(a) On or before January 1, 2004, the state board, in consultation with the State Department of Public Health, the California Coastal Commission, the California Conference of Directors of Environmental Health, counties, cities, and other interested parties, shall adopt regulations or standards for the permitting and operation of all of the following onsite sewage treatment systems in the state and shall apply those regulations or standards commencing six months after their adoptions:

(1) Any system that is constructed or replaced.

Terms Used In California Water Code 13291

  • Contamination: includes any equivalent effect resulting from the disposal of waste, whether or not waters of the state are affected. See California Water Code 13050
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Nuisance: means anything which meets all of the following requirements:

    California Water Code 13050

  • Pollution: means an alteration of the quality of the waters of the state by waste to a degree which unreasonably affects either of the following:

    California Water Code 13050

  • Regional board: means any California regional water quality control board for a region as specified in Section 13200. See California Water Code 13050
  • State: means the State of California, unless applied to the different parts of the United States. See California Water Code 18
  • State board: means the State Water Resources Control Board. See California Water Code 13050
  • Subdivision: means a subdivision of the section in which that term occurs unless some other section is expressly mentioned. See California Water Code 10
  • Waste: includes sewage and any and all other waste substances, liquid, solid, gaseous, or radioactive, associated with human habitation, or of human or animal origin, or from any producing, manufacturing, or processing operation, including waste placed within containers of whatever nature prior to, and for purposes of, disposal. See California Water Code 13050
  • Water quality control: means the regulation of any activity or factor which may affect the quality of the waters of the state and includes the prevention and correction of water pollution and nuisance. See California Water Code 13050
  • Water quality objectives: means the limits or levels of water quality constituents or characteristics which are established for the reasonable protection of beneficial uses of water or the prevention of nuisance within a specific area. See California Water Code 13050
  • Waters of the state: means any surface water or groundwater, including saline waters, within the boundaries of the state. See California Water Code 13050

(2) Any system that is subject to a major repair.

(3) Any system that pools or discharges to the surface.

(4) Any system that, in the judgment of a regional board or authorized local agency, discharges waste that has the reasonable potential to cause a violation of water quality objectives, or to impair present or future beneficial uses of water, to cause pollution, nuisance, or contamination of the waters of the state.

(b) Regulations or standards adopted pursuant to subdivision (a), shall include, but shall not be limited to, all of the following:

(1) Minimum operating requirements that may include siting, construction, and performance requirements.

(2) Requirements for onsite sewage treatment systems adjacent to impaired waters identified pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 303 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. § 1313(d)).

(3) Requirements authorizing a qualified local agency to implement those requirements adopted under this chapter within its jurisdiction if that local agency requests that authorization.

(4) Requirements for corrective action when onsite sewage treatment systems fail to meet the requirements or standards.

(5) Minimum requirements for monitoring used to determine system or systems performance, if applicable.

(6) Exemption criteria to be established by regional boards.

(7) Requirements for determining a system that is subject to a major repair, as provided in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a).

(c) This chapter does not diminish or otherwise affect the authority of a local agency to carry out laws, other than this chapter, that relate to onsite sewage treatment systems.

(d) This chapter does not preempt any regional board or local agency from adopting or retaining standards for onsite sewage treatment systems that are more protective of the public health or the environment than this chapter.

(e) Each regional board shall incorporate the regulations or standards adopted pursuant to subdivisions (a) and (b) into the appropriate regional water quality control plans.

(Amended by Stats. 2010, Ch. 288, Sec. 26. (SB 1169) Effective January 1, 2011.)

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