ITEM:

ACTION ITEM

 

14.

CONSIDER APPROVAL OF ITEMS RELATED TO INTEGRATED REGIONAL WATER MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

 

A.

APPROVE REVISED MOU FOR INTEGRATED REGIONAL WATER MANAGEMENT IN THE MONTEREY PENINSULA, CARMEL BAY AND SOUTH MONTEREY BAY

 

B.

AUTHORIZE EXECUTION OF MOA FOR INTEGRATED REGIONAL WATER MANAGEMENT PLANNING AND FUNDING IN THE CENTRAL COAST REGION

 

C.

AUTHORIZE EXPENDITURE FOR ASSISTANCE WITH PROPOSITION 1 GRANT PROGRAM COORDINATION

 

Meeting Date:
April 18, 2016

Budgeted: 

N/A

 

From:

David J. Stoldt,

Program/

2-6-1-B

 

General Manager

Line Item No.:    

Prop. 1 Coordination

 

Prepared By:

Larry Hampson

Cost Estimate:

$25,000

 

General Counsel Review:  N/A

Committee Recommendation:  The Water Supply Planning Committee reviewed this item on April 8, 2016 and recommended approval.  The Administrative Committee reviewed this item on April 11, 2016 and recommended approval.

CEQA Compliance:  Exempt under CEQA Section 15262

 

SUMMARY:  In 2014, voters approved the $7 billion Proposition 1, a portion of which authorized $43 million in competitive grants for Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) projects in the six Central Coast IRWM regions. Funding is administered by the Department of Water Resources (DWR).  The Central Coast IRWM regions have tentatively agreed to a funding area allocation that requires a local entity from each planning region to execute a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on behalf of each region (see attached Exhibit 14-A).  The amount allocated to the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Bay, and Southern Monterey Bay (Monterey Peninsula) region is proposed to be $4.3 million.  The District has represented the Monterey Peninsula region in negotiating a funding area agreement.

 

Recently, the Regional Water Management Group (RWMG) formed to implement the Monterey Peninsula IRWM Plan requested that the City of Seaside consider becoming part of the group.  A copy of the draft amended MOU to add the City of Seaside to the RWMG and authorize the General Manager to execute a MOA among the Central Coast IRWM regions is attached as Exhibit 14-B. 

 

Due to staff workload, Gutierrez Consultants were contacted and have agreed to provide services to coordinate the Monterey Peninsula region efforts to secure funding from Proposition 1.  Staff is requesting approval of $25,000 for these services.  A rate sheet is provided in Exhibit 14-C.

 

RECOMMENDATION:  With this recommendation, the General Manager would be authorized to:

 

A)    Make minor or non-substantive modifications to the RWMG Memorandum of Understanding presented to the Board (Exhibit 14-A, attached), in order to accommodate requests made by the Regional Water Management Group entities prior to signing the MOU or to delete references to entities  that may decline to participate in amending the MOU; and

 

B)    Execute on behalf of the Monterey Peninsula region the Memorandum of Agreement for Central Coast IRWM planning and funding presented to the Board (Exhibit 14-B, attached);

 

C)    Enter into a contract with Gutierrez Consultants, Inc. for assistance with Proposition 1 grant program coordination for an amount Not-to-Exceed $25,000.

 

District staff recommends approval of the above actions.

 

BACKGROUND:  Proposition 50, the Water Security, Clean Drinking Water, Coastal and Beach Protection Act of 2002, was passed by California voters in November 2002.  It amended the California Water Code (CWC) to add, among other articles, Section 79560 et seq., authorizing the Legislature to appropriate $500 million for Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) projects.   Propositions 84 and 1E, which were passed in 2006, authorized more than $2 billion Statewide and provided grant funding through a performance-based competitive program for water resource related projects. Proposition 1, passed in 2014, is known as the Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2014 (Water Code, Sections 79700 - 79798) (Act), and authorized the Legislature to appropriate funding for competitive grants for Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) projects. Funding of $43 million for grants will be administered by the Department of Water Resources (DWR). 

 

The intent of the IRWM Grant Program is to encourage integrated regional strategies for management of water resources and to provide funding, through competitive grants, for projects that protect communities from drought, protect and improve water quality, and improve local water security by reducing dependence on imported water.  The IRWM Grant Program is administered by DWR and is intended to promote a new model for water management.  One of the goals of the IRWM Grant Program is to encourage communities to work on synergistic approaches to solving regional water supply and environmental quality problems.

 

In 2007, MPWMD helped form a Regional Water Management Group (RWMG) to implement the IRWM Plan with other local agencies that have regional responsibilities for water resources management.  The group has been expanded to include the Big Sur Land Trust (BSLT), the City of Monterey, the Monterey Regional Water Pollution Control Agency (MRWPCA), the Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA), the Marina Coast Water District, the Resource Conservation District of Monterey County, and MPWMD.  Recently, the RWMG asked the City of Seaside to join the RWMG.

 

The following milestones have been completed:

 

·         2005 – MPWMD defined a geographic planning area, or Region, and began developing an IRWMP that encompasses the groundwater basins and watersheds of the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Bay and South Monterey Bay.  The Region includes the six Monterey Peninsula Cities, portions of the unincorporated area of Monterey County in the Carmel Highlands, Pebble Beach, and the inland areas of Carmel Valley and the Laguna Seca area.

·         2006 – Department of Water Resources (DWR) awarded a grant of $497,000 to MPWMD to complete an IRWM Plan for the Region.

·         November 2007 – MPWMD adopted an IRWM Plan for the region.

·         August 2008 - the RWMG was formed to provide an institutional structure to guide the implementation of the IRWM Plan.  The RWMG has been expanded to include the Big Sur Land Trust (BSLT), the City of Monterey, the Monterey Regional Water Pollution Control Agency (MRWPCA), the Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA), Marina Coast Water District (MCWD), the Resource Conservation District of Monterey County (RCDMC), and MPWMD

·         2009 – MPWMD coordinated the RWMG group’s effort to successful complete the Regional Acceptance Process conducted by DWR to permanently establish the Monterey Peninsula planning region.

·         2011 – DWR awarded a $995,000 grant to MPWMD to update the IRWM Plan to Proposition 84 standards and to complete nine planning projects around the region.

·         2010 to 2012 – representatives from each of the seven agencies in the expanded RWMG developed and agreed to a set of principles to guide the update and implementation of the IRWM Plan.

·         2014 – the MPWMD formally adopted the updated IRWM Plan in June 2014. 

·         2015 – the City of Seaside was contacted and requested to be on the RWMG

·         2015/16 – MPWMD worked with the Monterey Peninsula RWMG and other Central Coast RWMGs to negotiate a funding area allocation for Prop. 1 IRWM funds

 

A formally adopted IRWM Plan (IRWMP) is required by the State in order to be eligible to apply for funds to implement projects.  An IRWMP must comply with Proposition 1 standards and must address, at a minimum, water supply, groundwater management, ecosystem restoration, and water quality.  The State IRWM guidelines require efforts to maximize affected entities participation in drafting the plan.  Soliciting and incorporating input from the community is also a significant part of the consideration process.

 

The IRWMP is not a detailed plan for solving water management issues and implementing projects.  Rather, the IRWMP provides a framework for agencies, non-profit groups, for-profit corporations and other stakeholders with missions and responsibilities to work together on common water management strategies, objectives, goals and projects.   As such, the IRWMP takes into consideration the many plans and policies currently being implemented for water resource management, analyzes how these are interrelated and shows how projects and programs can have multiple benefits when grouped together.  However, the IRWMP does not bind any agency or group to carry out particular actions, policies, or projects.

 

MPWMD is the lead agency for IRWM planning for the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Bay, and South Monterey Bay.  The MOU formalized the collaborative planning effort that several local agencies had been involved in for several years, describes the process for completing and amending and also described the role of stakeholders in carrying out the Plan.  The RWMG initially executed the MOU in June 2008 and has subsequently amended the MOU several times. 

 

Additional work will be required to update the IRWM Plan to Proposition 1 standards.  In addition, 20% of IRWM funds are required to be expended on Disadvantaged Communities (DACs)[1].  On the Monterey Peninsula, portions of the Cities of Monterey and Seaside are considered DACs. A map showing Monterey Peninsula DACs is attached as Exhibit 14-D. Staff is requesting up to $25,000 to retain Gutierrez Consultants, Inc. for assistance with coordination among the Central Coast IRWM regions, outreach to DACs, preparation of initial assessments, and preparation of grant application materials for DAC projects. A rate sheet is attached as Exhibit 14-C.

 

STAFF/RESOURCE IMPACTS:  Section 6.16 of the MOU, Personnel resources, states “It is expected that the General Managers and/or other officials of each entity signatory to this MOU will periodically meet to insure that adequate staff resources are available to implement the IRWM Plan.”  Staff anticipates additional effort through at least the end of Fiscal Year 2017-18 to coordinate the completion and adoption of an updated IRWM Plan, work on a Stormwater Resource Management Plan, an application to the State in 2016 for Disadvantaged Community grant funds, and applications in 2017 or 2018 for IRWM Implementation Grant funds.  The District’s budget for FY 2015-16 included $25,000 for expenses for Proposition 1 coordination.  This was reduced to $0 at the mid-year budget adjustment; however, due to unfilled positions in the Planning and Engineering Department that are unlikely to change in FY 2015-16, staff now requests funds for assistance to carry out IRWM-related tasks.

 

EXHIBIT

14-A    Draft Amended Memorandum of Understanding for in the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Bay, and South Monterey Bay Area

14-B    Draft Memorandum of Agreement for Integrated Regional Water Management Planning and Funding in the Central Coast Funding Area

14-C    2016 Rate Sheet, Gutierrez Consultants, Inc.

14-D    Disadvantaged Communities Map for the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel Bay, and South Monterey Bay Area

 

 

 

 

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[1] Disadvantaged Community (DAC) – a community with an annual median household income that is less than 80 percent of the Statewide annual median household income (Water Code §79505.5).