PREPARED BY: AMANDA BOOTH DATE OF MEETING: 01/21/2025
SUBJECT:
TITLE
CONSIDER ADOPTING RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN PABLO (1) ACCEPTING AND APPROPRIATING $8 MILLION FROM THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA) SAN FRANCISCO BAY WATER QUALITY IMPROVEMENT FUND (SFBWQIF) GRANT PROGRAM FOR THE POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCB) TOTAL MAXIMUM DAILY LOAD (TMDL) SPECIAL STUDIES AND IMPLEMENTATION PROJECT; AND (2) AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO ENTER INTO ANY AGREEMENTS RELATED TO THE GRANT
CEQA: The project is exempt from environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as a funding action, as it is not a project under CEQA nor an activity that may cause a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical environment change pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 21080(a) and 14 California Code of Regulations Section 15002(d).
Label
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Adopt Resolution
Body
Compliance statements
FY 2023-2025 Council Priority Workplan Compliance Statements:
Enhance Community Standards - 202: Develop and implement long-term environmental stewardship goals is a major policy goal contained in the FY 2023-25 City Council Priority Workplan adopted on May 1, 2023 and updated on October 17th, 2024.
BACKGROUND
In 2008, the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board adopted a clean water action plan (known as a TMDL) for PCBs in the Bay. The plan requires municipalities, industry, and others to reduce PCBs in the San Francisco Bay (the Bay). PCBs are pollutants found in the Bay that are toxic, persist in the environment, and accumulate in the tissues of fish, wildlife, and humans. The TMDL plan was created to identify and control sources of PCBs in the Bay and has identified the control of urban stormwater runoff as a major key to achieving PCB reduction goals. The EPA San Francisco Bay Water Quality Improvement Fund (SFBWQIF) is allocating noncompetitive funds towards programs that support San Francisco Bay’s PCB TMDL studies and implementation actions.
The City of San Pablo, as one of the Bay Area Municipal Stormwater Collaborative (BAMSC) members, participates in the implementation efforts to reduce PCB contamination of the Bay as required by the City’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) stormwater permit. The BAMSC is an association composed of 103 agencies, including 88 cities and towns, 8 counties, and 7 special districts. The agencies work together on requirements under the various NPDES permits for stormwater and other regulatory programs including TMDL implementation. As a member of the BAMSC, the City of San Pablo has been requested to be the fiscal agent of the noncompetitive grant funds to support the implementation of projects and studies necessary to further the PCBs TMDL. The City of San Pablo will be reimbursed for all staff time required for the implementation of the grant. In addition, the grant's primary focus is to implement the NPDES requirements for PCBs, which will reduce compliance costs for the City of San Pablo.
Work funded by the EPA grant will benefit underserved communities and meaningfully involve affected communities experiencing adverse and disproportionate environmental harm and health risks. As the fiscal agent, the City of San Pablo has been awarded $8 Million in increments distributed over a five-year period to implement PCBs special studies and implementation actions. The PCBs TMDL Special Studies and Implementation Project activities include:
• Monitoring - The grant will help support ongoing monitoring to address the following priority areas including, but not limited to, source identification, management actions, and analyzing trends of PCB loads in watersheds.
• Mapping - Mapping tasks funded through the grant funding will focus on the local government agencies in watersheds where mapping has yet to occur.
• Planning and Implementing PCB Control Measures - The grant will support existing PCB control actions in areas containing known or suspected sources.
On September 3, 2024, pursuant to Resolution 2024-115, City Council approved the application to the EPA SFBWQIF for the PCBs TMDL Special Studies and Implementation Project. On December 16, 2024 the City of San Pablo was awarded the grant from the San Francisco Bay Water Quality Improvement Fund.
Staff recommends accepting and appropriating $8,000,000 from the San Francisco Bay Water Quality Improvement Fund Grant program for the PCBs TDML Special Studies and Implementation Project and authorizing the City Manager, or his designee, to enter into other agreements, in a form approved by the City Attorney, as may be reasonably necessary to effectuate the intent of the grant.
FISCAL IMPACT
This grant has a required match of 25%, or $2,666,667. All matching funds will be provided by the BAMSC partners, and no match is required from the City of San Pablo. City staff have received letters of commitment from the project partners confirming the matching funds (Attachments 3 - 5).
As part of this work, the City will be reimbursed approximately $150,000 over the 5-year grant period for staff labor expenditures incurred for administering this grant. In addition, the City expects an increase in Stormwater Utility Assessment (SUA) funding returned to the City in the amount of $24,000 over the 5-year grant period due to reduced compliance costs.
Table 1- EPA Funds to Accept and Appropriate for the Grant PCB Project
|
Transaction |
Fund Name |
Account Code |
Amount |
Resolution |
|
Accept & Appropriate |
San Francisco Bay Water Quality Improvement Grant |
222-0000-43600 |
$8,000,000 |
Current Request |
|
Total |
$8,000,000 |
|
ATTACHMENTS:
Att. A-Resolution
Att. B- EPA Grant Award
Att. C- Match Fund Letters from 12 Regional Agencies
Att. D- Match Fund Letter From County of Sonoma
Att. E- Match Fund Letter From Alameda County Clean Water Program (ACCWP)