The California Water Boards' Annual Performance Report - Fiscal Year 2014-15
ENFORCE: LAND DISPOSAL
GROUP:
ALL LAND DISPOSAL FACILITIES
MEASURE:
ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS
MESSAGE:
Region 6 was active with several informal actions.
KEY STATISTICS FOR FY 2014-15
Number of Informal Actions:
56
Number of Compliance Actions:
7
Number of Penalty Actions:
2
MEASUREMENTS
- Data last updated on:
01-13-2017 (11:29 am)
Region
Enforcement Actions
Informal Actions
Compliance Actions
Penalty Actions
Total
1
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
3
1
0
0
1
4
0
0
0
0
5
15
6
2
23
6
29
1
0
30
7
0
0
0
0
8
6
0
0
6
9
5
0
0
5
Total
56
7
2
65
WHAT THE MEASURE IS SHOWING
Very few facilities in the Land Disposal program have violations which lead to few enforcement actions for this program. However, Regions 5 and 6 did have several informal enforcement actions and Region 5 had the only penalty actions.
WHY THIS MEASURE IS IMPORTANT
Enforcement plays a significant role in the Water Boards' strategies to protect water quality and represents a significant amount of work for both the State and Regional Boards. Enforcement deters potential violators and protects public health and the environment. Enforcement can prevent pollution from occurring and can promote prompt cleanup and correction of existing pollution problems. The Water Boards use progressive enforcement by addressing some violations with an informal response such as a phone call or staff enforcement letter, and if needed, a more formal action. If violations continue, the enforcement response can be escalated to increasingly more formal and serious actions until compliance is achieved.
TECHNICAL CONSIDERATIONS
Data Source: CIWQS. Period: July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2015. Extracted on November 6, 2015.
Unit of Measure: Number of enforcement actions with an effective date during FY 14-15.
Data Definitions: See glossary. Note: the glossary has been updated to reflect the definitions in the current Enforcement Policy. The categories are different than previous Performance Reports and thus are not comparable to previous reports.
Compliance actions are formal enforcement actions that impose sanctions and/or require compliance. Compliance Actions include Notices to Comply (NTC), Notices of Noncompliance (NNC), Time Schedule Orders (TSO), Cease and Desist Orders (CDO) and Clean Up and Abatement Orders (CAO).
Formal Enforcement Actions
Formal enforcement actions are statutorily based actions to address a violation or threatened violation of water quality laws, regulations, policies, plans, or orders.
Informal Enforcement Actions
Informal enforcement actions are enforcement actions taken by Water Board staff that are not defined in statute or regulation. Informal enforcement action can include any form of communication (oral, written, or electronic) between Water Board staff and a discharger concerning an actual, threatened, or potential violation. Informal enforcement actions cannot be petitioned to the State Water Board.
The purpose of an informal enforcement action is to quickly bring an actual, threatened, or potential violation to the discharger's attention and to give the discharger an opportunity to return to compliance as soon as possible. The Water Board may take formal enforcement action in place of, or in addition to, informal enforcement actions.
Land Disposal
The Land Disposal program regulates waste discharge to land for treatment, storage and disposal in waste management units. Waste management units include waste piles, surface impoundments, and landfills. California Code of Regulations (CCR) Title 23, (Chapter 15) contains the regulatory requirements for hazardous waste. CCR Title 27, contains the regulatory requirements for wastes other than hazardous waste.
Penalty Actions
Penalty Actions are formal enforcement actions where administrative or judicial actions impose a penalty or require the completion of a project associated to a monetary amount. Penalty actions include liabilities imposed with an Administrative Civil Liability (ACL) and settlement agreements pursuant to Government Code section 11415.60.
