ABSTRACT: The ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT for the California American Water Slant Test Well Project, June 2014, has been made public by the lead agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Marine Sanctuary System Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The document is embedded. The Summary and
SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1
Project Background and History sections
are reproduced. Public Comment
on the Draft Environmental Assessment of Potential Slant Test Well
Project in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary through Saturday, July 26,
2014 via Electronic Submission or Mail: Bridget Hoover, Water Quality Protection
Program Director, Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, 99 Pacific Street,
Building 455A, Monterey, CA 93940
ENVIRONMENTAL
ASSESSMENT for the California American Water Slant Test Well Project
June
2014
Summary
Monterey
Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS) proposes to authorize a short-term well
pumping program proposed by California American Water (Cal Am or the Project
Applicant). The Proposed Action is located in the MBNMS and adjacent on-shore
areas within the City of Marina, Monterey County, California. The project
requires MBNMS authorizations for activities prohibited in MBNMS by Subpart M
of the National Marine Sanctuary Program regulations, including (1) a discharge
of pumped, untreated groundwater into MBNMS, and (2) drilling into and
disturbance of submerged lands within MBNMS.
Cal Am
would construct a slant test well in the coastal foredunes and conduct a
24-month pumping and testing program to obtain information regarding the
geologic, hydrogeologic and water quality characteristics of the underlying
aquifers in the project area. The data obtained over the 24-month test period
would be used to facilitate the planning and final design of a proposed
subsurface intake system and desalination plant to serve as the primary future
water supply source for the Monterey Peninsula. The Proposed Action includes a
discharge of untreated pumped water into waters of MBNMS via an existing
wastewater ocean outfall pipe extending approximately 2 miles offshore. The
potential environmental impacts of the Proposed Action are discussed and
analyzed in this Environmental Assessment (EA).
This EA
was prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(42 United States Code §4321 et seq.), as implemented by the Council on
Environmental Quality Regulations (40 Code of Federal Regulations §1500-1508);
and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Administrative Order 216-6,
Environmental Review Procedures for Implementing the National Environmental
Policy Act, of May 20, 1999.
SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Project Background and History
California
American Water (Cal Am), the project applicant, proposes development of a slant
test well, which would extend diagonally under the floor of the Pacific Ocean
and into submerged lands of Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS)
through the Dune Sand Aquifer, Salinas Valley Aquitard (if present in the
project area), and 180-Foot Aquifer or its equivalent unit at this location
(referred to herein as the 180-FTE). The slant test well is proposed for
information gathering purposes. It would operate as a test facility for a temporary
period (maximum 24-month pumping period) to provide field data concerning the
geologic, hydrogeologic, and water quality characteristics of the project site.
The overall project, including construction and decommissioning activities, is
expected to take no longer than 3 years.
MBNMS is
serving as National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Lead Agency for issuance of
required authorizations to allow discharge into MBNMS waters and drilling into
and disturbance of submerged lands in MBNMS. The City of Marina is serving as
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Lead Agency for issuance of the
primary local permits and CEQA environmental clearances. Multiple other local,
state, and federal agencies are acting as Cooperating Agencies under NEPA and/or
Responsible Agencies under CEQA, due to their discretionary approval authority
over some component of the Proposed Action. Cooperating or Responsible Agencies
include the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), NOAA’s National Marine
Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries), California Coastal Commission (CCC),
California State Lands Commission, Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control
Board (CCRWQCB), Monterey Bay Unified Air Pollution Control District (MBUAPCD),
Monterey County Department of Environmental Health, and Monterey Regional Water
Pollution Control Agency (MRWPCA).
The data
obtained through operation of the Proposed Action would be used in the design
and planning of a potential subsurface intake system and desalination plant
that has been proposed to serve as the primary future water supply source for
the Monterey Peninsula known as the Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project
(MPWSP). The MPWSP would include a full-scale subsurface intake system (if
determined to be feasible through the results yielded by the temporary slant
test well) and is subject to separate environmental review and regulatory
permitting processes that are currently ongoing. The NEPA Lead Agency for the
MPWSP is currently being determined. The CEQA Lead Agency for the MPWSP is the
California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).
To
facilitate the environmental planning and design of the MPWSP, a Hydrogeologic
Working Group (HWG) has been established to develop a workplan of on-going
steps of data collection and analysis necessary for refinement of the North
Marina Ground Water Model, which is the tool being developed to evaluate the
short- and long-term hydrogeologic impacts from operation of the MPWSP. The HWG
is comprised of a team of hydrogeologic experts representing the interests of
various stakeholders of groundwater use and management in the region,
including:
§ Cal Am – a privately-owned
water and wastewater company and the project applicant for the slant test well
and MPWSP;
§ CPUC – the CEQA lead
agency for the full-scale MPWSP;
§ CEMEX, Inc. – the
property owner of the proposed location of the slant test well and MPWSP;
§ Salinas Valley Water
Coalition – a non-profit public benefit corporation that was organized in 1991
to promote the fair representation and evaluation of water issues in Monterey
County. The Salinas Valley Water Coalition collaborates with and supports the
Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA) in its pursuit of long-term
balance of supply and demand of water in the Salinas Valley Groundwater Basin and
its effort to halt seawater intrusion; and the
§ Monterey County Farm Bureau – a private, non-profit association of
farmers and ranchers throughout Monterey County that collaborates with other
agricultural organizations to advocate for the agricultural community and
environment.
The
slant test well project has been identified as a critical step of data
collection in the HWG workplan.
It is possible that, if the MPWSP is successfully developed, Cal Am will request that the slant test well be converted into a permanent facility and connected to the future subsurface intake system and desalination plant as one of several permanent subsurface intake wells. The potential environmental effects associated with construction, conversion and permanent operation of the slant test well and all other proposed permanent subsurface intake wells is currently being reviewed in the separate NEPA and CEQA process being completed for the full-scale MPWSP and an Environmental Impact Statement and Environmental Impact Report are being or will be prepared. Due to uncertainty over whether the MPWSP will be approved and constructed as proposed, long-term operation of the slant test well has not been proposed by Cal Am at this time. Because no long-term operations are proposed and development and permanent operation of the test well is already being reviewed in the separate NEPA/CEQA process, no long-term operations are considered in this document. Permanent operation of the slant test well would not be permitted under the project approvals and permits currently being sought.
While the slant test well’s relation to the larger project is recognized, the slant test well’s present data gathering purpose is independent of the full-scale MPWSP. The slant test well pumping program would provide a better understanding of the potential effects of the full-scale system and allow better informed agency coordination and public review of the MPWSP. The slant test well, even as a separate temporary project, requires authorizations from MBNMS for the proposed discharge and disturbance of submerged lands, and a coastal development permit from the City of Marina and CCC, which triggers NEPA/CEQA review. Therefore, this Environmental Assessment (EA) analyzes the development of the slant test well, temporary test pumping for up to 24 months, and decommissioning of the slant test well and related appurtenant infrastructure at the end of the test period.
REFERENCES:
MONTEREY BAY NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY
Request
for Public Comment for Draft EA of Potential Slant Test Well Project in MBNMS (COMMENTs
DUE BY 7/26/14)
MBNMS has developed a draft environmental assessment (EA) to analyze the potential impacts of a slant test well project proposed by California American Water, a privately-owned water and wastewater company, which may have the potential to affect environmental resources within MBNMS and adjacent shoreline areas. The proposed project described in the EA has been evaluated for consistency with the National Marine Sanctuaries Act, sanctuary goals and objectives, and ONMS and MBNMS permitting regulations. For more information, please contact Bridget Hoover by
email.
(6/26/14)
NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION (NOAA)
