California Ag Network

Tag: water quality certification

  • Comment Period for Draft Water Quality Certification for Relicensing of the Balch Hydroelectric Project

    Today, State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) staff released for public review and comment a draft water quality certification for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) relicensing of the Balch Hydroelectric Project (Project; FERC Project No. 175). The comment period for the draft water quality certification closes at noon, June 19. Please see the notice for details on how to submit comments. The notice and draft water quality certification for the project are available here.

    The draft water quality certification and additional information on the Project are available on the State Water Board’s Project webpage(https://waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/water_quality_cert/balch.html)

    Instructions on how to sign up for the State Water Board’s email notification service are outlined below:

    1. Visit the Email Subscription webpage(https://waterboards.ca.gov/resources/email_subscriptions/).
    2. Provide your email in the required field, then click the “Submit” button.
    3. In the next page, select, “State Water Resources Control Board”, select “Water Rights”, then “Water Rights Water Quality Certification.”
    4. Click the “Submit” button.
    5. An email will be sent to you. You must respond to the email message to confirm your membership on the selected Topic(s).

    By enrolling in this email notification service, you will receive notices for other current projects overseen by the Division of Water Rights’ Water Quality Certification Program, including the project. You can enroll or un-enroll from the email subscription service at any time.

    The State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) and the nine Regional Water Quality Control Boards (Regional Water Boards) – collectively known as the California Water Boards – are dedicated to a single vision: abundant clean water for human uses and environmental protection to sustain California’s future.

    Under the federal Clean Water Act (CWA) and the state’s pioneering Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, the State and Regional Water Boards have regulatory responsibility for protecting the water quality of nearly 1.6 million acres of lakes, 1.3 million acres of bays and estuaries, 211,000 miles of rivers and streams, and about 1,100 miles of exquisite California coastline. — Story Contributed by the State Water Resources Control Board

  • Opportunity for Public Comments on McCloud-Pit Hydroelectric Project

    State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) staff released a “Revised Notice of Opportunity for Public Comments and Board Consideration of Adoption” (Revised Notice) extending the deadline to submit written comments on the “Draft Order Granting In Part and Denying In Part Petitions for Reconsideration and Certifying a Final Subsequent Environmental Impact Report”(Draft Order).

    The State Water Board is now accepting written comments on the Draft Order through noon, May 19.

    The Revised Notice is available on the State Water Board’s webpage: https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/board_info/calendar/docs/2026/jun/revnotice-mccloudorder.pdf

    The Draft Order is available on the State Water Board’s McCloud-Pit Hydroelectric Project webpage: https://waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/water_quality_cert/mccloudpit_ferc2106.html

    If you have questions regarding the Project, please contact Savannah Downey at Savannah.Downey@waterboards.ca.gov.

    To receive emails related to the McCloud-Pit Hydroelectric Project and other projects pursuing certifications managed by the State Water Board’s Division of Water Rights, interested persons should enroll in the “Water Rights Water Quality Certification” e-mail notification service. Instructions on how to sign up for the State Water Board’s e-mail notification service are outlined below:

    1. Visit: http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/resources/email_subscriptions/swrcb_subscribe.shtml#rights
    2. Provide your email in the required field, then click the “Submit” button.
    3. In the next page, below Subscription Topics, select “Water Rights”, then “Water Rights Water Quality Certification.”
    4. Click the “Submit” button.
    5. An email will be sent to you. You must respond to the email message to confirm your membership on the selected Subscription Topic(s).

    By enrolling in this email list, commenters will receive notices for other current projects overseen by the Division of Water Rights’ Water Quality Certification Program, including the Proposed Project.

  • Notice of Public Comment Period for Draft Environmental Impact Report for the Kerckhoff Hydroelectric Project Relicensing

    The State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) has released a Draft Environmental Impact Report for the Kerckhoff Hydroelectric Project Relicensing(Draft EIR) and associated Notice of Availability of a Draft Environmental Impact Report for the Kerckhoff Hydroelectric Project Relicensing (Notice of Availability).

    The State Water Board is accepting written comments on the Draft EIR from the date of this notice through 5 p.m., May 26.

    The Draft EIR, along with the Notice of Availability, are available on the State Water Board’s Kerckhoff Hydroelectric Project webpage:

    https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/water_quality_cert/kerckhoff_hydroelectric_ferc96.html.

    If you have questions regarding the Draft EIR for the Kerckhoff Hydroelectric Project, contact Chase McCormick by email at Chase.McCormick@waterboards.ca.gov.

    To receive emails related to the Kerckhoff Hydroelectric Project and other projects pursuing certifications managed by the State Water Board’s Division of Water Rights, interested persons should enroll in the “Water Rights Water Quality Certification” e-mail notification service.  Instructions on how to sign up for the State Water Board’s e-mail notification service are outlined below:

    1. Visit: http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/resources/email_subscriptions/swrcb_subscribe.shtml#rights
    2. Provide your email in the required field, then click the “Submit” button.
    3. In the next page, below Subscription Topics, select “Water Rights”, then “Water Rights Water Quality Certification.”
    4. Click the “Submit” button.
    5. An email will be sent to you. You must respond to the email message to confirm your membership on the selected Subscription Topic(s).

    — Story Contributed by the State Water Resources Board

  • Opportunity to Respond to Petitions for Reconsideration of Water Quality Certification for McCloud-Pit Hydroelectric Project

    On March 13, 2026, the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) issued a Notice of Opportunity to Respond to Petitions for Reconsideration of Water Quality Certification for McCloud-Pit Hydroelectric Project (Notice).

    The Notice includes information to access copies of the petition for reconsideration and associated documents.  Any party or person wishing to file a response to the petition with the State Water Board must do so by 4:00 PM on April 3, 2026, as directed in the Notice.

    The Notice and water quality certification are available on the State Water Board’s McCloud-Pit Hydroelectric Project webpage at:

    https://waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/water_quality_cert/mccloudpit_ferc2106.html

    If you have questions regarding the Notice, please contact Savannah Downey by email at Savannah.Downey@waterboards.ca.gov.

    To receive emails related to the Notice and other projects pursuing certifications managed by the State Water Board’s Division of Water Rights, interested persons should enroll in the “Water Rights Water Quality Certification” email notification service.  Instructions on how to sign up for the State Water Board’s email notification service are outlined below:

    1. Visit: http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/resources/email_subscriptions/swrcb_subscribe.shtml#rights
    2. Provide your email in the required field, then click the “Submit” button.
    3. In the next page, below Subscription Topics, select “Water Rights”, then “Water Rights Water Quality Certification.”
    4. Click the “Submit” button.
    5. An email will be sent to you. You must respond to the email message to confirm your membership on the selected Subscription Topic(s).

    By enrolling in this email notification service, you will receive notices for other current projects overseen by the Division of Water Rights’ Water Quality Certification Program.  You can enroll or un-enroll from the email subscription service at any time. — By the CWB State Water Resources Control Board