Existing law, with certain exceptions, prohibits recreational use, in which there is bodily contact with water, in a reservoir in which water is stored for domestic use and establishes water standards for those exempted reservoirs.

This bill would exempt from this prohibition recreational activity in which there is bodily contact with water by any participant in the Diamond Valley Reservoir if certain standards are met.

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Diamond Valley Reservoir in the County of Riverside.

SENATE COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

Senator Wieckowski, Chair

2015 - 2016 Regular

Bill No: SB 143

Subject: Diamond Valley Reservoir: recreational use

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. Declares state policy that multiple uses should be made of all public water in the state consistent with public health and safety and prohibits recreational use in which there is bodily contact with water in a reservoir in which water is stored for domestic use. Statutory exceptions to this prohibition have been granted for specified reservoirs (San Diego County reservoirs, Modesto Reservoir, Nacimiento Reservoir, Sly Park Reservoir and Canyon Lake Reservoir). These reservoirs must meet specific standards and criteria set in statute. (Health and Safety Code §115825 et seq.).

2. Under the federal Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2 rule), supplements existing regulations by targeting additional Cryptosporidium treatment requirements to higher risk systems. This rule also contains provisions to reduce risks from uncovered finished water reservoirs and to ensure that systems maintain microbial protection when they take steps to decrease the formation of disinfection byproducts that result from chemical water treatment.
   
   

This bill:

Exempts from this prohibition Diamond Valley Reservoir (also referred to as Diamond Valley Lake) in Riverside County from the bodily contact prohibition and specifically allows bodily contact with the water by any participant under certain conditions.

Background

Diamond Lake Reservoir. Diamond Valley Lake is southern California’s largest drinking water storage reservoir, completed in 2000. It is an 800,000 acre foot reservoir that nearly doubles southern California’s surface storage capacity, and helps secure six months of emergency storage southwest of the San Andres fault. The reservoir was built and is owned and operated by the Metropolitan Water District (MWD).

Comments

1. Purpose of Bill.

According to the author, SB 143 will add new economic stimulus, jobs and expanded recreational opportunities for the residents of Riverside County.

The author states that the MWD manages Diamond Valley Lake, and maintains several recreational activities including hiking trails around the lake. While the activities in place do add to the recreational options for Western Riverside County, they are only a fraction of what was originally promised to the residents. Because MWD does not allow bodily contact at Diamond Valley Lake, visitors are not allowed to swim, jet-ski, or use certain types of boats or kayaks.

The author asserts that SB 143 would simply allow residents and visitors to fully enjoy Diamond Valley Lake, by allowing for bodily contact. The language within SB 143 clearly states that bodily contact cannot happen until the proper water treatment options for coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, filtration, and disinfection are in place, in order to protect the vital water supply.

2. Bodily Contact in Drinking Water.

Over 65% of the population of the United States receives drinking water from surface water sources. Many of these surface water systems rely on protected sources, off limits for human activity to ensure safe water supply. California law prohibits bodily contact in drinking water reservoirs because human activity on and near water adds an element of risk to the consumers of the water. Short of sewage discharge, human body contact with the water is the most threatening human activity for several reasons:

1. Enteric pathogens, including bacteria, viruses and protozoa may be shed into water during recreation from residual fecal material and from accidental fecal release. Inputs resulting from human contact will increase pathogen concentrations in the reservoir and thus may increase health risks to downstream consumers receiving this water.

2. A single person sheds billions of fecal bacteria in a single day and water treatment plants are engineered to remove 99 to 99.99% of pathogenic organisms, not 100%;

3. Unlike chemical contaminants, pathogenic organisms that survive the treatment process can multiply in the water distribution system and, more importantly, in the bodies of water, leading to infection, illness and death of water consumers;

4. Birds and wild animals also introduce potential pathogens to the water, but pathogens from humans are more likely to ultimately be infectious to other humans than are pathogens originating from birds or animals.

3. Exemptions of California Reservoirs.

Over the last 20 years, there has been legislation exempting specific reservoirs (in the case of San Diego – the County) from the bodily contact prohibition. These exceptions are the County of San Diego, Sly Park Reservoir, Modesto Reservoir, Naciemento Reservoir, Canyon Lake Reservoir and Bear Lake Reservoir. These reservoirs have unique circumstances relating to treatment, location, population served and climate that have decreased the risk associated with bodily contact in the reservoir.

Additionally, in all cases the water system operating the reservoir and providing treatment to the drinking water are responsible (and have accepted responsibility) for ensuring that drinking water meets drinking water standards and public health is protected.

4. Pathogens of particular concern with bodily contact.

Microorganisms such as viruses, giardia and cryptosporidium are of special concern when there is bodily contact with drinking water supplies because traditional disinfection methods are not as effective at treating or inactivating organisms.

MWD has studied water quality issues associated with body contact recreation at its Diamond Valley Lake. MWD information indicates that “Cryptosporidium is the pathogenic organism of greatest concern mainly because it is extremely resistant to conventional methods of disinfection such as chlorination, is difficult to detect through monitoring, and causes cryptosporidiosis.” Cryptosporidiosis is a disease of the intestinal tract and has been known to cause disease in humans since 1976. Cryptosporidium lives in a protective shell that is referred to as an oocyst, and allows it to survive various environmental conditions and be resistant to disinfection. Sources of contamination at recreational waters are the individuals using those waters for recreation when constituents of residual fecal matter may be washed off the body on contact with water. Infants, young children, and others may also contribute more significantly to contamination by accidental fecal releases.

MWD studies have shown an increased risk to consumers with body contact recreation, ranging from 20 to 140 times higher than the current cryptosporidium risk of 1 infection per about 28,000 people.

Waterborne cryptosporidium outbreaks have occurred in both large and small communities. A large outbreak occurred in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1993, affecting an estimated 403,000 people. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, infection with cryptosporidium may have contributed to premature deaths of immunosuppressed individuals in these outbreaks.

5. Added Community Benefit.

It appears to be clear that the Diamond Valley Reservoir was not ideally built, nor do adequate treatment, climate or remote location circumstances exist to authorize an exemption from the bodily contact statute.

However, in a Los Angeles Times article from May 17, 1995, when this reservoir was being proposed, it seems that it was communicated to the community that a wide array of recreational activities would be made available.

“When completed in four years, it will include an Olympic-size pool, nearly 500 camp sites, slips for more than 250 boats, launching facilities to quickly handle up to 900 boats, 80 miles of hiking and biking trails and a commercial water park. In addition to the reservoir, the 20-square-mile project will include two other man-made lakes open to fishing, sailing, swimming and hunting.”

Allowing bodily contact in this reservoir would inappropriately risk the public health of nearly 2 million people in Southern California. However, the question arises, has MWD kept its commitment for other recreational areas to this community?

Related/Prior Legislation

SB 14 (Gaines) Chapter 172, Statutes of 2013, exempts Bear Lake Reservoir (Alpine County) from the state prohibition on bodily contact recreation use in a reservoir used for domestic water uses and establishes standards to be met, including water treatment, monitoring, and reporting requirements.

SB 1063 (Gaines, 2012) would have exempted Bear Lake Reservoir (Alpine County) from the state prohibition on bodily contact recreation use in a reservoir used for domestic water uses and establishes standards to be met, including water treatment, monitoring, and reporting requirements. SB 1063 was vetoed by Governor Brown.

SB 1251(Morrow, 2004) would have exempted Diamond Valley Reservoir (also referred to as Diamond Valley Lake) in Riverside County from the bodily contact prohibition and specifically allows bodily contact with the water by any participant under certain conditions.)

SOURCE:

Senator Stone

SUPPORT:

None on file

OPPOSITION:

Association of California Water Agencies

Burbank Water and Power

California Municipal Utilities Association

Calleguas Municipal Water District

Central Basin Water Association

City of Torrance

Clean Water Action

Cucamonga Valley Water District

Eastern Municipal Water District

Foothill Municipal Water District

Inland Empire Utilities Agency

Las Virgenes Municipal Water District

Mesa Water District

Municipal Water District of Orange County

Pasadena Water and Power

San Diego County Water Authority

The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California

Three Valleys Municipal Water District

Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District

Walnut Valley Water District

Western Municipal Water District

ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: None on file

ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION: MWD states that “during the course of considering appropriate recreational activities at Diamond Valley Lake, before the reservoir was placed into service, Metropolitan conducted a comprehensive scientific evaluation of the public health implications of allowing body-contact recreation at Diamond Valley Lake. The assessment back then, and most recently, demonstrates there is ample scientific evidence documenting the degradation of water quality in lakes and reservoirs permitting body-contact recreation. Body-contact recreation will add disease causing microorganisms to the water which would increase the risk of waterborne disease to downstream consumers. Additional supplemental disinfection at water treatment facilities near Diamond Valley Lake would be required to maintain baseline public health risk levels. By excluding body-contact recreation at Diamond Valley Lake, as was decided by Metropolitan’s Board in 1998, Metropolitan has provided a high-quality boating experience while protecting the public health of downstream water consumers.”

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