Monterey Coastkeeper v. Monterey Cnty. Water Res. Agency

*6 I. INTRODUCTION

Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA) is a flood control and water agency that was created by the Monterey County Water Resources Agency Act to control flood and storm waters within the County of Monterey and to conserve those waters for beneficial and useful purposes. (West's Ann. Wat. Appen. (2017) § 52-3 et seq.)

Monterey Coastkeeper, an entity self-described as "a program of The Otter Project, a non-profit organization," filed a verified petition for writ of mandate against MCWRA in the superior court. Monterey Coastkeeper alleged in the petition's first cause of action that MCWRA had violated the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act (Porter-Cologne Act; Wat. Code, § 13000 et seq. 1 ) by failing to file a report of waste discharge with respect to its discharges of agricultural pollutants into the Reclamation Ditch and the Blanco Drain. Monterey Coastkeeper also asserted a second cause of action for violation of section 13264 of the Porter-Cologne Act (failure to comply with regional board requirements for a new or changed waste discharge); a third cause of action for violation of section 13247 of the Porter-Cologne Act (failure to comply with…