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To: Members & Affiliates
From: National Office
Date: July 7, 1998
Re: RA 98-13

Strategy For The Development Of Regional Nutrient Criteria

Attached is EPA's recently released National Strategy for the Development of Regional Nutrient Criteria which outlines a process and approach for the development of numeric criteria for nutrients and adoption of nutrient provisions of state water quality standards. The strategy was developed primarily to address key action items in the President's Clean Water Action Plan (Regulatory Alert RA 98-3) which calls on EPA to accelerate the development of scientific information concerning the levels of nutrients that cause water quality problems and to work with states to adopt criteria for nutrients, including nitrogen and phosphorus, as part of enforceable state water quality standards.

Under the approach described in the new nutrient strategy, EPA will develop nutrient guidance documents for various types of waterbodies (e.g. rivers, lakes, coastal waters, and wetlands) over the next several years. States will be able to use these guidance documents as they develop numeric criteria for nutrients as part of state water quality standards. EPA expects states to develop and adopt numeric levels for nutrients by the end of 2003.

EPA has formed a National Nutrient Team to guide the nutrient criteria development process and is forming Regional Nutrient Teams in each EPA region. Regional nutrient teams are to include federal, state, and local representatives to develop nutrient databases and targets ranges for criteria development.

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