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AN ACT Relating to weed control; amending RCW 90.58.030, 17.10.010, and 90.48.020; adding a new section to chapter 90.48 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 75.20 RCW; adding a new chapter to Title 17 RCW; and declaring an emergency.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that:

(1) Spartina alterniflora, Spartina anglica, Spartina x townsendii, and Spartina patens which are collectively called spartina are not native to the state of Washington nor to the west coast of North America. This noxious weed was inadvertently introduced into the wetlands of the state and is now aggressively invading new areas to the detriment of native ecosystems and aquatic habitat. The spread of spartina threatens to permanently convert and displace native freshwater and saltwater wetlands and intertidal zones, including critical habitat for migratory birds, many fish species, bivalves, invertebrates, marine mammals, and other animals. The continued spread of spartina will permanently reduce the diversity and the quantity of these species and will have a significant negative environmental impact.

Spartina poses a significant hydrological threat. Clumps and meadows of spartina are dense environments that bind sediments and lift the intertidal gradient up out of the intertidal zone through time. This process reduces flows during flood conditions, raises flood levels, and significantly alters the hydrological regime of estuarine areas.

Spartina spreads by rhizomes and seed production. Through lateral growth by rhizomes, spartina establishes a dense monotypic meadow. Through seed production and the spread of seed through the air and by water, spartina is currently being spread to other states and to Canadian provinces.

(2) Purple loosestrife was first documented in the state in 1929 along freshwater shorelands. It is now present throughout the state and is particularly abundant in Grant county and its neighboring counties. The plant appears to be colonizing more rapidly on the eastern side of the state than on the western side. It was first introduced to the Winchester Wasteway area in the 1960's and has invaded the area rapidly. Purple loosestrife is displacing native plants and as a result is threatening an extremely important part of this state's wildlife habitat. Lythrum salicaria and L. virgatum are closely related loosestrife species that are morphologically similar and not easily distinguished from each other in the field. Both species have been referred to as purple loosestrife.

(3) Current laws and rules designed to protect the environment and preserve the wetland habitats, fish, and wildlife of the state are not designed to respond to an ecosystem-wide threat of this kind. State and federal agencies, local governments, weed boards, concerned individuals, and property owners attempting to deal with the ecological emergency posed by spartina and purple loosestrife infestations have been frustrated by interagency disagreements, demands for an undue amount of procedural and scientific process and information, dilatory appeals, and the improper application of laws and regulations by agencies that have in fact undermined the legislative purposes of those same laws while ignoring the long-term implications of delay and inaction. There is a compelling need for strong leadership, coordination, and reporting by a single state agency to respond appropriately to this urgent environmental challenge.

Any further delay of control efforts will significantly increase the cost of spartina and purple loosestrife control and reduce the likelihood of long-term success. Control efforts must be coordinated across political and ownership boundaries in order to be effective.

(4) The presence of noxious weeds on public lands constitutes a public nuisance and negatively impacts public and private lands. The legislature finds that control and eradication of noxious weeds on private lands is in the public interest.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. This state is facing an environmental disaster that will affect other states as well as other nations. The legislature finds that six years is sufficient time for state agencies to debate solutions to the spartina and purple loosestrife problems that are occurring in state waters. One of the purposes of this act is to focus agency action on control and future eradication of spartina and purple loosestrife. It is the mandate of the legislature that one state agency, the department of agriculture, be responsible for a unified effort to eliminate spartina and control purple loosestrife, with the advice of the state noxious weed control board, and that state agency shall be directly accountable to the legislature on the progress of the spartina eradication and purple loosestrife control program.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 90.48 RCW to read as follows:

(1) The director shall issue or approve water quality permits for use by federal, state, or local governmental agencies and licensed applicators for the purpose of using, for aquatic noxious weed control, herbicides and surfactants registered under state or federal pesticide control laws. The issuance of the permits shall be subject only to compliance with: Federal and state pesticide label requirements, the requirements of the federal insecticide, fungicide, and rodenticide act, the Washington pesticide control act, the Washington pesticide application act, and the state environmental policy act; and applicable requirements established in an option or options recommended for controlling the noxious weed by a final environmental impact statement published under chapter 43.21C RCW by the department prior to the effective date of this section, by the department of agriculture, or by the department of agriculture jointly with other state agencies. This section may not be construed as requiring the preparation of a new environmental impact statement to replace a final environmental impact statement published before the effective date of this section.

(2) The director of ecology may not utilize this permit authority to otherwise condition or burden weed control efforts. The director's authority to issue water quality modification permits for activities other than the application of surfactants and approved herbicides, to control aquatic noxious weeds, is unaffected by this section.

(3) As used in this section, "aquatic noxious weed" means an aquatic weed on the state noxious weed list adopted under RCW 17.10.080.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter 75.20 RCW to read as follows:

(1) An activity conducted solely for the removal or control of spartina shall not require hydraulic project approval.

(2) An activity conducted solely for the removal or control of purple loosestrife and which is performed with hand-held tools, hand-held equipment, or equipment carried by a person when used shall not require hydraulic project approval.

(3) By June 30, 1997, the department of fish and wildlife shall develop rules for projects conducted solely for the removal or control of various aquatic noxious weeds other than spartina and purple loosestrife and for activities or projects for controlling purple loosestrife not covered by subsection (2) of this section, which projects will use, divert, obstruct, or change the natural flow or bed of any of the salt or fresh waters of the state. Following the adoption of the rules, the department shall produce and distribute a pamphlet describing the methods of removing or controlling the aquatic noxious weeds that are approved under the rules. The pamphlet serves as the hydraulic project approval for any project that is conducted solely for the removal or control of such aquatic noxious weeds and that is conducted as described in the pamphlet; no further hydraulic project approval is required for such a project.

From time to time as information becomes available, the department shall adopt similar rules for additional aquatic noxious weeds or additional activities for removing or controlling aquatic noxious weeds not governed by subsection (1) or (2) of this section and shall produce and distribute one or more pamphlets describing these methods of removal or control. Such a pamphlet serves as the hydraulic project approval for any project that is conducted solely for the removal or control of such aquatic noxious weeds and that is conducted as described in the pamphlet; no further hydraulic project approval is required for such a project.

(4) As used in this section, "spartina," "purple loosestrife," and "aquatic noxious weeds" have the meanings prescribed by section 12 of this act.

(5) Nothing in this section shall prohibit the department of fish and wildlife from requiring a hydraulic project approval for those parts of hydraulic projects that are not specifically for the control or removal of spartina, purple loosestrife, or other aquatic noxious weeds.

Sec. 5. RCW 90.58.030 and 1987 c 474 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires, the following definitions and concepts apply:

(1) Administration:

(a) "Department" means the department of ecology;

(b) "Director" means the director of the department of ecology;

(c) "Local government" means any county, incorporated city, or town which contains within its boundaries any lands or waters subject to this chapter;

(d) "Person" means an individual, partnership, corporation, association, organization, cooperative, public or municipal corporation, or agency of the state or local governmental unit however designated;

(e) "Hearing board" means the shoreline hearings board established by this chapter.

(2) Geographical:

(a) "Extreme low tide" means the lowest line on the land reached by a receding tide;

(b) "Ordinary high water mark" on all lakes, streams, and tidal water is that mark that will be found by examining the bed and banks and ascertaining where the presence and action of waters are so common and usual, and so long continued in all ordinary years, as to mark upon the soil a character distinct from that of the abutting upland, in respect to vegetation as that condition exists on June 1, 1971, as it may naturally change thereafter, or as it may change thereafter in accordance with permits issued by a local government or the department: PROVIDED, That in any area where the ordinary high water mark cannot be found, the ordinary high water mark adjoining salt water shall be the line of mean higher high tide and the ordinary high water mark adjoining fresh water shall be the line of mean high water;

(c) "Shorelines of the state" are the total of all "shorelines" and "shorelines of state-wide significance" within the state;

(d) "Shorelines" means all of the water areas of the state, including reservoirs, and their associated wetlands, together with the lands underlying them; except (i) shorelines of state-wide significance; (ii) shorelines on segments of streams upstream of a point where the mean annual flow is twenty cubic feet per second or less and the wetlands associated with such upstream segments; and (iii) shorelines on lakes less than twenty acres in size and wetlands associated with such small lakes;

(e) "Shorelines of state-wide significance" means the following shorelines of the state:

(i) The area between the ordinary high water mark and the western boundary of the state from Cape Disappointment on the south to Cape Flattery on the north, including harbors, bays, estuaries, and inlets;

(ii) Those areas of Puget Sound and adjacent salt waters and the Strait of Juan de Fuca between the ordinary high water mark and the line of extreme low tide as follows:

(A) Nisqually Delta‑-from DeWolf Bight to Tatsolo Point,

(B) Birch Bay‑-from Point Whitehorn to Birch Point,

(D) Skagit Bay and adjacent area‑-from Brown Point to Yokeko Point, and

(E) Padilla Bay‑-from March Point to William Point;

(iii) Those areas of Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca and adjacent salt waters north to the Canadian line and lying seaward from the line of extreme low tide;

(iv) Those lakes, whether natural, artificial, or a combination thereof, with a surface acreage of one thousand acres or more measured at the ordinary high water mark;

(v) Those natural rivers or segments thereof as follows:

(A) Any west of the crest of the Cascade range downstream of a point where the mean annual flow is measured at one thousand cubic feet per second or more,

(B) Any east of the crest of the Cascade range downstream of a point where the annual flow is measured at two hundred cubic feet per second or more, or those portions of rivers east of the crest of the Cascade range downstream from the first three hundred square miles of drainage area, whichever is longer;

(vi) Those wetlands associated with (i), (ii), (iv), and (v) of this subsection (2)(e);

(f) "Wetlands" or "wetland areas" means those lands extending landward for two hundred feet in all directions as measured on a horizontal plane from the ordinary high water mark; floodways and contiguous floodplain areas landward two hundred feet from such floodways; and all marshes, bogs, swamps, and river deltas associated with the streams, lakes, and tidal waters which are subject to the provisions of this chapter; the same to be designated as to location by the department of ecology: PROVIDED, That any county or city may determine that portion of a one-hundred-year-flood plain to be included in its master program as long as such portion includes, as a minimum, the floodway and the adjacent land extending landward two hundred feet therefrom;

(g) "Floodway" means those portions of the area of a river valley lying streamward from the outer limits of a watercourse upon which flood waters are carried during periods of flooding that occur with reasonable regularity, although not necessarily annually, said floodway being identified, under normal condition, by changes in surface soil conditions or changes in types or quality of vegetative ground cover condition. The floodway shall not include those lands that can reasonably be expected to be protected from flood waters by flood control devices maintained by or maintained under license from the federal government, the state, or a political subdivision of the state.

(3) Procedural terms:

(a) "Guidelines" means those standards adopted to implement the policy of this chapter for regulation of use of the shorelines of the state prior to adoption of master programs. Such standards shall also provide criteria to local governments and the department in developing master programs;

(b) "Master program" shall mean the comprehensive use plan for a described area, and the use regulations together with maps, diagrams, charts, or other descriptive material and text, a statement of desired goals, and standards developed in accordance with the policies enunciated in RCW 90.58.020;

(c) "State master program" is the cumulative total of all master programs approved or adopted by the department of ecology;

(d) "Development" means a use consisting of the construction or exterior alteration of structures; dredging; drilling; dumping; filling; removal of any sand, gravel, or minerals; bulkheading; driving of piling; placing of obstructions; or any project of a permanent or temporary nature which interferes with the normal public use of the surface of the waters overlying lands subject to this chapter at any state of water level;

(e) "Substantial development" shall mean any development of which the total cost or fair market value exceeds two thousand five hundred dollars, or any development which materially interferes with the normal public use of the water or shorelines of the state; except that the following shall not be considered substantial developments for the purpose of this chapter:

(i) Normal maintenance or repair of existing structures or developments, including damage by accident, fire, or elements;

(ii) Construction of the normal protective bulkhead common to single family residences;

(iii) Emergency construction necessary to protect property from damage by the elements;

(iv) Construction and practices normal or necessary for farming, irrigation, and ranching activities, including agricultural service roads and utilities on wetlands, and the construction and maintenance of irrigation structures including but not limited to head gates, pumping facilities, and irrigation channels: PROVIDED, That a feedlot of any size, all processing plants, other activities of a commercial nature, alteration of the contour of the wetlands by leveling or filling other than that which results from normal cultivation, shall not be considered normal or necessary farming or ranching activities. A feedlot shall be an enclosure or facility used or capable of being used for feeding livestock hay, grain, silage, or other livestock feed, but shall not include land for growing crops or vegetation for livestock feeding and/or grazing, nor shall it include normal livestock wintering operations;

(v) Construction or modification of navigational aids such as channel markers and anchor buoys;

(vi) Construction on wetlands by an owner, lessee, or contract purchaser of a single family residence for his own use or for the use of his family, which residence does not exceed a height of thirty-five feet above average grade level and which meets all requirements of the state agency or local government having jurisdiction thereof, other than requirements imposed pursuant to this chapter;

(vii) Construction of a dock, including a community dock, designed for pleasure craft only, for the private noncommercial use of the owner, lessee, or contract purchaser of single and multiple family residences, the cost of which does not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars;

(viii) Operation, maintenance, or construction of canals, waterways, drains, reservoirs, or other facilities that now exist or are hereafter created or developed as a part of an irrigation system for the primary purpose of making use of system waters, including return flow and artificially stored ground water for the irrigation of lands;

(ix) The marking of property lines or corners on state owned lands, when such marking does not significantly interfere with normal public use of the surface of the water;

(x) Operation and maintenance of any system of dikes, ditches, drains, or other facilities existing on September 8, 1975, which were created, developed, or utilized primarily as a part of an agricultural drainage or diking system;

(xi) Any action commenced prior to December 31, 1982, pertaining to (A) the restoration of interim transportation services as may be necessary as a consequence of the destruction of the Hood Canal bridge, including, but not limited to, improvements to highways, development of park and ride facilities, and development of ferry terminal facilities until a new or reconstructed Hood Canal bridge is open to traffic; and (B) the reconstruction of a permanent bridge at the site of the original Hood Canal bridge;

(xii) The process of removing or controlling an aquatic noxious weed, as defined in section 12 of this act, through the use of an herbicide or other treatment methods applicable to weed control that are recommended by a final environmental impact statement published by the department of agriculture or the department jointly with other state agencies under chapter 43.21C RCW.

Sec. 6. RCW 17.10.010 and 1987 c 438 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

Unless a different meaning is plainly required by the context, the following words and phrases as hereinafter used in this chapter shall have the following meanings:

(1) "Noxious weed" means any plant which when established is highly destructive, competitive, or difficult to control by cultural or chemical practices.

(2) "State noxious weed list" means a list of noxious weeds adopted by the state noxious weed control board which list is divided into three classes:

(a) Class A shall consist of those noxious weeds not native to the state that are of limited distribution or are unrecorded in the state and that pose a serious threat to the state;

(b) Class B shall consist of those noxious weeds not native to the state that are of limited distribution or are unrecorded in a region of the state and that pose a serious threat to that region;

(3) "Person" means any individual, partnership, corporation, firm, the state or any department, agency, or subdivision thereof, or any other entity.

(4) "Owner" means the person in actual control of property, or his agent, whether such control is based on legal or equitable title or on any other interest entitling the holder to possession and, for purposes of liability, pursuant to RCW 17.10.170 or 17.10.210, means the possessor of legal or equitable title or the possessor of an easement: PROVIDED, That when the possessor of an easement has the right to control or limit the growth of vegetation within the boundaries of an easement, only the possessor of such easement shall be deemed, for the purpose of this chapter, an "owner" of the property within the boundaries of such easement.

(5) As pertains to the duty of an owner, the words "control", "contain", "eradicate", and the term "prevent the spread of noxious weeds" shall mean conforming to the standards of noxious weed control or prevention adopted by rule or regulation by the state noxious weed control board and an activated county noxious weed control board.

(6) "Agent" means any occupant or any other person acting for the owner and working or in charge of the land.

(7) "Agricultural purposes" are those which are intended to provide for the growth and harvest of food and fiber.

(8) "Director" means the director of the department of agriculture or the director's appointed representative.

(9) "Weed district" means a weed district as defined in chapters 17.04 and 17.06 RCW.

(10) "Aquatic noxious weed" means an aquatic plant species that is listed on the state weed list under RCW 17.10.080.

Sec. 7. RCW 90.48.020 and 1987 c 109 s 122 are each amended to read as follows:

Whenever the word "person" is used in this chapter, it shall be construed to include any political subdivision, government agency, municipality, industry, public or private corporation, copartnership, association, firm, individual or any other entity whatsoever.

Wherever the words "waters of the state" shall be used in this chapter, they shall be construed to include lakes, rivers, ponds, streams, inland waters, underground waters, salt waters and all other surface waters and watercourses within the jurisdiction of the state of Washington.

Whenever the word "pollution" is used in this chapter, it shall be construed to mean such contamination, or other alteration of the physical, chemical or biological properties, of any waters of the state, including change in temperature, taste, color, turbidity, or odor of the waters, or such discharge of any liquid, gaseous, solid, radioactive, or other substance into any waters of the state as will or is likely to create a nuisance or render such waters harmful, detrimental or injurious to the public health, safety or welfare, or to domestic, commercial, industrial, agricultural, recreational, or other legitimate beneficial uses, or to livestock, wild animals, birds, fish or other aquatic life.

Wherever the word "department" is used in this chapter it shall mean the department of ecology.

Whenever the word "director" is used in this chapter it shall mean the director of ecology.

Whenever the words "aquatic noxious weed" are used in this chapter, they have the meaning prescribed under section 12 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. State agencies and local governments may not use any other local, state, or federal permitting requirement, regulatory authority, or legal mechanism to override the legislative intent and statutory mandates of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. Spartina removal shall include restoration to return intertidal land and other infested lands to the condition found on adjacent unaffected lands in the same tidal elevation. The department of fish and wildlife, the department of ecology, the department of agriculture, and the department of natural resources shall develop a restoration plan in cooperation with owners of spartina infested lands and shall submit the plan to the appropriate standing committees of the house of representatives and the senate by December 31, 1995.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. (1) The state department of agriculture is the lead agency for the control of spartina and purple loosestrife with the advice of the state noxious weed control board.

(2) Responsibilities of the lead agency include:

(a) Coordination of the control program including memorandums of understanding, contracts, and agreements with local, state, federal, and tribal governmental entities and private parties;

(b) Preparation of a state-wide spartina management plan utilizing integrated vegetation management strategies that encompass all of Washington's tidelands. The plan shall be developed in cooperation with local, state, federal, and tribal governments, private landowners, and concerned citizens. The plan shall prioritize areas for control. Nothing in this subsection prohibits the department from taking action to control spartina in a particular area of the state in accordance with a plan previously prepared by the state while preparing the state-wide plan;

(c) Directing on the ground control efforts that include, but are not limited to: (i) Control work and contracts; (ii) spartina survey; (iii) collection and maintenance of spartina location data; (iv) purchasing equipment, goods, and services; (v) survey of threatened and endangered species; and (vi) site-specific environmental information and documents; and

(d) Evaluating the effectiveness of the control efforts.

The lead agency shall report to the appropriate standing committees of the house of representatives and the senate no later than May 15th and December 15th of each year through the year 1999 on the progress of the program, the number of acres treated by various methods of control, and on the funds spent.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. This section applies to appropriations made to the department of agriculture specifically for the removal or control of spartina or purple loosestrife or both plants. The legislature finds that: The presence of spartina or purple loosestrife on private lands threatens wildlife habitat and provides a source of renewed infestation for public lands; and effective eradication or control of spartina or purple loosestrife requires concerted efforts on both public and private lands to protect public resources. The department of agriculture may grant funds to other state agencies, local governments, and nonprofit corporations for eradication or control purposes and may use those moneys itself. The department of agriculture may match private funds for eradication or control programs on private property on a fifty-fifty matching basis. The accounting and supervision of the funds at the local level shall be conducted by the department of agriculture.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. (1) Facilitating the control of spartina and purple loosestrife is a high priority for all state agencies.

(2) The department of natural resources is responsible for spartina and purple loosestrife control on state-owned aquatic lands managed by the department of natural resources.

(3) The department of fish and wildlife is responsible for spartina and purple loosestrife control on state-owned aquatic lands managed by the department of fish and wildlife.

(4) The state parks and recreation commission is responsible for spartina and purple loosestrife control on state-owned aquatic lands managed by the state parks and recreation commission.

(5) Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this subsection apply throughout this chapter, RCW 90.48.020, 90.58.030, and section 4 of this act:

(a) "Spartina" means Spartina alterniflora, Spartina anglica, Spartina x townsendii, and Spartina patens.

(b) "Purple loosestrife" means Lythrum salicaria and Lythrum virgatum.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 13. Sections 1, 2, and 8 through 12 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 17 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 14. If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 15. This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect immediately.