Supplemental Environmental Projects

DTSC’s first Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) Policy was signed by Director Barbara A. Lee on May 5, 2016. Read the policy here.

This policy encourages projects that benefit California communities most burdened by environmental harm, and demonstrates DTSC’s commitment to environmental justice.

SEPs are projects that:

Improve the environment or public health; are voluntarily taken by a defendant in the settlement of an enforcement action; may offset a portion of a penalty; and go beyond compliance with legal requirements.

*** Please Note: CalEPA has requested that all project proposals be submitted through their form. CalEPA staff will then forward projects to the corresponding agencies. CalEPA’s form can be found at their website here: https://calepa.ca.gov/supplemental-environmental-projects/ ***

DTSC’s Accepted SEP List

DTSC would like to thank everyone who submitted comments, recommendations, and participated in the 2015 public workshops. Your feedback was instrumental in developing a policy that:

• Provides the option to allocate up to 50% of fines and penalties to a SEP;
• Prioritizes projects in communities where a violation occurred;
• Prioritizes projects in environmental justice communities and disadvantaged communities;
• Identifies federally recognized Native America tribes as potential recipients of SEPs; and
• Describes how to propose a SEP and requires a public process for soliciting potential projects.

  To stay updated on all future announcements about SEPs, please send an email to sep-comment@dtsc.ca.gov Thank you, Ana Mascareñas, MPH, Assistant Director for Environmental Justice and Tribal Affairs Abraham Zhan, Environmental Justice and Tribal Affairs Specialist  

SEP Policy

     Read DTSC’s SEP Policy  

News Releases

May 10, 2015

• New DTSC Policy Benefits Environmental Justice and Native American Communities
• Nueva política del DTSC beneficia la justicia ambiental y a las comunidades de nativos americanos

Community Involvement

The Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) completed the draft Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) Policy and held a 45 day public comment period from March 2 through April 17th, 2015. During the informal comment period, DTSC conducted five (5) public comment workshops located in Fresno, Los Angeles, Oakland, Brawley, and Monterey. The Workshops were purposed to present DTSC’s draft SEP Policy, to obtain the public’s comments and to learn of concerns relating to the Policy. A total of 73 members of the public attended the Workshops. DTSC posted on its web site: a bilingual Public Notice;Frequently Asked Questions about SEPS;request for special accommodations;and information on how to participate and provide public comments. The Public Notice was emailed to approximately 2,000 contacts, including over 175 tribal contacts. An email address, SEP-comment@dtsc.ca.gov, was created to receive public comments by email. Additionally, the Public Notice was featured on DTSC Newsfeed, and Twitter.

DTSC will continue conducting public outreach as the SEP Policy Implementation proceeds in order to increase transparency, inform the public about the progress of the SEP Policy Implementation, and gather feedback and input from the public through workshops and other public outreach events. Updates will be added below detailing the time and place as the planning of the events are finalized.  

Workshops

Contacts:

Background

DTSC’s SEP Policy is based on several foundational documents. These include:

• The US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) SEP Policy, issued in 1998.
• CalEPA guidance on SEPs developed in 2003.
• The State Water Resources Control Board Policy on SEPs issued in 2009.
• The 2014 Central Valley Regional Board Resolution.