Editor’s note: Following is one in an ongoing series of profiles of the largest California state government agencies.
The California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) had a budget of $1,006,013 for the 2016-17 fiscal year; approximately $33,000 of that was allocated to administrative costs.
The SWRCB and the nine Regional Water Quality Control Boards under its oversight are collectively known as the California Water Boards. Under the federal Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, the State and Regional Water Boards protect the water quality of California’s lakes, bays, rivers and streams, and approximately 1,100 miles of coastline.
Among the databases the State Water Board regulates are the California Integrated Water Quality System (CIWQS), California Environmental Data Exchange Network (CEDEN), the Groundwater Ambient Monitoring & Assessment Program (GAMA) and the Storm Water Monitoring and Reporting Tracking System (SMARTS), an online database containing storm water permittee information and data.
Elizabeth Door, who was recently hired to the position of CISO for the SWRCB, says the agency will be looking at cybersecurity very carefully in the following months and hopes to use the groundwork that the state has already laid out in meeting California Department of Technology (CDT)-established goals.
“There’s a lot to do in a short period of time,” Door says. “Someone is always coming up with new ways to exploit the system, so we’ve got to stay on top.”
Door says she’s a “‘Proof is in the pudding’ kind of person,” and is looking forward to establishing a program and “seeing the product that comes from that.”
Door also discussed the possibility of SWRCB moving to or working with Amazon Web Services, a cloud-based solution, in the near future. For now, though, Door says the goal is to work within and use the framework already provided by the state and the CDT.
For more information about the SWRCB, visit its website at www.waterboards.ca.gov
Whom to Know:
Executive Director, SWRCB - Eileen Sobeck
Contact info: eileen.sobeck@waterboards.ca.gov
916-341-5615
fax: 916-341-5620
CSIO, SWRCB - Liz Door
Contact info: elizabeth.door@waterboards.ca.gov
SWRCB Office of Information Management and Analysis
Contact info: 916-319-0647
