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Reports & Documents

A number of documents are available on these pages that describe the regulations and programs aimed at preventing and controlling the discharge of pollutants to the municipal stormdrain system and receiving waters. Orange County lies within two different regions of the State Water Quality Control Board's jurisdiction: the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board and the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board. Links of interest are located to your left underneath documents.

Basin Plans

The document for each region is the Water Quality Control Plan, more commonly referred to as the Basin Plan. The Basin Plan serves as the foundation for the regulatory programs of each regional board. More specifically, the Basin Plan documents the beneficial uses of the region's ground and surface waters, existing water quality conditions and problems, water quality goals, and actions by the regional board and others that are necessary to achieve and maintain water quality standards.

If there are any questions regarding the details of a document, or to obtain a hard copy or other alternative formats of the original document, or to have a document read to you, please contact the OC Public Works offices: 2301 N. Glassell St., Orange, CA, 92865 Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST, by sending  a message directly, or by calling (714) 955-0600.

California Ocean Plan

A number of documents are available on these pages that describe the regulations and programs aimed at preventing and controlling the discharge of pollutants to the municipal stormdrain system and receiving waters. Orange County lies within two different regions of the State Water Quality Control Board's jurisdiction: the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board and the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board.

Report of Waste Discharge (ROWD)

The cities of Anaheim, Brea, Buena Park, Costa Mesa, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Fullerton, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, Irvine, La Habra, La Palma, Laguna Hills, Laguna Woods, Lake Forest, Los Alamitos, Newport Beach, Orange, Placentia, Santa Ana, Seal Beach, Stanton, Tustin, Villa Park, Westminster, and Yorba Linda (collectively the Santa Ana Region Permittees) and the cities of Aliso Viejo, Dana Point, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, Rancho Santa Margarita, San Clemente, and San Juan Capistrano (collectively the San Diego Region Permittees) operate municipal storm drain systems and discharge stormwater and urban runoff pursuant to National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permits.

These Permits require that the Permittees to work together to:

  • Effectively prohibit non-stormwater discharges to the stormdrain system, and
  • Implement controls to reduce the discharge of pollutants in stormwater to the Maximum Extent Practicable (MEP).

The Permits were first adopted in 1990 and subsequently renewed in 1996 (Second Term) and 2002 (Third Term) (See Table 1.1). This Report of Waste Discharge has been prepared in anticipation of the expiration of the Third Term Permits in early 2007 and comprises:

  • An evaluation of NPDES permit compliance over the period of the Third Term Permits;
  • A proposed Model Newport Bay Watershed Action Plan (WAP)
  • A proposed Model Aliso Creek Watershed Action Plan (WAP)
  • A proposed management program, the 2007 Drainage Area Management Plan (2007 DAMP) (Attachment 1) for the Fourth Term Permits.

Final Report of Waste Discharge - July 21, 2006

Model Aliso Creek WAP

Model Newport Bay WAP

Proposed 2007 DAMP

OC Third Term NPDES Municipal Stormwater Permits

The permits of each region outline additional steps for an effective storm water management program and they specify requirements to protect the beneficial uses of all receiving waters. Furthermore, they require the permittees to develop and implement Best Management Practices (BMPs) to control/reduce the discharge of pollutants to waters of the United States to the maximum extent practicable (MEP).

  • Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board Municipal NPDES Permit Order No. R8-2002-0010
  • San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board Municipal NPDES Permit Order No. R9-2002-0001

Orange County Fourth Term NPDES Municipal Stormwater Permits

The permits of each region outline additional steps for an effective storm water management program and they specify requirements to protect the beneficial uses of all receiving waters. Furthermore, they require the permittees to develop and implement Best Management Practices (BMPs) to control/reduce the discharge of pollutants to waters of the United States to the maximum extent practicable (MEP).

  • Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board Municipal NPDES Permit Order No. R8-2009-0030
  • San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board Municipal NPDES Permit Order No. R20099--0002