California-American Water Company/Marina Public Outreach

The Commission manages four million acres of tide and submerged lands and the beds of natural navigable rivers, streams, lakes, bays, estuaries, inlets, and straits along with other proprietary lands throughout the state. The boundary of the Commission’s jurisdiction at the Cal-Am site is the Ordinary High Water Mark (OHWM) as generally shown by the mean high tide line. Cal-Am’s existing test slant well extends approximately 196 feet below the surface onto sovereign land. The four proposed slant wells would extend approximately 129 to 162 feet onto sovereign land.

All other project components are landward of the OHWM and outside of the Commission’s jurisdiction, including most of the subsurface slant wells, slant well pads, associated water transmission pipelines, the desalination facility, and related infrastructure.

Cal-Am has applied to the Commission for a General Lease – Right-of-Way Use for the construction and use of four new subsurface slant wells and the conversion and use of one existing subsurface slant well for use in Cal-Am’s seawater desalination plant.

The Commission will consider whether to approve or deny a lease for the portions of the slant wells within its jurisdiction after the California Public Utilities Commission issues a final ruling regarding the longer-term water supply and demand estimates as to whether additional water supplies will be needed beyond what the Pure Water Expansion will provide (CPUC Application/Proceeding No. 21-11-024). The Commission’s consideration of a new lease may occur in early to mid-2025.

Cal-Am has been using the upland area under a legal right granted by the private upland landowner, RMC Pacific Materials (d/b/a CEMEX). The landowner granted several easements to Cal-Am, beginning with a temporary, 24-month easement to Cal-Am in 2014 that was later amended to extend the use period until February 28, 2018. The landowner granted a permanent easement to Cal-Am in 2018. The easement allows for “accessing, constructing, installing, operating, and maintaining slant wells and related pipelines and utilities for a desalination facility to be constructed by Grantee [Cal-Am], including such items as wellhead vaults, underground electrical conduit, underground water transmission pipelines, electrical panels, and related appurtenances, as well as signs, markers, and similar notices and warnings as may be necessary to identify the location of any underground pipelines, utilities, or equipment.”

No. While the Commission is in some situations an owner of water rights associated with the lands it owns, it does not regulate water rights. Surface water rights and groundwater right determinations are under the purview of the  State Water Resources Control Board. For this reason, the Commission will not determine whether Cal-Am has a legal right to withdraw subsurface water.

The State Water Resources Control Board Administrative Hearing Office has a pending proceeding regarding whether Cal-Am’s proposed subsurface water withdrawals would be subject to the state’s water rights provisions. (a description of the proceeding see the Notice of Assignment and Status Conference. For a list of related filings see the State Water Resources Control Board Administrative Hearings Office.

The upland property is privately owned by RMC Pacific Materials (d/b/a CEMEX). Staff’s understanding is that some areas of the beach are under periodic access restrictions during the Snowy Plover nesting season.

In 2017, the Coastal Commission and the State Lands Commission negotiated a Settlement Agreement under which CEMEX ceased beach sand mining on its property. The agreement requires CEMEX to eventually transfer the land associated with its former beach sand mining operation to a nonprofit or governmental entity or consortium approved by the Commission in consultation with the City of Marina. This land transfer has not occurred, but may occur before or after CEMEX completes mine reclamation required by the Surface Mining and Reclamation Act. Before the land is transferred, it must be placed under a deed restriction “to preserve the open space and habitat values of the property” that allows for public access. The agreement does not supersede or interfere with Cal-Am’s rights or obligations under it's existing easement granted by CEMEX (see above, What right does Cal-Am have to use the upland and beach area?). Any open space or recreation uses for the site must be consistent with the easement.