Cortese List: Section 65962.5(c)

Information Required From the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) Under Government Code Section 65962.5(c)

Section 65962.5(c)(1) “shall compile and update as appropriate, but at least annually, and shall submit to the Secretary for Environmental Protection, a list of all the following: (1) all underground storage tanks for which an unauthorized release report is filed pursuant to Section 25295 of the Health and Safety Code.

HSC § 25295 was enacted in 1983 and requires filing a report with the local agency designated under HSC § 25283 of “any unauthorized release which escapes from the secondary containment, or from the primary containment… of the underground tank system….” In 2004, HSC § 25295(b) was enacted to require the board “to continuously post and update on its Web site” a report of all unauthorized releases from underground tanks. The Water Board now provides this information in its GeoTracker database, including reports filed each year going back to fiscal year 1996/1997.

Section 65962.5(c)(2) requires that the Water Board “shall compile and update as appropriate, but at least annually, and shall submit to the Secretary for Environmental Protection, a list of all the following: ….(2) [a]ll solid waste disposal facilities from which there is a migration of hazardous waste and for which a California regional water quality control board has notified the Department of Toxic Substances Control pursuant to subdivision (e) of Section 13273 of the Water Code. The list does not include facilities where actions were taken so that hazardous waste is no longer migrating into the water.”

Water Code § 13273 was enacted in 1984 to set up a program for the regional water quality control boards (regional boards) to identify solid waste disposal sites and required them to conduct water quality assessment tests. Water Code § 13273(e) provides that based on the assessment tests, the regional boards should determine whether “any hazardous waste migrated into the water” and, if so, notify DTSC.

Section 65962.5(c)(3) requires that the Water Board “shall compile and update as appropriate, but at least annually, and shall submit to the Secretary for Environmental Protection, a list of all the following: ….(3) [a]ll cease and desist orders issued after January 1, 1986, pursuant to Section 13301 of the Water Code, and all cleanup or abatement orders issued after January 1, 1986, pursuant to Section 13304 of the Water Code, that concern the discharge of wastes that are hazardous materials.”

The orders that are “active” –– i.e., where the necessary actions have not yet been completed –– are on the list provided below. The Water Board will update this list by deleting sites where there is no longer any discharge of wastes and/or where the necessary cleanup and abatement actions were taken.

Background and History