Underground injection control: aquifer exemption.

The federal Safe Drinking Water Act regulates certain wells as Class II wells, as defined. Under existing federal law, the authority to regulate Class II wells in California is delegated to the Geologic Energy Management Division in the Department of Conservation. Under existing law, the division implements the Underground Injection Control Program pursuant to this federal delegation. The federal act prohibits certain well activities that affect underground sources of drinking water, unless those sources are located in an exempted aquifer. Existing federal law authorizes a state delegated with the responsibility of regulating Class II wells to propose that an aquifer or a portion of an aquifer be an exempted aquifer and authorizes the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) to approve the proposal if the aquifer or a portion of the aquifer meets certain criteria. Existing law requires the division, before proposing an aquifer or a portion of an aquifer for exemption, to consult with the State Water Resources Control Board and the appropriate regional water quality control board concerning conformity of the proposal with certain requirements. If the division and the state board concur that the exemption proposal may merit consideration by the USEPA, existing law requires those agencies to provide a public comment period on the proposal and to jointly conduct a public hearing. If, after the review of public comments, those agencies concur that the exemption proposal merits consideration by the USEPA, existing law requires the division to submit the exemption proposal to the USEPA. This bill would instead require, based on the consultation between the division and the appropriate regional water quality control board and the state board, if the division and the staff of the state board preliminarily concur that the exemption proposal may merit consideration by the USEPA, the division and the staff of the state board to provide a public comment period on the proposal and to jointly conduct the public hearing. The bill would require, following the review of the public comments and only if the division and the staff of the state board concur that the exemption proposal merits consideration for exemption, the staff of the state board to submit a report to the state board evaluating the exemption proposal's consistency with the criteria specified in existing law, including an analysis of all potential conduits. The bill would require the report to be made available to the public no fewer than 60 days prior to a meeting before the state board and would provide for a 45-day public comment period. The bill would require the state board to consider, in a public meeting, the report and to determine whether it concurs that the exemption proposal, with any appropriate modifications, complies with legal requirements and merits consideration for exemption. If the state board concurs, the bill would require the division to submit the exemption proposal to the USEPA.