DECLARATION TO PARTICIPATE IN THE JOINT EFFORT FOR DEVELOPING HYDROMODIFICATION CONTROL CRITERIA IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE MUNICIPAL STORMWATER PERMIT Municipality/Permittee Name: I understand the terms of participating in the Central Coast Joint Effort for Developing Hydromodification as explained in the Central Coast Water Quality Control Board's October 20, 2009 letter. This correspondence serves as a declaration of the intention of the municipality listed above to participate in the Joint Effort. Print Name Signature