KLAMATH TMDL:
The North Coast Water Quality Control Board will be receiving
oral comments on the Klamath and Lost River Total Maximum Daily
Loads (TMDL) on Wednesday, January 27 at
10 a.m.
at The Holiday Inn Express in Yreka. The proposed TMDL and
action plan can be downloaded here:
http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/northcoast/water_issues/programs/tmdls/klamath_river/
Written Comments are due no later than February 9 at 5 p.m. and
may be sent to: North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board
, c/o Katharine Carter, 5550 Skylane Blvd, Suite A, Santa Rosa,
CA 95403 or e-mailed to
kcarter@waterboards.ca.gov
The “Summary” of the
changes to the Klamath TMDL indicates that the modeling of
nutrients in the
Klamath River,
natural conditions and upper river contributions has been revised.
There is additional documentation as to the decisions and
assumptions made that underlie the modeling. There were revisions
made to the technical TMDL text regarding nutrients, water quality
and fish disease, temperature impacts and objectives for dissolved
oxygen. Natural temperature conditions for the
Scott
River
have been updated.
The recommendation for
a basin-wide conditional waiver for agriculture remains in the
plan. However, interim requirements on agriculture (including the
Scott and Shasta) to develop water quality and ranch management
plans has been removed. Instead, a basin-wide “public stakeholder
process” to address agriculture and develop conditional waivers
has been recommended for adoption by 2012. (There are
recommendations as to measures landowners should take in the
interim.) Existing waivers in the Scott and the Shasta could be
revised at the renewal of their TMDL Action Plans or replaced with
the new basin-wide conditions.
Newly adopted
“Anadromous Salmonid Protection Rules” regarding riparian shade
will be applicable to timber activities. The “Thermal Refugia
Protection Policy” proposed for suction dredge mining remains.
Also, at the request of
PacifiCorp, a coarse analysis of the potential environmental
impacts of dam removal, (aesthetics, air quality, biological,
water quality) is included.
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