Chapter 12.2. San Joaquin Valley Agricultural Drain of California Water Code >> Division 7. >> Chapter 12.2.

There shall be no discharge from a San Joaquin Valley agricultural drain to the Delta, Suisun Bay, or Carquinez Straits until the requirements of this division and the Federal Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. Sec. 1251 et seq.) are satisfied.

There shall be no discharge from a San Joaquin Valley drain into Monterey Bay or tributaries draining into Monterey Bay.

If a San Joaquin Valley agricultural drain, including the drainage facility authorized as part of the San Luis Unit of the federal Central Valley Project, is constructed and discharges to the Delta, Suisun Bay, or Carquinez Straits, the state board shall permit the discharge pursuant to this division only if the state board finds that the following additional requirements are satisfied:
  (a) The discharge of the drain, which is to carry only subsurface agricultural drainage effluent, shall be located and shall discharge at rates of flow to protect the beneficial uses of the Delta, Suisun Marsh, and the bays westerly to the Golden Gate. If it is determined to be in the public interest to provide a substitute water supply to water users in lieu of modifying the operation or changing the discharge point of the drain, no added financial burden shall be placed on the water users solely by virtue of that substitution.
  (b) The drainage facility shall include built-in operational flexibility, control, and treatment to protect the beneficial uses of the Delta, Suisun Marsh, and the bays westerly to the Golden Gate.
  (c) There is established an acceptable comprehensive monitoring program prior to and during the operation of the drain to determine the impact of the discharge effluent, if any, on the Delta, Suisun Marsh, and the bays westerly to the Golden Gate.
  (d) A program has been developed, funded, and initiated to evaluate the feasibility of using drain water to establish wetland habitat capable of producing wintering waterfowl food supplies.
  (e) The repayment schedule for the drain takes into account the following:
  (1) The quantity of effluent discharged into the drain by the discharger.
  (2) The concentration of salts in the effluent of the discharger.
  (3) The distance the effluent of the discharger is carried in the drain.
  (4) The quantity of water applied in the areas contributing to the drainage problem.
  (f) There is an enforceable provision in the permit that any surface or subsurface effluent leakage shall be confined within the drainage facility right-of-way, and that in the event that this condition is violated the drainage facility shall not be operated until the leakage is stopped.
  (g) The alignment of the drainage facility, to the extent feasible, shall be designed to minimize severance and access problems to land, roadways, and other facilities along the right-of-way.

Subsurface drainage effluent may be made available for any beneficial uses for which it is suitable, including, but not limited to, industrial uses, powerplant cooling, energy development, enhancement of fish and wildlife resources, and irrigation. These programs may reduce the demands for new fresh water supplies.

It is the intent of the Legislature that, to the extent feasible, features for the enhancement of fish and wildlife resources shall be incorporated into the drain. The state's participation in the drain shall be subject to the Davis-Dolwig Act (Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 11900) of Part 3 of Division 10).