Water Quality Control Plan for the North Coast Region

The basic purpose of the state’s basin planning effort is to determine the future direction of water quality control for protection of California’s waters.

The goal of this Basin Plan is to provide a definitive program of actions designed to preserve and enhance water quality and to protect beneficial uses of water in the North Coast Region. The plan is concerned with all factors and activities which might affect water quality. It emphasizes, however, actions to be taken by the State Water Board and the Regional Water Board since they have primary responsibility for maintenance of water quality in the North Coast Region.

This Basin Plan is comprehensive in scope. It contains a brief description of the North Coast Region, and describes its water quality and quantity problems and the present and potential beneficial uses of the surface and ground waters within the Region. The water quality objectives contained in the plan are prescribed for the purposes of protecting the beneficial uses.

The Implementation Plans section describes the measures, which include specific prohibitions, action plans, and policies which form the basis for the control of water quality. Statewide plans and policies are included as well as a description of Regional Water Board surveillance and monitoring activities. The plan contains provisions for public participation, complies with the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act, and establishes a setting and the framework for the development of discharger
regulation.

Basin plans complement and may be more stringent than water quality control plans and policies adopted by the State Water Board, such as the “Water Quality Control Plan for Ocean Waters of California” and the
“Water Quality Control Policy for the Enclosed Bays and Estuaries of California”. Provisions of State Water Board plans supersede basin plans; however, the same state plans may allow for site-specific objectives and exceptions in order to meet localized needs and circumstances.

This Basin Plan is used as a regulatory tool by the Regional Water Board’s technical staff. Regional Water Board orders cite the Basin Plan’s water quality standards and prohibitions applicable to a particular discharge. The Basin Plan also is used by other agencies in their permitting and resource management activities. It also serves as an educational and reference document for staff, dischargers and members of the public.

To check for any updates or amendments since this document was loaded into the library, please check the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Plan’s basin plan page.