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October 26, 1998
AMSA & EPA Region IV to Form Advisory GroupAMSA member agency representatives met yesterday with EPA Region IV officials to continue discussions regarding Region IV's historically strict interpretation of Clean Water Act secondary treatment requirements and its resistance to allow sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs), whether avoidable or unavoidable, or bypasses during wet weather. As a result of the meeting, both AMSA and Region IV have committed to form a regional working group to discuss SSO policies and other emerging POTW water quality issues, such as development of total maximum daily loads. The meeting, convened at AMSA’s request, allowed member agencies to share concerns with Regional Administrator, John Hankinson, discuss how the municipal community can work with EPA to address these issues, and determine whether the Region will be flexible in allowing limited (unavoidable) overflows during certain wet weather events.
EPA outlined its historic underlying principles concerning SSOs, including 1) the Clean Water Act does not allow discharges to waters of the U.S. without a permit; 2) all discharges must receive secondary, biological treatment; and, 3) the goal for a well-designed, well-maintained system should be zero overflows. In the past, the Region has aggressively pursued SSOs through traditional enforcement actions; however, officials acknowledged that recently, their approach to addressing SSOs has changed.
One of the changes will emphasize development of management, operation, and maintenance (MOM) programs to correct collection system deficiencies. In a recently initiated self-audit/self-evaluation program, the Region is asking certain municipalities (19 thus far) to perform a detailed evaluation of their wastewater facility MOM programs and develop remedial measures and schedules to correct deficiencies and violations identified during the evaluation. While the municipality may be required to come under an administrative order or consent decree for violations identified during the self-audit, the Region indicated that economic benefit penalty assessments could be reduced by 75 or 100 percent, technical support could be offered, the Region would have more flexibility in accepting longer schedules where appropriate, and the municipality would have the flexibility in determining its own remedial measures. The Region suggested that this new approach will help in addressing SSO problems over a broader scope than through individual enforcement actions.
The Region seems to have also developed some flexibility regarding the goal of zero overflows. While stating that this is still a basic principle, EPA acknowledged that there is no MOM program that will eliminate SSOs and indicated that it is generally in agreement with the concept of an affirmative defense (similar to upset/bypass provisions) for unavoidable SSOs that is being developed in the national SSO policy debate. To continue these discussions, the Region and AMSA agreed to initiate a regional working group to assist in developing solutions to SSOs, and other emerging water quality issues affecting POTWs.
AMSA Submits Nominee to EPA NELAP Program Advisory Board
AMSA has nominated Dr. Anna Rule, Chief of the Laboratory Division, Hampton Roads Sanitation District, Va. to serve as the Association’s representative on EPA's National Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (NELAP) Environmental Advisory Board. NELAP is a cooperative effort of EPA, State, and Federal agencies formed to establish consensus standards for environmental laboratory accreditation. While the program is voluntary, states and federal agencies may make participation mandatory for laboratories under their jurisdiction. AMSA submitted its recommendation to ensure that POTW lab concerns are adequately represented. AMSA members interested in participating on a workgroup to coordinate lab accreditation issues should contact Sam Hadeed at the National Office or email to shadeed@amsa-cleanwater.org. The NELAC home page contains information concerning the standards and accreditation process is located at http://www.epa.gov/ttnnela1.