Fish and Wildlife and water rules for licensed cannabis growers

For adults 21+ in California's legal market. CannaTrender does not sell cannabis.

Two state agencies besides the Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) shape how a licensed cultivation site handles water: the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and the State Water Resources Control Board. Both have paperwork DCC expects to see [10]. This page covers the basics and where to find the official forms.

CDFW: Lake or Streambed Alteration (LSA)

CDFW explains that Fish and Game Code section 1602 requires any person, agency or utility to notify CDFW before beginning any activity that may [1][2]:

• divert or obstruct the natural flow of any river, stream or lake;
• change the bed, channel or bank of any river, stream or lake;
• use material from any river, stream or lake; or
• deposit or dispose of material into any river, stream or lake.

The statute itself is written in terms of activities that "substantially" divert, obstruct or change a waterway [1]. CDFW notes that "any river, stream, or lake" includes ones that are dry for part of the year, and if you are not sure whether an activity needs notification, it recommends you notify [2]. An LSA Agreement is required when CDFW determines that the activity will substantially alter a river, stream or lake and may substantially adversely affect existing fish or wildlife resources [2]. CDFW's cannabis General Agreement (below) is built around two such activities: stream crossings and water diversions [3].

What DCC needs from CDFW

To get an annual cultivation license from DCC, a grower must have either a final LSA Agreement or written verification from CDFW that one is not needed [3][10]. CDFW's final documents get uploaded to DCC's licensing portal [3]. If an agreement has expired or will expire before renewal, or the project has changed since you received a "not needed" letter, CDFW asks you to bring the documentation up to date [3].

The three cannabis agreement options

When you notify CDFW about a cannabis project, you choose one of three types [3]:

• Self-Certification. For projects you believe will not substantially modify any river, stream or lake. No fee. CDFW reviews it and either asks for a notification or sends written verification that no agreement is required. If any part of your cultivation is outdoors, you are not eligible for self-certification.
• Standard Agreement. For projects that do not fit another agreement type. Regular term is 5 years or less; long-term agreements run longer.
• General Agreement for Cannabis Cultivation. Only for building, rebuilding, maintaining or repairing stream crossings (bridge, culvert or rock ford) and water diversions on rivers, streams and lakes without finfish. It is exempt from CEQA, expires 5 years after it takes effect, and cannot be amended or extended.

All three are submitted through CDFW's online Environmental Permit Information Management System (EPIMS) [3]. CDFW also offers the "Cannabis LSA Documentation Identification Tool," a series of yes/no questions that ends with a recommendation for the right document [3][4]. When all authorized work is finished, you may be eligible for a Letter of Completed Work [3].

What CDFW charges

• Self-Certification: no fee [3].
• Standard Agreement, 5 years or less: the fee depends on the cost of each project, from $770.75 (under $5,000) to $6,867.25 ($350,000 or more), for notifications received on or after January 1, 2026 [8]. Longer-term agreements add a $9,270.75 base fee [8].
• General Agreement: the same fee you would pay for a Standard Agreement of 5 years or less, plus a remediation fee if one applies [8][9].

CDFW updated its LSA fee schedule on January 1, 2026 [8]. Check the current schedule, or let EPIMS calculate the fee, before you submit.

State Water Board: water quality

The State Water Board adopted its Cannabis Cultivation Policy and a statewide General Order for cannabis cultivation discharges in 2017, updated them in 2019, and readopted the General Order on November 7, 2023 [5]. The current General Order is Order No. WQ 2023-0102-DWQ [5]. The Board states that "compliance with the Cannabis Policy is required to obtain a license from the Department of Cannabis Control" [5]. Growers apply for coverage online and pay a fee, receive a Notice of Applicability, and then file annual monitoring reports through the Board's portal [5]. DCC accepts that Notice of Applicability as evidence of enrollment [10].

State Water Board: water rights and the dry season

• Surface water needs a water right. "All cannabis cultivators that plan to divert surface water need a water right to irrigate cannabis" [6].
• Forbearance period. The Cannabis Policy prohibits diverting surface water for cannabis from April 1 through October 31 each year. Water for the dry season must be diverted to off-stream storage during the wet season [6].
• Cannabis Small Irrigation Use Registration (SIUR). A streamlined way to get a small appropriative right, under 6.6 acre-feet per year, to divert and store surface water for commercial cannabis. It is not available on Wild and Scenic rivers, fully appropriated streams, or within a CDFW Instream Flow Study area, and it carries an initial registration fee and annual fees; check the Board's water right fees page for current amounts [6].
• Domestic registrations do not cover cannabis. A Small Domestic Use Registration does not allow commercial cannabis irrigation [6].
• Your DCC application must say where the water comes from. For a surface-water diversion, that means the point of diversion, the maximum amount, and documentation covering the diversion, such as a small irrigation use registration, a water right permit or license, or a filed statement of diversion and use [7].

Where to look things up

• CDFW cannabis permitting: https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Cannabis/Permitting
• CDFW LSA program and EPIMS: https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Environmental-Review/LSA
• CDFW LSA fees: https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Environmental-Review/LSA/Fees
• Water Board cannabis program home: https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/cannabis/
• General questions to CDFW: AskCannabis@wildlife.ca.gov (published on [3])

Sources (retrieved 2026-10-04)

1. Fish and Game Code §1602(a). https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=FGC&sectionNum=1602.
2. CDFW, "Lake and Streambed Alteration Program." https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Environmental-Review/LSA
3. CDFW, "Cannabis Cultivation Permitting." https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Cannabis/Permitting
4. CDFW, "Cannabis LSA Documentation Identification Tool." https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Cannabis/Permitting/Guide
5. State Water Resources Control Board, "Cannabis Cultivation Water Quality." https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/cannabis/cannabis_water_quality.html
6. State Water Resources Control Board, "Cannabis Cultivation Water Rights." https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/cannabis/cannabis_water_rights.html
7. Business and Professions Code §26060.1(a). https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=BPC&sectionNum=26060.1.
8. CDFW, "Lake and Streambed Alteration Fees," and the linked Cal. Code Regs., tit. 14, §699.5 (effective January 1, 2026). https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Environmental-Review/LSA/Fees ; PDF: https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=239875&inline
9. CDFW, "General Lake or Streambed Alteration Agreement for Activities Related to Cannabis Cultivation," Cal. Code Regs., tit. 14, §722 (linked from [3]). https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=155627&inline
10. DCC, "Medicinal & Adult Use Cannabis Regulations" (revised July 1, 2026), §15011(a)(3) and (a)(8). https://cdn.cannabis.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/08/dcc_regulations_20260701.pdf

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