Member Pipeline - Fax Alerts - September 5, 2003
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September 5, 2003
AMSA, EPA Move Closer on Reclassification of Chlorine Gas as Restricted Pesticide
On Tuesday, AMSA staff, the Association of State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Administrators, the Water Environment Federation, and the Association of Boards of Certification, met with Frank Saunders, Director of the Antimicrobial Division in EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs, as well as key staff from EPA's Office of Wastewater Management and others to discuss the potential reclassification of chlorine gas as a restricted use pesticide. Based in part on AMSA’s input that classifying publicly owned treatment work (POTW) use of chlorine gas to disinfect wastewater as a “restricted use” would lead to duplicative and burdensome licensing requirements, EPA seems likely to modify its position and has agreed to consider allowing POTW employees that are certified by their states as wastewater operators to use and handle chlorine gas. This would allow the state wastewater operator certification to serve as a “surrogate” for the federal licensing requirements under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act. EPA officials stated at the meeting that this would be accomplished by modifying chlorine gas container labeling to explicitly say that state-licensed wastewater operators can buy, use and handle chlorine gas. AMSA will continue to meet with key EPA officials on the reclassification of chlorine gas and will provide further information on this issue via future Updates and Alerts.West Virginia Court Hands AMSA Partial Antidegradation Victory
Late last week the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia issued its decision in a case in which AMSA, the West Virginia Municipal Water Quality Association, and the West Virginia Municipal League fought to defend West Virginia’s antidegradation implementation procedures. In Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition v. Horinko, the court upheld an exemption from antidegradation review for new or expanded discharges that use up less than 10 percent of a water’s remaining assimilative capacity, handing AMSA a partial victory in the case. The court also upheld a provision allowing new or expanding dischargers to bypass antidegradation review where they minimize degradation through trading – an approach that AMSA supports. However, the court struck down a specific antidegradation exemption for POTWs where there would be a "net reduction in overall pollutant loadings" as well as a 20 percent cumulative degradation threshold triggering antidegradation review. AMSA and other parties in the case are evaluating a variety of next steps and will update the membership of further developments. An analysis of the court’s report was sent out via Legal Alert 03-6. The complete court opinion is available online on AMSA's Litigation Tracker section of the website at http://www.amsa-cleanwater.org/private/littrack/.Join AMSA for its Upcoming 2003 Hot Topics Breakfast in Los Angeles, California
AMSA invites you to attend its October 14 Hot Topics Breakfast in Los Angeles Calif., during the Water Environment Federation’s Technical Exhibition and Conference (WEFTEC). The Breakfast will be held from 8:00–10:00 a.m. (West Coast time) in the Santa Barbara Room, at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel. The Breakfast will offer attendees an opportunity to hear the latest developments on critical clean water topics from key EPA Office of Water officials, including Jim Hanlon, Director of EPA’s Office of Wastewater Management. The issues to be discussed will include EPA’s pending blending guidance, the CSO/SSO Report to Congress and the Agency’s watershed rule. Attendees will also be given an update on AMSA’s latest legal developments in the wastewater arena. AMSA will be sending a Member Update early next week with further details regarding hotel reservations and the Hot Topics Breakfast agenda.