AB 2032: Fish and wildlife: golden mussels.

(1)Existing law, until January 1, 2030, generally prohibits a person from possessing, importing, shipping, or transporting in the state, or from placing, planting, or causing to be placed or planted in any water within the state, invasive mussels, as defined. Existing law requires a public or private agency that operates a water supply system to cooperate with the Department of Fish and Wildlife to implement measures to avoid infestation by invasive mussels and to control or eradicate any infestation that may occur in a water supply system, and, if invasive mussels are detected, to prepare and implement a plan, as specified, to control or eradicate invasive mussels within the system. system (control plan).

Existing law prohibits the importation, transportation, possession, or live release of specified wild animals, except under a revocable, nontransferable permit, known as a restricted species permit, issued by the department, in cooperation with the Department of Food and Agriculture, and only if certain requirements are met.

Existing law authorizes the department to issue permits, commonly known as scientific collecting permits, to take or possess any form of plant or animal life for scientific, educational, or propagation purposes.

This bill would exempt from the requirement to obtain a restricted species permit for golden mussels a public or private agency that operates a water supply system and has submitted a control plan to the department for maintenance and operational activities to control the spread of golden mussels in the water supply system, as specified. The bill would provide that this exemption remains in effect for a particular public or private agency until the department determines the agencys control plan does not meet the statutory requirements for control plans or approves the control plan.

This bill would require the departments Invasive Species Program, through the Golden Mussel Task Force convened by the department, to develop and adopt, Program to develop, by April 1, 2027, best management practices voluntary guidance for public and private agencies that operate water supply systems to control the spread of golden mussels, as specified, and would encourage those public and private agencies to comply with those best management practices. develop effective control plans. The bill would also require the departments Invasive Species Program, through the Golden Mussel Task Force, Program to adopt, by April 1, 2027, guidance for scientific research conducted by or for public and private agencies that operate water supply systems to control the spread of golden mussels, as specified, and would encourage those private and agencies to comply with that guidance. specified. The bill would authorize a public or private agency that operates a water supply system and does not have an approved control plan to submit to the department a streamlined project proposal for golden mussel scientific research, as specified, and would require those project proposals to comply with the departments scientific research guidance.

The bill would exempt scientific research to control the spread of golden mussels conducted by or for public and private agencies that operate water supply systems scientific research described in those project proposals from scientific collecting permits issued by the department if the public or private agency participates in the Golden Mussel Task Force, as that participation may be determined by the department. and restricted species permits for golden mussels. The bill would provide that this exemption terminates for a particular public or private agency upon the agencys submission of a control plan to the department.

This bill would require the department to update the spatial distribution maps of golden mussel-infested water bodies posted on its internet website no less than quarterly based on monitoring and reported detections, as prescribed.

(2)Existing law requires every manufacturer of, importer of, or dealer in any pesticide, except as specified, to obtain a certificate of registration from the Department of Pesticide Regulation before the pesticide is offered for sale. Existing law requires the Director of Pesticide Regulation to endeavor to eliminate from use in the state specified pesticides, and in carrying out this responsibility, to develop an orderly program for the continuous evaluation of all pesticides actually registered, as specified.

Under existing law, the State Water Resources Control Board and the 9 California regional water quality control boards regulate water quality and prescribe waste discharge requirements in accordance with the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act and the national pollutant discharge elimination system permit program.