Sec. 134.031. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING. (a) The department, the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, and the Parks and Wildlife Department shall enter into a memorandum of understanding for the regulation of matters related to aquaculture.
(b) The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, after receiving an application for a wastewater discharge authorization from an aquaculture facility, shall provide a copy of the application to the department and the Parks and Wildlife Department.
(c) The department, the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, and the Parks and Wildlife Department shall each appoint one member of a three-member application review committee to review the wastewater discharge authorization application to ensure that the proposed discharge will not adversely affect a bay, an estuary, or other waters in the state.
(d) The Parks and Wildlife Department, in consultation with the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, may establish general guidelines that identify sensitive aquatic habitat within the coastal zone. The general guidelines must include factors such as the presence of sea grass beds, depth of receiving waters, and amount of tidal exchange.
(e) If the Parks and Wildlife Department establishes the guidelines described in Subsection (d), the Parks and Wildlife Department must provide the guidelines to the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission and the department.
(f) If the Parks and Wildlife Department has established the guidelines described in Subsection (d), the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission must consider the guidelines when reviewing wastewater discharge authorization applications for new aquaculture facilities located within the coastal zone, or expansion of existing facilities located within the coastal zone if the expansion will increase the amount of discharge, or change the nature of the discharge, above levels allowed by the wastewater discharge permit.
(g) In developing the guidelines under Subsection (d) applicable to aquaculture facilities engaged in the production of shrimp in the coastal zone, the Parks and Wildlife Department, in consultation with the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, shall consider the best management practices that the facilities developed under the direction of the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission.
(h) In the development of siting guidelines for aquaculture facilities engaged in the production of shrimp in the coastal zone, the best management practices developed by the facilities shall be considered.
Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1239, Sec. 6, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.
Section: Previous 134.005 134.006 134.011 134.012 134.013 134.014 134.015 134.016 134.017 134.018 134.019 134.020 134.021 134.022 134.023Last modified: September 28, 2016