California Code of Regulations › Title 23 - Waters › Division 4 - Regional Water Quality Control Boards › Chapter 1 - Water Quality Control Plans, Policies, and Guidelines › Article 4 - Los Angeles Region › Section 3939.18 - A Total Maximum Daily Load for Toxic Pollutants in Sediment in Ballona Creek Estuary

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 28, July 12, 2024
On July 7, 2005, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality
					 Control Board adopted Resolution No. R05-008, amending the Water Quality
					 Control Plan for the Los Angeles Region (Basin Plan) by establishing a Total
					 Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) to reduce toxic pollutants in sediment in Ballona
					 Creek Estuary (Estuary). The TMDL sets numeric concentration-based targets for
					 cadmium, copper, lead, silver, zinc, chlordane, total
					 dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) isomers and metabolites, total
					 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and total polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons
					 (PAHs) in the sediment for the Estuary. The targets are based on Effects
					 Range-Low sediment quality guidelines compiled by the National Oceanic and
					 Atmospheric Administration and will be achieved primarily by limiting the
					 amount of pollutants associated with suspended sediment in storm water
					 runoff.
The TMDL will mainly be implemented through National
					 Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) storm water permits, including
					 the Los Angeles County Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit, the
					 California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) MS4 permit, the general
					 industrial and construction permits, and other NPDES permits for low-volume,
					 intermittent, non-stormwater discharges, and through the authority vested in
					 the Executive Officer by Water Code section
					 13267.
The TMDL requires the general industrial and construction
					 storm water permittees to achieve assigned wasteload allocations within seven
					 years and nine years of the effective date of the TMDL, respectively. The
					 implementation schedule for the municipal and Caltrans permittees consists of a
					 phased approach, with wasteload allocations to be achieved in prescribed
					 percentages of the watershed, with total compliance to be achieved within
					 fifteen years of the effective date of the TMDL. The TMDL requires the
					 municipal and Caltrans storm water permittees to submit a coordinated
					 monitoring plan within one year of the effective date of the TMDL and an
					 implementation plan within five and a half years of the effective date of the
					 TMDL. The monitoring plan must include bioaccumulation testing of fish and
					 mussel tissue and sediment toxicity testing. The TMDL allows for special
					 studies, which are due within five years of the effective date of the TMDL, to
					 refine source assessments, provide better estimates of loading capacity, and
					 optimize implementation efforts. The TMDL specifies that within six months of
					 the effective date of a statewide adopted sediment quality objectives and
					 implementation policy, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board
					 will re-assess the numeric targets and wasteload allocations for consistency
					 with these statewide objectives. The TMDL also specifies that within six years
					 of its effective date, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Board shall
					 reconsider the waste load allocations and implementation schedule based on the
					 results of special studies.
On December 6, 2013, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality
					 Control Board adopted Resolution No. R13-010, amending the Basin Plan to revise
					 the Total Maximum Daily Loads for Metals in Ballona Creek and the Total Maximum
					 Daily Loads for Toxic Pollutants in the Ballona Creek Estuary.
The Basin Plan amendment adopted by Resolution No. R13-010
					 revises the TMDL adopted by Resolution No. 07-008 by revising sediment targets
					 for direct effects consistent with the Water Quality Control Plan for Enclosed
					 Bays and Estuaries -- Part 1 Sediment Quality; establishing sediment targets
					 for indirect effects and fish tissue based on the Office of Environmental
					 Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) Fish Contaminant Goals; removing numeric
					 targets and allocations for PAHs from the TMDL; and providing additional
					 flexibility to implement and demonstrate compliance with the TMDL through
					 various implementation strategies.
1. New
					 section summarizing amendments to basin plan filed 12-15-2005; amendment
					 approved by State Water Resources Control Board Resolution No. 2005-0076 on
					 10-20-2005; amendments approved by OAL pursuant to Government Code section
					 11353 on
					 12-15-2005 (Register 2005, No. 50).
2. Editorial correction of
					 HISTORY 1 (Register 2006, No. 3).
3. Summary of basin plan amendment
					 filed 5-4-2015; amendment approved by State Water Resources Control Board
					 Resolution No. 2014-0030 on 6-17-2014; amendment approved by OAL pursuant to
					 Government Code section
					 11353 on
					 5-4-2015 (Register 2015, No. 19).