San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary (Bay-Delta) Program

Draft Substitute Environmental Document in Support of Potential Changes to the Water Quality Control Plan for the Bay-Delta: san joaquin river flows and southern delta water quality

The State Water Board has released for public review and comment a draft Substitute Environmental Document (SED) in support of potential changes to San Joaquin River flow and southern Delta water quality objectives and program of implementation included in the Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary (Bay-Delta Plan).  The public notice and SED chapters and appendices are posted below.

Proposed changes to the Bay-Delta Plan include:

1. a new narrative February through June Lower San Joaquin River (LSJR) flow objective applicable to the salmon bearing tributaries to the LSJR (the LSJR, Merced, Tuolumne, and Stanislaus rivers) and an associated program of implementation to support and maintain the natural production of viable native LSJR watershed fish populations migrating through the Delta; and
2. revised numeric southern Delta salinity objectives and an associated program of implementation to protect agricultural beneficial uses in the southern Delta.

The SED and associated appendices were prepared in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act, the California Water Code and other applicable State and federal requirements and include an analysis of the expected environmental, water supply, economic, and hydropower effects of the LSJR flow and southern Delta salinity alternatives.  Written comments on the draft SED are due by noon on Friday, March 29, 2013. A hearing for receipt of oral comments is scheduled to begin on March 20, 2013. See the Notice of Filing and of Public Comment Period and Hearing on the Adequacy of the Draft Substitute Environmental Document for further details.

After receipt of comments, the State Water Board will make any needed changes to the SED and prepare written responses to comments along with a final draft SED and final draft changes to the Bay-Delta Plan for consideration by the State Water Board.  Changes to the Bay-Delta Plan must be approved by the State Water Board and the Office of Administrative Law before becoming effective.

For more information, please see the Bay-Delta Plan Update: San Joaquin River Flows and Southern Delta Water Quality Fact Sheet.

March 20-21, 2013 Hearing Transcripts – Mar 20  |  Mar 21

March 20-21, 2013 Hearing Speaker Presentations

Revised Order of Proceeding for March 20, 2013, Hearing.

• Message concerning oral comment time limits at the public hearing
  • Deadline to submit a request for more than 10 minutes of time to present oral comments at the hearing that begins on March 20, 2013, is Friday, March 1, 2013 (by 12 noon).
• Notice of Extension of Public Comment Period
  • Deadline to receive comments: March 29, 2013 (by 12 noon)
• Notice of Filing and of Public Comment Period and Hearing -
  • Deadline to receive comments: March 5, 2013 (by 12 noon) [extended]
• Executive Summary
• Title Page
• Table of Contents
• Chapters
  •  1 - Introduction
  •  2 - Water Resources [7MB]
  •  3 - Alternatives Description
  •  4 - Introduction to Analysis
  •  5 - Water Supply, Surface Hydrology, and Water Quality
  •  6 - Flooding, Sediment, and Erosion
  •  7 - Aquatic Resources
  •  8 - Terrestrial Biological Resources
  •  9 - Groundwater Resources
  • 10 - Recreational Resources and Visual Quality
  • 11 - Agricultural Resources
  • 12 - Cultural Resources
  • 13 - Service Providers
  • 14 - Energy Resources and Climate Change
  • 15 - LSJR Alternative 1 and SDWQ Alternative 1 (No Project Alternative)
  • 16 - Cumulative Impact Summary, Growth-Inducing Effects, and Irreversible Commitment of Resources
  • 17 - Summary of Impacts and Comparison of Alternatives
  • 18 - Economic Analyses
  • 19 - Antidegradation Analysis
  • 20 - Preferred LSJR Alternative and SDWQ Alternative
  • 21 - List of Preparers
• Appendices
  • A  - NOP Scoping and Other Public Meetings
  • B  - State Water Board's Environmental Checklist
  • C  - Technical Report on the Scientific Basis for Alternative San Joaquin River Flow and
    Southern Delta Salinity Objectives
  • D  - Evaluation of LSJR Alternative 1 and SDWQ Alternative 1 (No Project Alternative)
  • E  - Salt Tolerance of Crops in the Southern Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
  • F1 - Hydrologic and Water Quality Modeling [6.9MB]
  • F2 - Evaluation of Historical Flow and Salinity Measurements of the Lower San Joaquin
    River and Southern Delta [5.6MB]
  • G  - Agricultural Economic Effects of Lower San Joaquin River Flow Alternatives
  • H  - Evaluation of Methods of Compliance
  • I   - Cultural Resources Overview
  • J  - Hydropower and Electric Grid Analysis of Lower San Joaquin River Flow Alternatives
  • K  - Revised Water Quality Control Plan
  • L  - Sensitivity Analyses
• Modeling Tools (zip file) [15.7MB]

More Information

• For questions about the material presented on this web page, please contact:
  • Mark Gowdy at (916) 341-5432 or by email at Mark.Gowdy@waterboards.ca.gov
    OR
    
  • Larry Lindsay at (916) 341-5358 or by email at Larry.Lindsay@waterboards.ca.gov

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(Updated 4/25/13 11:16 AM )