To: Members & Affiliates
From: National Office
Date: September 6, 2001
Subject: USE ATTAINABILITY ANALYSIS INFORMATION REQUEST
Reference: RA 01-15

On August 23, 2001, AMSA met with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Science and Technology (OST) staff to offer input on the Agency's Long-Term Strategy for Water Quality Standards and Criteria. When final, the Strategy will outline EPA's priorities for the water quality standards and criteria program for the next several years. EPA will release a draft of the Strategy for public comment this fall.

During the meeting AMSA and EPA discussed the importance of use attainability analyses (UAAs) to sound water quality decisions. Recent focus on the role of UAAs has increased due to EPA’s announcement that it will review the July 2000 final total maximum daily load (TMDL) regulations and the National Research Council’s June 2001 TMDL study report emphasizing the critical role of UAAs in achieving our national water quality goals. As a result of these developments, OST plans to review the UAA process and develop improved guidance to Regions and states on conducting UAAs. OST’s efforts will begin with an expert workshop for Regions and states to identify areas where additional UAA guidance is needed.

EPA has asked AMSA to play an active role in this effort by collecting member agency experiences with UAAs, including any resulting problems or successes. Attached is a brief survey designed to collect preliminary information about your agency’s UAA experiences. We will follow up with survey respondents to collect additional, pertinent information. We ask that you forward the attached survey to your staff responsible for negotiating and administering your NPDES permit. Completed surveys should be returned by WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2001 to Chris Hornback in AMSA’s National Office by fax at 202/833-4657 or via email at chornback@amsa-cleanwater.org.

This review process is our best opportunity to highlight what works and what needs improvement in the UAA process, and to underscore the importance of complete and clear UAA guidance for decision makers. We thank you for your participation and look forward to your response.

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