By Seaman H.B. No. 2640
75R8528 T
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the permitting of commercial mariculture facilities for
1-3 shrimp and exotic species of aquatic life in coastal counties,
1-4 relating to the authority of coastal counties over certain
1-5 mariculture activities, relating to a study to guide future
1-6 regulation of certain mariculture activities in Texas and granting
1-7 rulemaking authority.
1-8 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-9 SECTION 1. Chapter 26, Water Code, is amended to add a new
1-10 Section 26.0272 to read as follows:
1-11 Sec. 26.0272. STUDY OF IMPACTS OF DISCHARGES FROM CERTAIN
1-12 MARICULTURE FACILITIES. (a) Until completion of the study
1-13 described in Subsection (b) of this section, the commission shall
1-14 not
1-15 (1) grant any application for a permit, amendment,
1-16 renewal, or other authorization that is currently pending before
1-17 the agency or that is filed with the agency after the effective
1-18 date of this section for the discharge of any water or waste waters
1-19 from any existing or proposed mariculture facility for the
1-20 commercial production of shrimp or any exotic species if the
1-21 facility is located in any county bordering on the Gulf of Mexico
1-22 or bordering on the tidewater limits of the Gulf unless the permit,
1-23 amendment or other authorization provides that it expires on
1-24 September 1, 1999 and that it can only be renewed if meets the
2-1 standards and requirements of the commission based on the study
2-2 described in Subsection (b) of this section, or
2-3 (2) promulgate any rule authorizing discharges or
2-4 establishing requirements for discharges from such a facility.
2-5 (b) The commission shall, by December 1, 1998, conduct, in
2-6 coordination with the Parks and Wildlife Department, the Animal
2-7 Health Commission and appropriate educational entities, a study of
2-8 (1) the need for discharges and ways to minimize
2-9 discharges from mariculture facilities for the commercial
2-10 production of shrimp or any exotic species, and
2-11 (2) the potential impacts of such discharges on the
2-12 aquatic life of Texas bays and estuaries receiving such discharges.
2-13 The study shall include the examination of the potential impacts of
2-14 any release or pollutants, including viruses and exotic species.
2-15 The Parks and Wildlife Department shall have lead responsibility
2-16 for choosing any consultants for the study and for any evaluation
2-17 of the impacts of the release of viruses or exotic species.
2-18 (c) The commission shall coordinate with the Parks and
2-19 Wildlife Department and appropriate educational entities to
2-20 conduct, by December 1, 1998, a study of the impacts of the
2-21 diversions of state water by mariculture facilities for the
2-22 commercial production of shrimp or any exotic species on the
2-23 aquatic life of Texas bays and estuaries.
2-24 (d) The commission shall by rule establish an annual fee for
2-25 the use of state waters by mariculture facilities engaged in the
2-26 commercial production of shrimp or any exotic species. The fee
2-27 shall be collected for the period of January 1, 1997 to December
3-1 31, 1998 and be based on the actual or estimated amount of water
3-2 taken from Texas bays and estuaries during this period. The fee
3-3 shall be set by the commission in an amount sufficient to recover
3-4 the estimated costs of the studies required in Subsections (b) and
3-5 (c) of this section and any costs associated with the assessment
3-6 and collection of the fee.
3-7 (e) Upon completion of the studies required under this
3-8 section, the commission shall publish the results of the study and
3-9 shall submit copies of the study to the Governor, Lt. Governor and
3-10 Speaker of the House.
3-11 (f) In this section the term "mariculture" has the meaning
3-12 assigned in Section 11.1421 of this code.
3-13 (g) All permits issued by the commission before the
3-14 effective date of this law for a discharge of any water or waste
3-15 waters from any existing or proposed mariculture facility for the
3-16 commercial production of shrimp or any exotic species located in a
3-17 county bordering on the Gulf of Mexico or bordering on the
3-18 tidewater limits of the Gulf shall expire on September 1, 1999 and
3-19 can only be renewed if it meets the standards and requirements of
3-20 the commission based on the study described in Subsection (b) of
3-21 this section.
3-22 SECTION 2. Chapter 26, Water Code, is amended by adding a
3-23 new Section 26.0286 to read as follows:
3-24 Sec. 26.0286. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN
3-25 MARICULTURE FACILITIES ALONG THE TEXAS COAST. (a) This section
3-26 applies to new and existing mariculture facilities designed for the
3-27 commercial production of any type of shrimp or exotic species of
4-1 aquatic life in any county bordering on the Gulf of Mexico or on
4-2 the tidewater limits of the Gulf.
4-3 (b) The commission by rule shall require that any facility
4-4 described in Subsection (a) of this section shall obtain an
4-5 individual permit for any discharge prior to construction of the
4-6 facility and that an application for such a permit must include the
4-7 following:
4-8 (1) a certification that a copy of the application has
4-9 been filed by the applicant with the Texas Parks and Wildlife
4-10 Department and the commissioners court for the county in which the
4-11 facility is or is proposed to be located prior to or concurrently
4-12 with the filing of the application with the commission;
4-13 (2) a copy of a resolution from the county and city,
4-14 if the facility is or will be located within the corporate limits
4-15 or extraterritorial jurisdiction of a city, in which the facility
4-16 is located indicating the position of that local government on the
4-17 permitting of the facility or, if the applicant is unable to get
4-18 such a resolution, the sworn documentation that the applicant made
4-19 reasonable attempts to obtain such a resolution(s) including the
4-20 description of the attempts made.
4-21 (3) an environmental report describing in detail
4-22 (A) the site selection process for the facility,
4-23 including alternative locations considered and the basis for
4-24 selecting the requested location;
4-25 (B) the design and operating plans for the
4-26 facility, including plans for disease control, waste water
4-27 management and prevention of the creation of nuisance conditions;
5-1 (C) the existing environmental conditions at the
5-2 proposed site, including conditions in waters of the state from
5-3 which any diversion of water is planned or into which a discharge
5-4 is proposed; and
5-5 (D) any potential impacts of water intake, waste
5-6 discharges, dredging and any other significant activity related to
5-7 the construction and operation of the facility on sensitive aquatic
5-8 habitats in the areas of the proposed site and alternative sites
5-9 that were evaluated.
5-10 All or a part of the requirements of this subsection for an
5-11 environmental report may be waived by the commission for
5-12 applications filed after January 1, 2002, if, by rule, the
5-13 commission provides for waiver and making a formal finding, based
5-14 on a factual record that, as a result of the development of
5-15 adequate experience and expertise, the commission is able to
5-16 adequately evaluate sites proposed for such facilities without all
5-17 or a part of the environmental reports.
5-18 (4) A description of the best management practices
5-19 that the applicant proposes for use in minimizing potential impacts
5-20 to the environment from activities including water intake and
5-21 entrainment, pond management at the facility for water and bottom
5-22 sediments, routine water exchange, management of water during
5-23 harvests, feeding regimes to minimize waste, and stocking
5-24 densities.
5-25 (c) The commission shall give priority in its application
5-26 review process to any application for a facility described in
5-27 Subsection (a) above if
6-1 (1) the governmental body of the county and city, if
6-2 any, in which the facility is located has passed a resolution
6-3 supporting the location and operations of the facility; or
6-4 (2) the facility has limited its request for
6-5 authorization to the production of native species of aquatic life,
6-6 and will stock with only commercially raised animals.
6-7 (d) The commission may grant a discharge permit to a
6-8 facility described in Subsection (a) above only if it finds:
6-9 (1) the discharge will not cause a violation of any
6-10 water quality standard or other appropriate requirements imposed
6-11 pursuant to this chapter;
6-12 (2) the operator of the facility will use appropriate
6-13 best management practices adequate to minimize adverse effects to
6-14 the environment;
6-15 (3) the applicant has made reasonable efforts to
6-16 locate the facility in a manner that minimizes adverse impacts on
6-17 sensitive aquatic habitats;
6-18 (4) the operator will post a bond or provide other
6-19 appropriate financial assurance to the benefit of the commission,
6-20 if the permit authorizes the production of any exotic species. The
6-21 amount of the financial assurance shall be sufficient to provide
6-22 the resources needed by the commission to quarantine the facility,
6-23 disinfect the facility of any viruses, dispose of any wastes and
6-24 return the land to a condition suitable for its prior uses, in case
6-25 of abandonment of the facility by the operator; and
6-26 (5) the permit provides
6-27 (A) a prohibition on any discharge of water from
7-1 a facility if any disease is suspected or confirmed in any exotic
7-2 species being raised or if the executive director or the executive
7-3 director of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department notifies the
7-4 operator in writing that there is good cause to suspect the
7-5 existence of disease at the facility. The prohibition must remain
7-6 in effect until the executive director of the Texas Parks and
7-7 Wildlife Department issues a written order that discharges can
7-8 begin;
7-9 (B) a requirement that any unit in the facility
7-10 in which disease has been identified must be put in a condition of
7-11 quarantine with no movement of water or animals to or from the unit
7-12 until a written approval for the movement of water or species to or
7-13 from the unit is issued by the executive director of the Texas
7-14 Parks and Wildlife Department; and
7-15 (C) notwithstanding Section 481.143(a) of the
7-16 Government Code, that the operator will comply with the best
7-17 management practices applicable to facilities subject to this
7-18 section as determined by the commission, including amendments to
7-19 those best management practices adopted by the commission during
7-20 the pendency of the permit.
7-21 (D) that the facility must have and implement a
7-22 disease monitoring and response plan that includes:
7-23 (i) a periodic disease monitoring program;
7-24 (ii) immediate reporting of any indication
7-25 of disease or detection of disease to the executive director and
7-26 the executive director of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department;
7-27 (iii) for any pond in which disease is
8-1 suspected or confirmed, provisions for the use of netting or other
8-2 similar steps to minimize the removal of diseased organisms by
8-3 birds and other animals; and
8-4 (iv) the immediate quarantine of any area
8-5 in which disease is suspected or confirmed to assure that there is
8-6 no release of water or animals from the area until authorized by
8-7 the executive director of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
8-8 (e) In this section, the term "mariculture" has the meaning
8-9 assigned to it in Section 11.1421 of this code.
8-10 (f) Construction of new facility or expansion of an existing
8-11 facility for the commercial production of shrimp or any exotic
8-12 species in any county bordering on the Gulf of Mexico or bordering
8-13 on the tidewater limits of the Gulf is prohibited until the permit
8-14 required under this chapter has been issued.
8-15 SECTION 3. Chapter 66, Parks and Wildlife Code, is amended
8-16 to add a new Section 66.0071 to read as follows:
8-17 Sec. 66.0071. LIMITATIONS ON ISSUANCE OF CERTAIN LICENSES
8-18 FOR EXOTIC SPECIES. No license or other authorizations may be
8-19 issued or renewed for the possession of any exotic species of
8-20 shrimp for purposes of commercial production in any county
8-21 bordering on the Gulf of Mexico or on the tidewater limits of the
8-22 Gulf unless the applicant for the license, renewal or other
8-23 authorization proves to the department through a letter from the
8-24 Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission stating that
8-25 facility to be used for commercial production
8-26 (a) has all required discharge permits or other
8-27 authorizations from the Texas Natural Resource Conservation
9-1 Commission for the discharge of waste waters from the production
9-2 facility or
9-3 (b) does not need a discharge permit or other authorization
9-4 since the production facility is adequately designed to operate
9-5 without any discharge of waste waters.
9-6 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
9-7 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
9-8 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
9-9 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
9-10 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
9-11 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
9-12 passage, and it is so enacted.