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. 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 a public or private agency that operates a water supply system for maintenance and operational activities to control the spread of golden mussels in the water supply system, as specified. This bill would require the department's Invasive Species Program, through the Golden Mussel Task Force convened by the department, to develop and adopt, by April 1, 2027, best management practices 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. The bill would also require the department's Invasive Species Program, through the Golden Mussel Task Force, 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. This 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 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. 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. This bill would require the department to expedite, as prescribed, the evaluation of pesticides that are a chemical treatment effective for the prevention, mitigation, control, or eradication of golden mussels in a water supply system operated by a public or private agency. (3) 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. This bill would require the state board and regional boards to expedite, as prescribed, the processing of any national pollutant discharge elimination system permit or permit modification to the extent allowable under state and federal law if the permit or permit modification is submitted by a public or private agency that operates a water supply system in order to control the spread of golden mussels.