On October 11 the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission authorized the publication of a report entitled “Effectiveness of Virginia’s Water Resource Planning and Management.” The report, requested by the 2015 General Assembly under HJR 623 (Hodges), is available at this link: http://jlarc.virginia.gov/landing-water.asp.
Here are some of the report’s legislative recommendations:
Require that regional water supply plans be developed that are aligned with water location and common water use.
Prescribe that the state plan should define how the state will (1) facilitate regional planning and (2) provide differentiated planning, policy, and technical assistance to each region.
Require that groundwater withdrawal permits in eastern Virginia primarily for human consumption be reviewed and approved prior to reviewing requests for all other types of use.
Require that no single permitted groundwater use in eastern Virginia may withdraw more than a specified percentage of total permitted withdrawal amounts.
Require an assessment of state resources needed to facilitate regional water planning, and a proposal for the state to take a more active role in water supply project planning.
VACo Contact: Larry Land, CAE