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August 7, 1998
EPA to Replace TMDL Guidance and Restructure 40 CFR Part 130
At an August 5 meeting with AMSA representatives, Geoff Grubbs, director of EPA’s Assessment and Watershed Protection Division, briefed AMSA on the agency’s plans to put aside all existing policy and guidance on the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) program, and develop a new 90-100 page revised TMDL guidance. Grubbs also described plans to restructure 40 CFR Part 130 into three subparts to clarify regulatory requirements for TMDL development and state implementation programs. Grubbs indicated that the planned regulatory and guidance changes would be bundled into one proposal for public notice and comment this winter, with a goal of finalizing the changes in time for the next TMDL listing cycle. One of the major potential changes is modification of the TMDL listing cycles from the current 2-years to 3, 4, or 5-year cycles. During the discussions, AMSA highlighted some of its major concerns on TMDL allocation methods, minimum data requirements for listing and TMDL development, and new source constraints during listing and TMDL development. Grubbs solicited AMSA to suggest both regulatory and guidance language that may alleviate some of AMSA concerns. Representatives from AMSA’s Water Quality Committee are currently developing a response to the solicitation.
Mercury Data Sought from AMSA Member Agencies
Due to the application of stringent water quality criteria, POTWs in many parts of the country are being faced with, or will soon be faced with, very low mercury effluent limits. Agencies are concerned that compliance will require the application of advanced treatment, and that these costly controls may not have much impact on resolving water quality issues. At the same time, EPA is proclaiming that meeting these lower mercury levels should not be a problem for POTWs. EPA has stated that based on a study performed for nine POTWs in the Great Lakes states using new sampling and analytical methods, most POTWs should have mercury levels at 10 ppt or less, and that source control/pollution prevention (mainly controlling dentists and hospitals) will bring mercury levels down to the anticipated regulatory levels of 1 to 2 ppt. Because there is commonality in the problems facing POTWs with regard to mercury, AMSA believes a national strategy should be developed so that individual POTWs do not have to come up with an individual compliance solution. AMSA also believes EPA’s conclusions about mercury levels and the feasibility of source control may be inaccurate.
To further advocate the development of a national policy and to substantiate our concerns, AMSA has formed a Mercury Working Group that will prepare a series of white papers addressing a range of mercury issues. The first paper will present mercury profiles for POTWs by identifying the range of mercury concentrations in POTW effluent using data obtained with sensitive sampling/analytical methods for comparison to EPA data. While the Working Group has identified some AMSA members with these data, the entire membership is asked to provide data, if available. If your Agency has collected mercury data using sensitive sampling/analytical techniques, please complete the form below and return, via fax, to AMSA at 202/833-4657 by AUGUST 21, 1998. A Working Group member will contact you regarding your data at a later date.
Agency:______________________________________________________________________
Contact: _____________________________________ Phone: ______________________________
Method Detection Limits (please check): _____ <11 ng/l _____ 11-20 ng/l _____ 21-50 ng/l
Date Range of Effluent Data (optional): _________
Approximate Number of Data Points (optional): ______