PREPARED BY: AMANDA BOOTH DATE OF MEETING: 06/05/17
SUBJECT:
TITLE
RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN PABLO APPROVING THE GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE FRAMEWORK AS REQUIRED BY THE REGIONAL WATER QUALITY CONTROL BOARD NPDES PERMIT CAS612008 SECTION C.3.j.i
Label
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Adopt Resolution
Body
Compliance statements
Infrastructure - Administration and Operations - (1.4) Clean Water Program/New Municipal Regional Permit (MRP) is an adopted policy item contained in the FY 2015-17 Adopted City Council Priority Workplan, effective October 1, 2016.
CEQA Compliance Statement
The Green Infrastructure Framework is not a project as defined by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as it is more of a framework to create a plan, it is not the plan itself nor does it involve any construction. Therefore, this action does not require CEAQ clearance.
BACKGROUND
As a result of the 1987 amendments to the Federal Clean Water Act, the Environmental Protection Agency was given the authority to regulate stormwater discharges from municipal stormdrains under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) regulations. In California, the NPDES permit is implemented and administered by the Regional Water Quality Control Boards. The San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board (Water Board) is the local authority for Bay Area counties. The objective of the NPDES program is to improve water quality and creek health through the reduction and/or elimination of polluted runoff.
On November 19, 2015, the Water Board adopted the reissuance of the Municipal Regional Stormwater NPDES Permit No CAS612008 (MRP 2.0). This updated permit became effective on January 1, 2016 and one of the significant changes in the updated permit is the requirement for Green Infrastructure (GI). Green Infrastructure, in this context, is a new way of designing and building roads or highways to provide water quality benefits. MRP 2.0 requires the City of San Pablo to develop a Green Infrastructure Framework by June 30, 2017 and a full Green Infrastructure Plan by September 2019. This Green Infrastructure Plan will change how the City plans, designs, builds, and maintains public transportation and drainage infrastructure.
The attached GI Framework outlines the tasks, schedule, and budget necessary for the City of San Pablo to develop a Green Infrastructure Plan (Plan). The Framework outlines and describes required elements of the Plan, including:
• Staff coordination and public outreach
• Mapped and prioritized areas for potential and planned projects
• Targets for the amount of impervious surface to be retrofit over time
• A system for tracking and mapping completed projects
• Guidelines for project design, and standard designs and specifications
• Requirements for sizing green infrastructure projects
• Integration with existing planning documents
• Methods and results for estimating the load reductions to be achieved
• Evaluation of funding options
Several of these elements will be developed collaboratively with other Contra Costa municipalities through the Contra Costa Clean Water Program (CCCWP) or regionally through the Bay Area Stormwater Management Agencies Association (BASMAA). Based on initial cost estimates, the City of San Pablo plans to include $60,000 across FY 2018/19 and FY 2019/20 budgets to be expended on preparation of the Plan. This budget estimate is only preliminary and is subject to Council approval.
The City of San Pablo’s GI Plan will guide a shift from conventional “collect and convey” storm drain infrastructure to more resilient, sustainable stormwater management that reduces runoff volumes, disperses runoff to vegetated areas, harvests and uses runoff where feasible, promotes infiltration and evapotranspiration, and uses natural processes to detain and treat runoff. Green infrastructure facilities include, but are not limited to, pervious pavement, infiltration basins, and bio-retention facilities (“rain gardens”), green roofs, and rainwater harvesting systems.
FISCAL IMPACT
Stormwater assessment fees are collected as part of the annual property tax. The methodology used to determine stormwater fees is based on parcel area and the amount of impervious surface on each parcel. The City collects a Stormwater Utility Assessments (SUA) which generates approximately $400,000 per annum in revenue for the program. Approximately $100,000 of the revenue goes towards San Pablo’s pro-rata share of the CCCWP countywide program costs. The Green Infrastructure Framework was developed by the CCCWP with the assistance of City of San Pablo staff. However, the Green Infrastructure Plan is estimated to cost $60,000 over the 2018/19 and 2019/20 budgets. These proposed costs have been included in the Preliminary DRAFT BUDGET for FY 2017-2021 for City Council adoption in June 2017.
ATTACHMENT: City of San Pablo Green Infrastructure Framework