Climate change resolution adopted by State Water Resources Control Board

Responding to AB 32, the landmark climate change law adopted in 2006, the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) has adopted a resolution requiring a proactive approach to climate change in all Board actions, including drinking water regulation, water quality protection, and financial assistance. The Board’s action earlier this week builds on a resolution adopted by the Board in 2007, which set forth initial actions it should take regarding climate change and to support the implementation of AB 32.

Both the State and Regional Water Boards have taken a variety of actions to respond to the impact of climate change including funding the expansion of recycled water to increase drought resilience, adopting regulations to increase the collection of urban stormwater, and reducing flood risk and enhancing water supply. These efforts have been in addition to the Brown administration developed California Action Plan, the state’s blueprint for achieving more sustainable water management by improving water supply reliability, restoring important wildlife and habitat, and making the state’s water systems and environment more resilient.

“Today’s Board action is part of California’s continuing leadership on climate change,” said State Water Board Vice-Chair Fran Spivy-Weber, and co-chair of the Brown administration’s water-energy team of the Climate Action Team (WET-CAT). “As our dramatic swing from severe drought to record-setting precipitation shows, we are already experiencing the impacts of more extreme weather, and face significant challenges to improve the resiliency of our water systems, from our dams to our groundwater basins.

The Water Board, along with input and actions from the Los Angeles Regional Board, are also implementing legislative mandates to strengthen climate change resilience, including the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, which will bring depleted groundwater basins into balance to provide a buffer against future droughts.

The new SWRCB resolution directives call for tracking and reporting on actions to reduce greenhouse gases, coordination with internal and external stakeholders to account for climate change, and for the eventual development of recommendations for specific, enforceable actions. The directives specify required collaboration with the California Air Resources Board and other agencies to reduce methane emissions from landfills, feedlots, and wastewater treatment plants, as part of the state’s goal of reducing short-lived climate pollutants.

To increase regulatory consistency, the new resolution requires staff to use climate change policy guidance from other agencies (i.e. staff must use guidance from the California Coastal Commission and Ocean Protection Council for decisions relating to coastal infrastructure protection.) Additionally, State Water Board staff will now be required to use current models and data to inform proposed Board actions. State regulators will no longer be able to rely solely on historical data to guide decisions regarding climate change.

“The Water Boards have a critical role to play because our programs range across water conservation, recycling, stormwater management, groundwater management, and surface water allocation. We can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, protect our infrastructure and our ecosystems,” said Spivy-Weber.