The Department of Environmental Protection published notice of the opportunity to comment on the draft 2010 Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report required to be completed by Section 303 (d) of the federal Clean Water Act.   Comments are due on the draft by May 3. (formal notice)

The report is comprised of four parts and also includes a five-part list that collectively summarizes the designated use attainment status of Commonwealth surface waters.  The federal Clean Water Act and 40 CFR Part 130 require states to identify waters which would still be impaired, even after the appropriate technology has been applied to point sources and requires best management practices are in place for non-point sources.  Waterbodies that do not meet water quality standards after this evaluation are placed on Category 5 of the Integrated Waterbody List.

For each waterbody in Category 5, the state or the USEPA must develop Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) allocations.   A TMDL is a calculation of the assimilative capacity of a waterbody to handle point and non-point pollutant loads without violating water quality standards.  TMDLs also describe the conditions necessary to improve water quality.   TMDLs are used to set limits in NPDES water quality permits and identify where best manangment practices for non-point sources are necessary to improve and protect water quality. When a TMDL is approved for a waterbody, that waterbody listing is moved to Categroy 4a.

Waterbody assessment and compilation of the Integrated Report is an ongoing process.  The Department will continue to verify the quality of the data used in this process and as needed, will publish supplements to the Integrated Report for public review and comment.

A copy of the draft assessment is available here.

Written comments should be submitted to Angela Bransteitter, Division of Water Quality Standards, Bureau of Water Standards and Facility Regulation, P.O. Box 8467, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8467 or send by email to: abransteit@state.pa.us.

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More changes Afoot!

Although Chapter 102 regs have always had relevance to stormwater management in Pennsylvania, these proposed changes bring 102 regs into the core of Pennsylvania’s stormwater management program.  They include new elements which have been discussed heatedly in recent months, including the Permit-By-Rule (PBR) option and required stream buffers.  Follow this link to get the complete package, including what is proposed, with some PADEP commentary.

The pro-environment Pennsylvania Campaign for Clean Water (CCW) urges citizens and interested groups concerned about clean water to sign up and provide testimony at the public hearings hosted by DEP, starting this week.

From the PA Bulletin:

Public Meetings and Public Hearings

The Board will hold three public meetings to explain the proposed rulemaking and to respond to questions from meeting participants. In addition to the public meetings, the Board will hold three public hearings for the purpose of accepting comments on the proposed rulemaking. The public meetings and hearings will be held as follows:

September 29, 2009	Cranberry Township Municipal Building 2525 Rochester Road Cranberry Township, PA    16066-6499 Public Meeting: 4 p.m. Public Hearing: 5 p.m.
October 1, 2009	Department of Environmental Protection Southcentral Regional Office Susquehanna Room A 909 Elmerton Avenue Harrisburg, PA 17110 Public Meeting: 4 p.m. Public Hearing: 5 p.m.
October 5, 2009	Salisbury Township Municipal Building 2900 South Pike Avenue Allentown, PA 18103 Public Meeting: 4 p.m. Public Hearing: 5 p.m.

Persons wishing to present testimony at a hearing are requested to contact the Environmental Quality Board, P. O. Box 8477, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8477, (717) 787-4526, at least 1 week in advance of the hearing to reserve a time to present testimony. Oral testimony is limited to 10 minutes for each witness. Witnesses are requested to submit three written copies of their oral testimony to the hearing chairperson at the hearing. Organizations are limited to designating one witness to present testimony on their behalf at each hearing.

Persons in need of accommodations as provided for in the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 should contact the Board at (717) 787-4526 or through the Pennsylvania AT&T Relay Service at (800) 654-5984 (TDD) to discuss how the Board may accommodate their needs.

The CCW has assembled a summary package that provides background information as well as commentary on what is being proposed and will be developing more detailed recommendations in coming weeks.

Get the Proposed Ch 102 Regs here.

Get CCW Talking Points here.

We will all be living with the consequences of these changes for many years…

We’d love to hear from you in terms of pros and cons — and what you think needs further work.

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