Central Coast Water Quality Preservation, Inc. (CCWQP)

(This page contains content that should be moved to other existing pages, e.g. on the Ag Waiver or the Cooperative Monitoring Program)

The Conditional Waiver for Irrigated Lands allows growers to satisfy their legal requirement for water quality monitoring through a Cooperative Coastal Monitoring Program, which is conducted by Central Coast Water Quality Preservation, Inc (CCWQPI). CCWQPI is a non-profit corporation founded by farmers to operate the CMP for the CCRWQCB Ag Waiver on behalf of irrigated agriculture on the Central Coast of California. It is charged with water quality monitoring, education, and outreach to growers.

Summary

Sampling locations copied from the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board Website

As mandated by the Ag Waiver growers must monitor water quality near their farms. Monitoring started in 2005 and has continued on a monthly basis ever since. The CMP was implemented to monitor ambient water quality in agricultural areas and to measure improvements resulting from the implementation of on farm management practices. The CCWQP has consistently delivered electronically water quality monitoring results quarterly to the CCAMP database from January, 2005, all the way through to the present day. Farmers are given the option to either monitor water quality themselves or through a cooperative management program. The Central Coast Water Quality Preservation Inc.(CCWQP) was established by the regional board to perform water quality analyses as the cooperative management program. CCWQP monitors surface water between Santa Cruz county and Santa Barbara county. Sampling locations are shown in the image to the right.

Water quality samples are taken at the same location by CCWQP, water quality data can be obtained by contacting the organization. Though the information if publicly available, limited data is currently available on the web. The available reports do indicate high amounts of polluted water within the Central Coast Region.

In 2009 CCWQP released a report that assessed water quality progress that is being monitored through the cooperative management program.

Issues with the Electronic-Notice of Intent (eNOI) in 2011

• In 2011, errors with the eNOI were brought to the attention of the Chairman Young of the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, where

omissions and inaccuracies in the database make its use to CCWQP in billing growers for participation in the CMP problematic. Since these errors would in no way support the CRWQCB in any equitable administrative application of the Ag Waiver or enforcement for noncompliance, a new Ag Waiver was proposed that called for significant changes in individual reporting by enrolled growers.

• As a result of errors within the eNOI, there was a 30% decline in acreage enrolled in the eNOI database, meaning that a large portion of growers were not participating in the Ag Waiver. This meant that CCWQP had to increase fees to the remaining growers to an unacceptable high rate to make up for this shortfall. This, in effect, punished those growers who continue to pay for participation, and thus comply with the terms of the Ag Waiver, and rewards the growers who do not.

• Finally, within the 2012 Ag Waiver, the errors that once existed within the eNOI were fixed thereby reinstating the original intent of the Ag Waiver and placed farmers on a more equal playing field.

Founding Four Members of CCWQP

• Bob Antle of Tanimura & Antle Inc.

• Craig Reade of Betteravia Farms

• John Baillie of Baillie Family Farms

• Bob Martin of Rio Farms.

Current Staff and Board Members of CCWQPI

• Executive Director: Kirk F. Schmidt

• Technical Program Manager: Sarah Greene

• Bookkeeper: Leila Salas

• Kevin Merrill (President), Mesa Vineyard Management, Santa Barbara County

• John Tobias, John Tobias Farming, San Benito County

• Craig Reade (Secretary), Betteravia Farms, Santa Barbara County

• Robert Martin (Treasurer), Rio Farms, Monterey County

• Don Hordness, Del Fresh Produce, Santa Clara County

• Tom AmRhein, Naturipe, Santa Cruz County

• Sig Christierson, Major Farms, Monterey County

• Dennis Sites, Agricultural Business Management, Monterey County

• Richard Smith, Valley Farm Management, Monterey County

• Alan Teixeira, Teixeira Farms, San Luis Obispo County

Cases of Civil Liability

• On December 11, 2007, the Franscioni Brother's Inc. who own 2,353 acres of croplands within Monterey County were accused of violations of discharging agricultural wastewaters through an Administrative Civil Liability Complaint No. R3-2007-0098. The accused wastewater dischargers were ordered to pay a civil liability of $2,500 for Water Board staff costs, and were also ordered to pay an additional $2,000 for a Supplemental Environmental Project to provide additional support for agricultural water quality monitoring and an additional $7,961.25 in Cooperative Monitoring Program and enrollment fees required by the Conditional Waiver.

• On December 11, 2007, Strawberry Services, Inc./Ruby Farms was accused of violations of discharging agricultural wastewaters through an Administrative Civil Liability Complaint No. R3-2007-0102. The accused wastewater dischargers were ordered to pay a civil liability of $2,500 for Water Board staff costs, and were also ordered to pay an additional $500 for a Supplemental Environmental Project to provide additional support for agricultural water quality monitoring.

• On December 4, 2008, Agro-Jal Farms was accused of violations of discharging agricultural wastewaters through an Administrative Civil LIability Complaint No. R3-2007-0099. The accused wastewater dischargers were ordered to pay a civil liability of $7,000 and were also ordered to pay an additional $7,000 for a Supplemental Environmental Project to provide additional support for agricultural water quality monitoring.

Parameters and Tests under the Monitoring and Reporting Program

• The CCWQP samples stormwaters on a monthly basis including two additional samples of stormwater events.

• The CCWQP samples for pathogens on a quaterly basis including two additional stormwater tests (6 times per year) at CMP sites each year for fecal coliform and E. coli.

• Since metals are not used in commercial agricultural operations, they are not be included in the monitoring program.

• Since there are no findings supported by reviewed research that phenol is causing an impairment to water quality in the region nor are there findings that phenols are present in the water as a result of irrigated

agriculture, phenol's are not included in the list of parameters and tests.

• Under Tier 3
  • The CCWQP does not endorse individual reported on farm monitoring and does not take a position on the merits of this concept in the proposed Ag Waiver.
  • There is a bit of confusion/opposing statements within the staff report from Tier 3 however, it does state that the primary source of surface water toxicity in agricultural waterbodies is resulting from Chlorpyrifos and/or Diazinon and that individual monitoring be conducted to test for both Organophosphorous Pesticidess (OP) and two additional toxicity tests (Chlorpyrifos' and Diazinon's).

Who is Responsible for Data Collection and Follow-Up Monitoring?

The Regional Water Board has ordered that the Cooperative Monitoring Program is to assess the health of inland waters and not to conduct individual discharge monitoring. The data collected by CMP will determine long-term trends in water quality, assess areas where water quality standards and beneficial uses are not being supported, and conduct follow-up monitoring to better identify problem areas where water quality standards are not being met.

Water Quality Reports

Water quality monitoring fact sheets were prepared by the Irrigated Agriculture Program of the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board as part of the monitoring and reporting requirements for all dischargers enrolled under Conditional Waiver of Waste Discharge Requirements for Discharge from Irrigated Lands, Order No. R3-2004-0117.

Links

• CCWQP webpage
• CCWQP Sample data
• CCWQP Sample report
• Return to Central Coast Region Agricultural Waiver

Disclaimer

This page may contain student work completed as part of assigned coursework. It may not be accurate. It does not necessary reflect the opinion or policy of CSUMB, its staff, or students.