SECTION ONE: FINDINGS AND INTENT

The legislature finds that:

(1) The state of Washington has made a significant investment in watershed-based activities in the last decade involving governmental bodies, tribal governments and citizens. The legislature, in particular, acknowledges the efforts of:

Planning units formed under RCW 90.82 that are developing or have developed comprehensive watershed plans dealing with water for people and fish, instream flows, water quality and habitat;

Lead entities formed under RCW 77.85 that have taken the lead in providing a locally-based framework for responding to the call for the recovery of salmon stocks;

Sub-basin planning groups under the Northwest Power and Conservation Council's Fish and Wildlife plan that have developed comprehensive plans to protect and restore fish and wildlife in the Columbia Basin;

Regional Fisheries Enhancement Groups under RCW 77.95 that have provided a valued role in working with local landowners to provide on-the-ground enhancement projects and to leverage fish enhancement funding through collaborative partnerships; and

Regional salmon recovery organizations that are developing plans that will be included in formal ESA recovery plans adopted by federal agencies.

(2) Healthy, productive and sustainable watersheds are necessary for the well being of the citizens of the state of Washington. It is in the state's interest to foster agreement at the local and regional levels to develop plans that are designed to protect the environmental and economic health of these watersheds, and to take proactive steps to prevent problems from occurring. Efforts to develop sustainable watersheds will take a long-term, sustained commitment on the part of government agencies, tribal governments, watershed-based organizations, and the work of thousands of Washington citizens.

(3) By using a shared governance approach, the state recognizes it can be more effective working within jurisdictional boundaries and authorities when there is a collaborative effort in state and local forums to resolve environmental and natural resource issues. Under this approach, state and local financial and technical assistance, monitoring, education and regulatory authorities are not delegated but, rather, will be used together to benefit watershed enhancement programs.

(4) Numerous watershed and salmon planning efforts relating to water quantity, water quality, salmon and habitat have been undertaken in many of the state's watersheds. To capture the investment in these citizen-based plans as they are completed, the state of Washington must, through an appropriate transition period, place its emphasis on a long-term and sustained commitment to implement these plans and monitor the results. In doing so, the state acknowledges that an adequate level of watershed-based community involvement, coordination and administration, monitoring, adaptive plan modification, and oversight will need to continue.

(5) Effective and efficient implementation of watershed and salmon recovery plans is often complicated by varied land ownerships, jurisdictional and funding authorities, management missions, legal constraints, and monitoring systems at the local and state level. In the last decade, the state's environmental management has moved increasingly toward an interjurisdictional, watershed-based approach, promoting an integrated rather than a segregated, program-by-program approach. State funding, coupled with a commitment to adaptively changing management strategies and actions, can be used to strengthen coordinated, effective and efficient implementation of watershed and salmon recovery plans, which includes a reduction in funding for administrative functions.

(6) Locally supported and integrated watershed and salmon recovery plans will facilitate the use of mitigation funds in appropriate circumstances as an additional source of funds for projects that implement such plans, and will help provide streamlined permitting benefits for those proposing economic-based activities.

SECTION TWO: DEFINITIONS

(1) Watersheds consist of Water Resource Inventory Areas (WRIAs) or combinations thereof as approved by the Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Board (Board) per Section 6, and are the appropriate geographic unit for addressing the environmental health and related economic productivity of the state's watersheds.

(2) Salmon and watershed enhancement plans consist of regional salmon recovery plans or their components related to salmon recovery as developed under RCW 77.85 and approved by the Governor's Salmon Recovery Office or its successor; and watershed plans addressing water quantity, water quality and habitat elements as developed under RCW 90.82 and approved by counties. These plans may also include parts of other comprehensive or watershed-based plans, including: sub-basin plans contained in the Northwest Power and Conservation Council's Fish and Wildlife Program; and local components of the Puget Sound Action Plan, the Puget Sound Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration Project, the Lower Columbia River Estuary Partnership, and Landowner Stewardship Programs approved by the Washington State Conservation Commission.

(3) Watershed projects: Projects that protect, enhance, or restore watershed conditions or ecological functions. Watershed projects include, but are not limited to, habitat restoration projects, habitat protection projects, projects that improve water quality, projects that increase water quantity, fish passage barrier correction projects, fish screening projects, or projects that include programmatic monitoring, education, and research as components.

(4) Mitigation optimization: A process to increase the environmental benefits of mitigation actions required by governmental decisions by connecting required mitigation actions with watershed priorities, sound scientific knowledge, and technical data contained in salmon and watershed enhancement plans, and consistent with applicable requirements and evaluation and coordination of mitigation alternatives as provided under RCW 77.85.100.

(5) Watershed project implementation schedule ("schedule"): A prioritized list, developed by Salmon and Watershed Action Councils or Regional Salmon and Watersheds Action Councils, of watershed projects that implement salmon and watershed enhancement plans.

(6) Salmon Evolutionarily Significant Unit (ESU): A population or group of populations of salmon that is substantially reproductively isolated from other populations and contributes substantially to the evolutionary legacy of the biological species. The Governor's Salmon Recovery Office has designated seven salmonid recovery regions, based on ESUs.

SECTION THREE: IMPLEMENTATION OF SALMON AND WATERSHED ENHANCEMENT PLANS

(1) As the State of Washington transitions from watershed and salmon planning to a plan implementation focus, the Legislature intends that the various watershed-based efforts be consolidated in order to improve the effectiveness and efficiencies of implementation. The legislature also intends to capitalize on the investment made to date by ensuring strong citizen-based participation in the implementation of salmon and watershed enhancement plans.

(2) As of the effective date of this chapter, but not later than July 1, 2007, lead entities, planning units, and regional salmon recovery organizations may form an implementing structure in each watershed or combination thereof, called Salmon and Watershed Action Councils (Councils). Councils shall be based on watersheds or combinations thereof; if the combination of watersheds constitutes the Washington portion of a salmonid ESU, the group shall be called a Regional Salmon and Watersheds Action Council (Regional Council).

(3) Each county government that constitutes 15% or more of the geographic area of the watershed, and a majority of cities within the watershed(s) with populations over 10,000 must concur, as initiating governments, with a request to form a Council or Regional Council. Tribal governments within the watershed (including U&A) shall be invited to participate as initiating governments. Initiating governments may request boundary exceptions due to extenuating circumstances, subject to approval by the Governor's Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Office (Office) established under Section 5.

(4) The initiating governments, including participating tribes, shall determine representation on the Councils and Regional Councils. At a minimum, one appointee shall come from fish, environmental, economic, landowner, and water purveyor organizations or interests; participating city governments, county governments, tribal governments and county conservation districts may determine their participation. If the Council/Regional Council is formed in an area where there has been a 2514 Planning Unit or a 2496 Lead Entity, representatives from these groups shall be invited to participate.

(5) The primary function of the Councils/Regional Councils is to oversee implementation of salmon and watershed enhancement plans, and regional salmon recovery plans.

Specific functions are to:

develop a salmon and watershed project implementation schedule following the critical pathways methodology outlined in RCW 77.85;

identify and assist local watershed project sponsors willing to undertake watershed projects;

coordinate implementation of watershed projects, including the development of specific project-design, and project administration, implementation and, when applicable, effectiveness monitoring;

periodically review and update salmon and watershed enhancement plans, based on new scientific information and changing circumstances within the watershed;

collect, maintain and report monitoring data as requested by the Governors' Forum on Monitoring;

develop an adaptive management strategy to ensure salmon and watershed enhancement plans and watershed project implementation schedules and related policy can be changed promptly and appropriately based on monitoring data and other information.

provide for community participation in the above functions

(6) Each Council/Regional Council may hire staff to oversee development and implementation of the salmon and watershed project schedule, and other aspects of plan implementation. The Washington Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Board (Board) created in Section 4 shall allocate funding provided for this purpose to Councils/Regional Councils, pro-rated according to the population size, geographic area, marine shoreline miles, stream miles, and number of watersheds in the area encompassed by the Council/Regional Council. Additional staff may be provided to Regional Councils where, through a pooling of resources, economy of scale is clearly demonstrated. The Board shall administer funding.

(7) Each Council/Regional Council shall submit to the Board a watershed project implementation schedule on a timetable established by the Board. The implementation schedule shall consist of a prioritized list of watershed projects that implement salmon and watershed enhancement plans.

Each schedule shall be updated every four years or as determined by the Board.

Councils/Regional Councils shall also identify and may seek potential federal, state, local, and private funding sources outside of the Board, including the Centennial Clean Water Act, Public Works Trust Fund, CREP/LCREP, etc. for watershed projects on the watershed project implementation schedule

(8) The authority of Regional Councils is limited, respecting the authorities of tribal, state, and federal managers on all issues.

(9) Areas that choose to form Regional Councils shall also perform the following functions in addition to those outlined in Subsection (3):

coordinate, at a regional scale, implementation of salmon recovery plans as approved by the Governor's Salmon Recovery Office or its successor;

review and update such plans based on adaptive science and changing circumstances within the region, and incorporate elements as appropriate relating to prevention of new listings of salmon and steelhead under the ESA;

prioritize habitat recovery plan actions relating to regional salmon recovery, for both ESA-listed and unlisted fish species; in the event that regional organizations do not prioritize habitat recovery plan actions, this function will be performed by the Governor's Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Office, and funding for this purpose will be transferred to the Office.

(10) In lieu of a Regional Salmon and Watershed Action Council forming, the Councils within salmon recovery regions previously designated by the Governor's Salmon Recovery Office must determine how region-based salmon recovery plans will be implemented and how determinations about priorities across watersheds within the region will be made after July 1, 2007.

(11) RCW 90.82 (Watershed Planning Act) and RCW 77.85 (Salmon Recovery) are repealed on July 1, 2007; both are replaced by this Watershed Management and Enhancement Act, codified under RCW XYZ. Relevant portions of both 90.82 and 77.85 are reincorporated in this Act.

(12) Planning Units created under RCW 90.82 must complete Phase III (Plan Development and Approval) by July 1, 2009 and Phase IV (Implementation Plans) by July 1, 2010 or by one year after initiation of Phase IV, whichever comes first and may expend funds awarded under RCW 90.82 until such work is completed. Planning Units may co-exist with Salmon and Watershed Action Councils created pursuant to Section 3 only as needed to fulfill these requirements for completion of Phase III or Phase IV plans.

(13) Effective July 1, 2007 any watershed not forming a Council or Regional Council shall be ineligible for project funding from the Board.

SECTION FOUR: WASHINGTON SALMON AND WATERSHED ENHANCEMENT BOARD

(1) By July 1, 2005 the Salmon Recovery Funding Board under RCW 77.85 is renamed the Washington Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Board (Board) and recodified under this new Watershed Management chapter. One citizen member is added to the Board. The prohibition against state agencies voting is removed.

(2) By July 1, 2005 the Board may fund watershed projects as defined by Section 2(3) intended to implement eligible salmon and watershed enhancement plans as defined by Section 2(2), including projects identified in watershed project implementation schedules developed by Councils and Regional Councils pursuant to Section 3(5). The Board may also fund other salmon and watershed enhancement plans that seek to provide broader benefits of watershed health and meet the goals of its policies.

(3) The Board shall develop additional criteria for watershed project eligibility, and procedures and criteria for allocation of funds to watershed projects to address the highest priorities for salmon and watershed protection and restoration.

In evaluating, ranking, and awarding funds for projects and activities the Board shall give preference to salmon-related projects that:
(i) are identified as high priority in an eligible watershed or nearshore ecosystem enhancement plan;
(ii) will benefit listed salmonid species;
(iii) will help protect or restore important watershed functions and processes;

(iv) will implement projects identified through the TMDL process;

In evaluating, ranking, and awarding funds for projects and activities the board shall also give great weight to projects that:
(i) are the most cost-effective; and
(ii) have the greatest matched or in-kind funding; and
(iii) are ranked across watersheds within a salmon recovery region.

The Board may reject, but not add, projects from a watershed project implementation schedule submitted by a Council or Regional Council for funding.

The Board may also establish further incentives for Regional Councils.

The Board has the discretion to partially fund, or to fund in phases, salmon habitat and watershed health projects. The Board may annually establish a maximum amount of funding available for any individual project, subject to available funding.

(4) In addition to appropriations provided directly to the Board, and the requirements of Section 10 of this Act, the Board shall work with state agency Board members to coordinate funding decisions for other state watershed habitat and conservation programs that could also fund projects from implementation schedules. Habitat projects to be coordinated include those funded through the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program (RCW 79A.15), Aquatic Land Enhancement grants (RCW 79.90.245), and the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program.

(5) The Board shall provide the legislature with a list of the proposed projects and a list of the projects funded by October 1st of each year for informational purposes. (6) The Board shall administer funds provided by the legislature for Councils and Regional Councils.

(7) The Board may fund monitoring proposals associated with the implementation of salmon and watershed enhancement plans and regional salmon recovery plans.

(8) Beginning in December 2008 the Board shall provide a biennial report to the governor and the legislature on implementation of this act.

(9) The Interagency Committee for Outdoor Recreation shall provide staff support to the Washington Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Board. They shall also provide all necessary grants and loans administration assistance to the Board, and shall distribute funds as provided by the Board.

SECTION FIVE: SALMON AND WATERSHED ENHANCEMENT OFFICE

(1) RCW 77.85 provisions relating to the Governor's Salmon Recovery Office are repealed July 1, 2005. The Governor's Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Office (Office) is created, and the position of Director of the Office is created within the Office of the Governor and reporting to the Governor.

(2) The functions of the Office are to:

Provide, given the interagency jurisdictional nature of the watershed-based approach to environmental management, a single state office to promote and support implementation of Washington's watershed-based approach to watershed enhancement and salmon recovery.

Facilitate improved coordination and communication on issues relating to watershed health. Agencies that shall cooperate in these efforts are the Departments of Ecology, Fish and Wildlife, Natural Resources, Community, Trade and Economic Development, Transportation, Agriculture, and Health; the Interagency Committee for Outdoor Recreation; the Conservation Commission; Washington's Power and Conservation Council members; and the Puget Sound Action Team.

The Office shall work with the Office of Regulatory Assistance to ensure the state's policy of mitigation optimization is implemented during state environmental permitting actions. This work may include providing advice to the Office of Regulatory Assistance regarding issues on timely and coordinated issuance of permits for projects implementing watershed and salmon recovery plans, or facilitating implementation of mitigation optimization through salmon and watershed enhancement plans.

Serve as point of contact and liaison for local watershed councils and regional salmon recovery organizations, to facilitate communication, coordination and problem resolution among state agencies and local watershed councils and regional salmon recovery organizations.

Serve as a point of contact for the State of Washington for federal agencies involved in watershed enhancement and salmon recovery, including federal funding issues, and to facilitate communication, coordination and problem resolution between federal, state and local agencies.

Provide staff support for the Governor's Monitoring Forum established under Executive Order, 04-03. Through the Forum, actively promote monitoring to inform public and policy decisions about the effectiveness of management actions. The Office shall also serve as the point of contact for federal agencies for coordinating monitoring efforts.

Produce a biennial report on the state of Washington's watersheds that includes basic performance measures to measure progress of watershed plan and regionally based salmon recovery plans. This report shall be coordinated with the Washington Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Board and shall serve as the report required in Section 4(8). It shall also replace the biennial State of Salmon Report.

SECTION SIX: INSTREAM FLOWS

(1) The Legislature finds that in order to provide for healthy watersheds there is a need to ensure implementation of existing watershed and salmon recovery plans. This includes strategies for achieving instream flows established either through watershed planning under RCW 90.82 or by the state under its statutory authorities.

(2) The time frames established by Section 3(2) of this bill for the transition from existing watershed planning under RCW 90.82 and salmon recovery under RCW 77.85 to Salmon and Watershed Action Councils and Regional and Salmon and Watersheds Action Councils established under Section 3 is intended to provide for the completion of existing planning processes and state in-stream flow setting in those waters heds that have chosen to establish flow levels. Councils established under Section 3 of this Act shall not have responsibilities for instream flow setting.

(3) In the event that instream flows are not established by planning units within the timetable set under Section 3(2), instream flow setting responsibilities shall revert to Ecology in accordance with RCW 90.82.

(4) Salmon and Watershed Action Councils and Regional Salmon and Watersheds Action Councils under Section 3 of this Act will provide for the implementation of watershed health and salmon recovery plans in accordance with an implementation schedule established under Section 3(4). Where included in local watershed plans, or after adoption by the Department of Ecology, implementation may include those actions that will help achieve instream flow objectives that have been set by either watershed planning units or by the Department.

SECTION SEVEN: STUDY SECTION

(1) The Department of Fish and Wildlife, working with the Regional Fisheries Enhancement Groups (RFEG) Advisory Board, shall provide a report to the Legislature by January 1, 2007 regarding:

realignment of RFEG boundaries consistent with the watershed boundaries identified in Section 2 of this act and with the boundaries of Salmon and Watershed Action Councils and Regional Salmon and Watersheds Action Councils established under Section 3 of this Act;

coordination of RFEG activities with the work of the Salmon and Watershed Action Councils and Regional Salmon and Watersheds Action Councils established in Section 3 of this Act.

SECTION EIGHT: MITIGATION OPTIMIZATION

The Legislature finds that current environmental management approaches isolate regulatory actions, processes, and resources from watershed-based restoration and enhancement actions. Increased environmental benefits and broader local support can be achieved by integrating mitigation requirements with salmon and watershed enhancement plans as defined by Section 2(2). Procedures for optimizing mitigation actions are needed to increase environmental benefits derived from mitigation actions required by governmental decisions. These procedures should connect mitigation actions with watershed priorities, sound scientific knowledge, and technical data contained in salmon and watershed enhancement plans.

The legislature directed the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, along with the Departments of Ecology and Transportation to prepare a report with recommendations for implementation of mitigation optimization. The recommendations have identified case studies, transaction guidelines, and pilot projects as the necessary next steps to optimize mitigation. The Office of Regulatory Assistance shall assist agencies in implementing these recommendations.

The Governor's Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Office and Office of Regulatory Assistance, working with the Departments of Fish and Wildlife, Ecology, Natural Resources, and Transportation, shall coordinate implementation of these next steps for mitigation optimization.

Two pilot efforts, one east of the Cascade Range and one west, are authorized to test the use of mitigation optimization to obtain the greatest environmental benefits of mitigation actions in watersheds with approved salmon and watershed enhancement plans and regional salmon recovery plans. These pilots shall utilize draft mitigation optimization transaction guidelines developed through coordination by the Governor's Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Office with the Departments of Fish and Wildlife, Ecology, Natural Resources, Transportation, and the Office of Regulatory Assistance. The pilot efforts shall test local decision processes and protocols for participation in mitigation optimization procedures for their watershed or region consistent with the draft transaction guidelines. The Office is responsible for reporting results of the mitigation optimization pilots to the Salmon and Watershed Enhancement Board.

The Office of Regulatory Assistance, in coordination with the Governor's Office of Salmon and Watershed Health shall support the mitigation optimization study report recommendations, including related pilot efforts, and perform the responsibilities contained in this section. The Office shall submit a report on the development of mitigation optimization to the Governor and Legislature by December 1, 2006.

SECTION NINE: LOCAL OPTION FUNDING

Salmon and Watershed Action Councils and Regional Salmon and Watersheds Action Councils created pursuant to Section 3 of this Act may be considered watershed management partnerships as provided by RCW 39.34.200. Councils and Regional Councils that are formed by an agreement meeting the requirements of RCW 39.34.200 shall be entitled to exercise the authority granted by 39.34.190.

LOCAL OPTION FUNDING PLACEHOLDER

SECTION TEN: STATE FUNDING FOR WATERSHED IMPLEMENTATION

(1) Consistent with the purposes of their authorizing statutes, the Department of Ecology shall make the implementation of 2514 plans, as incorporated into salmon and watershed enhancement plans as defined by Section 2(2) an important scoring criteria for the following water quality grant and loan programs:

Centennial Clean Water Act;

State Revolving Loan program;

319 non-point grants.

(2) PLACEHOLDER: ADDITIONAL FUNDING SOURCES

This page created and maintained by Chehalis River Council
Send comments or questions to the: Chehalis River Council

Search this Chehalis River Council site!