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Welcome to Water Online's review of the latest U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations, resources, and activities related to the water, wastewater, and stormwater industries. EPA offices and programs covered in this installment are listed below. Click on an office or program name to go directly to that section of the article.

• Office of Water (OW)
  • EPA Proposes One-Year Extension for NPDES 2008 Construction General Permit
  • EPA's WaterSense Label Available For First Commercial Building Product
  • EPA Recognizes Leaders In Water Efficiency
  • Search EPA's Section 319 Nonpoint Source Grants Database
  • EPA Issues Final Aircraft Drinking Water Rule
  • EPA Releases List Of Priority Drinking Water Contaminants For Regulatory Consideration
  • EPA Issues Final Aircraft Drinking Water Rule
• National Risk Management Research Laboratory (NRMRL)
• Upcoming Seminar On Nutrient Control At Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants
• Watershed Central: A New Interactive Management Tool
• Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) Program
• ETV Verified Technologies
• Vendor Solicitations
• Upcoming Conferences and Meetings
• Other EPA News
  • EPA Proposes To Extend The Stormwater Construction General Permit By One Year
  • EPA Administrator Announces Plan To Retool And Reinvigorate Clean Water Enforcement Program
  • Utah Man Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison For Environmental, Other Crimes
  • EPA Begins New Scientific Evaluation Of Atrazine
  • EPA Releases List Of Priority Drinking Water Contaminants For Regulatory Consideration
  • EPA Expects To Revise Rules For Wastewater Discharges From Power Plants

Office of Water (OW)

EPA Proposes One-Year Extension for NPDES 2008 Construction General Permit
In an October 19, 2009, Federal Register notice, EPA announced that it is seeking public comment on its proposal to extend the 2008 NPDES general permits for storm water discharges associated with construction activity, the 2008 Construction General Permit (CGP), by one year. The 2008 CGP applies only where EPA is the permitting authority, which is in five states; Washington, DC; most U.S. territories; many federal facilities; and most Indian country lands. The 2008 CGP regulates the discharge of storm water from construction sites that disturb one acre or more of land and from smaller sites that are part of a larger, common plan of development. The permit requires construction site operators to comply with storm water discharge requirements that prevent sediment loss, soil erosion, and the discharge of other pollutants at active construction sites. The public will have 30 days to comment on the EPA's proposed 1-year extension, after which the Agency will then consider and address the comments received and issue a final Federal Register notice on this issue by the end of November 2009.

EPA's WaterSense Label Available For First Commercial Building Product
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has released its first WaterSense specification for a commercial building product. WaterSense labeled flushing urinals will use 50 percent less water than standard urinals, saving businesses 4,000 gallons of water per year for every model installed. 

While current federal standards set the maximum allowable flush volume at one gallon per flush, an estimated 7.8 million urinals in use today are older inefficient models. In addition to using no more than a half gallon per flush, urinals bearing the WaterSense label must meet EPA's performance requirements, ensuring they work as well or better than standard models. 

In addition to businesses, schools can save by switching to WaterSense labeled urinals; a college with 10,000 students that installs WaterSense labeled urinals in its classroom buildings will save each year enough water to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool. 

All WaterSense labeled products are independently tested and certified to meet rigorous criteria for both efficiency and performance. To ensure satisfactory performance, urinals will be tested for flush effectiveness and other measures before they can earn the WaterSense label. The urinals will be available across in the country in a few months. 

WaterSense is a partnership program sponsored by EPA to protect the future of our nation's water supply by promoting and enhancing the market for water-efficient products and services. More information: http://epa.gov/watersense

EPA Recognizes Leaders In Water Efficiency
More than 1,000 WaterSense partners helped Americans save 9.3 billion gallons of water in 2008. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency named five of them as the 2009 WaterSense Partners of the Year. 

"Our partners have demonstrated how collaboration and commitment to water efficiency can result in major savings for Americans," said Peter S. Silva, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Water. 
"By working together to promote WaterSense labeled products and other water-efficient behaviors, they are helping Americans save tremendously on water, energy and money on their utility bills."

More information on WaterSense Partner of the Year award winners: http://epa.gov/watersense

Search EPA's Section 319 Nonpoint Source Grants Database
EPA's Nonpoint Source Grants Reporting and Tracking System (GRTS) is the primary tool for management and oversight of state Nonpoint Source (NPS) Management Programs under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act. EPA recently added new tools to the GRTS database to enable the public to search for information about NPS pollution control projects. 

One way to search the database is to perform a criteria-based query. This method is best for finding 319 projects that meet certain conditions; for example, NPS projects that implement a Total Maximum Daily Load to control mine waste, or projects implementing best management practices for waters polluted by urban runoff. To search for projects, visit http://iaspub.epa.gov/grts/projects

Another new search tool is the interactive map, which enables browsing for project information by watershed. Simply use the find, pan, and zoom buttons to navigate to the location of interest, and the 319 projects will appear, summarized by watershed. At a regional scale, projects are displayed by sub basins (8-digit hydrologic units), and at a local scale, by sub watersheds (12-digit hydrologic units). Check out the GRTS Map Viewer at: http://iaspub.epa.gov/grts/map

EPA Issues Final Aircraft Drinking Water Rule
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is issuing a final rule to ensure that safe and reliable drinking water is provided to aircraft passengers and crew. The rule provides multiple-barrier protection through requirements for coliform sampling, best management practices, corrective action, public notification, monitoring and operator training. It will better protect the public from illnesses caused by microbiological contamination. 

"This rule is a significant step forward in protecting people's health when they travel," said Peter S. Silva, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Water. "EPA has taken this step to make sure the public has drinking water that meets standards, both in the air and on the ground." 

The final aircraft drinking water rule tailors existing health-based drinking water regulations to fit the unique characteristics of aircraft public water systems. Aircraft public water systems are subject to the requirements of the National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWRs) under the Safe Drinking Water Act. The rule amends NPDWRs for these systems, building on existing aircraft operations and maintenance programs. 

The rule applies to the aircraft's onboard water system only. The Food and Drug Administration is responsible for regulating the airport watering points that include the water cabinets, carts, trucks, and hoses from which aircraft board water. EPA and the states are responsible for regulating the public water systems that supply drinking water to the airport watering points. 

The rule only addresses aircraft within U.S. jurisdiction; however, EPA supported an international effort led by the World Health Organization to develop international guidelines for aircraft drinking water. 

More information: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/airlinewater/index.html

For more information on the EPA Office of Water, visit www.epa.gov/ow.

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National Risk Management Research Laboratory (NRMRL)

Watershed Central: A New Interactive Management Tool
EPA recently launched a new web site called "Watershed Central" to help watershed organizations and other stakeholders find key information they need to implement watershed management decisions. The Watershed Central site includes guidance, tools, case studies, and data resources that integrate EPA programs to help users share information, analyze data, and initiate, or strengthen their own watershed efforts.

Watershed Central was developed to bridge the gap between user needs and the variety of resources offered by EPA and other groups. The result is an interactive web-based resource that helps users locate the information they need, including environmental data, watershed models, guidance documents, nearby local organizations, technical resources, and funding. A unique feature of Watershed Central is the "Watershed Central Wiki" — similar to Wikipedia — which allows registered users to submit case studies, tools, local approaches to watershed management, lessons learned, and success stories. To ensure that user needs are met and information is up-to-date, three teams were established — a Content Team, a User Team and an Information Technology (IT) Team. Team members and participants are solicited from within and outside EPA. In addition, as a feedback mechanism, EPA has sponsored regional workshops where participants are introduced to Watershed Central and encouraged to collaborate on improving the information it contains. The Watershed Central teams and other participants utilize the wiki site as a forum for discussing and vetting information for inclusion on the Watershed Central public web site. 

Watershed Central is a cooperative development effort among EPA's Office of Research and Development (National Risk Management Research Laboratory), Office of Water (Office of Wetlands, Oceans and Watersheds), and Office of Environmental Information. This growing and changing program is part of EPA's ongoing commitment to the protection of human health and the environment. 

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Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) Program

ETV Verified Technologies
The ETV Program has verified the performance of 420 innovative environmental technologies that can be used to monitor, prevent, control, and clean up pollution. For a full list of ETV verifications, visit http://www.epa.gov/etv/verifiedtechnologies.html.

Vendor Solicitations
ETV centers issue periodic solicitations for vendors and collaborators interested in verification. For a list of active ETV vendor solicitations, please visit www.epa.gov/etv/vendorswanted.html, or contact the appropriate ETV center (see www.epa.gov/etv/contacts.html).

For more information on the ETV, visit www.epa.gov/etv.

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Other EPA News

EPA Proposes To Extend The Stormwater Construction General Permit By One Year
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is seeking public comment on extending the 2008 stormwater construction general permit by one year to June 30, 2011. The permit applies only where EPA is the permitting authority, which is in five states (Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Idaho and Alaska); Washington, D.C.; most territories; and most Indian country lands. 

The permit regulates the discharge of stormwater from construction sites that disturb one acre or more of land, and from smaller sites that are part of a larger, common plan of development. The permit requires construction site operators to comply with stormwater discharge requirements that are intended to prevent sediment loss, soil erosion and other pollution issues at active construction sites. 

The extension of the 2008 permit is needed to allow the agency sufficient time to coordinate a revised permit with a second effort that is underway to establish national clean water standards, known as an effluent limitation guideline, for the construction and development industry by December 1, 2009. The public will have 30 days to comment on the proposed extension to the permit after publication in the Federal Register. 

More information: http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater/cgp.cfm

EPA Administrator Announces Plan To Retool And Reinvigorate Clean Water Enforcement Program
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson announced today at a House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing that the agency is stepping up its efforts on Clean Water Act enforcement. The Clean Water Action Enforcement Plan is a first step in revamping the compliance and enforcement program. It seeks to improve the protection of our nation's water quality, raise the bar in federal and state performance and enhance public transparency. 

"The safety of the water that we use in our homes — the water we drink and give to our children — is of paramount importance to our health and our environment. Having clean and safe water in our communities is a right that should be guaranteed for all Americans," said Administrator Jackson. "Updating our efforts under the Clean Water Act will promote innovative solutions for 21st century water challenges, build stronger ties between EPA, state, and local actions, and provide the transparency the public rightfully expects." 

The plan announced today outlines how the agency will strengthen the way it addresses the water pollution challenges of this century. These challenges include pollution caused by numerous, dispersed sources, such as concentrated animal feeding operations, sewer overflows, contaminated water that flows from industrial facilities, construction sites, and runoff from urban streets. 

The goals of the plan are to target enforcement to the most significant pollution problems, improve transparency and accountability by providing the public with access to better data on the water quality in their communities, and strengthen enforcement performance at the state and federal levels. Elements of the plan include the following: 

• Develop more comprehensive approaches to ensure enforcement is targeted to the most serious violations and the most significant sources of pollution.
• Work with states to ensure greater consistency throughout the country with respect to compliance and water quality. Ensure that states are issuing protective permits and taking enforcement to achieve compliance and remove economic incentives to violate the law. 
• Use 21st century information technology to collect, analyze and use information in new, more efficient ways and to make that information readily accessible to the public. Better tools will help federal and state regulators identify serious compliance problems quickly and take prompt actions to correct them. 
• Last July, Administrator Jackson directed EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance to develop the plan in response to data showing that the nation's water quality is unacceptably low in many parts of the country.

More information on the plan: http://www.epa.gov/compliance/civil/cwa/cwaenfplan.html

Utah Man Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison For Environmental, Other Crimes
Larkin Baggett, 54, formerly of Salt Lake City, Utah, was sentenced to 20 years in the U.S. District Court in Key West, Fla. jail today for illegally dumping pollutants in violation of federal clean water and hazardous waste regulations and for illegally possessing firearms and aggravated assault on law enforcement officers, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Justice announced. 

This includes the maximum jail term for the Clean Water Act and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act violations. Last March, Baggett assaulted EPA and other law enforcement officers when they attempted to arrest him in Marathon, Fla. 

"EPA's professional and dedicated law enforcement special agents are the ‘line in the sand' against those who put illegal gain ahead of public health and the environment," said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. "EPA will continue to vigorously pursue criminal violations of environmental regulations." 

In September 2007, Baggett was indicted on charges related to illegally dumping various pollutants onto the ground and into a drain that led to the treatment plant operated by the South Davis Sewer Improvement District in West Bountiful, Utah between October 2004 and April 2005. The treatment plant had a permit to discharge treated effluent to the Jordan River, which empties into the Great Salt Lake. 

According to court records, Baggett instructed his employees to dispose of industrial wastes by dumping them onto the ground and into a sanitary sewer drain, which fed directly to the wastewater treatment plant. One of the wastes, nonylphenol, is a powerful organic chemical and heavy-duty industrial cleaner that is toxic to aquatic life. Baggett's actions allegedly caused the plant to violate permit limits for acute toxicity 22 times. 

Previously, government officials from the local sewer district prohibited Baggett's company from discharging to the sewer system because its wastes had routinely exceeded limits for certain pollutants. 

Baggett owned and operated Chemical Consultants, Inc., North Salt Lake City, Utah, a company that mixed and sold chemical products used in the trucking, construction, and concrete industries. 

In April 2008, two months before his trial, Baggett became a fugitive when he failed to appear in court, as required by the conditions of his release and bond. In December 2008, EPA received a tip from the public regarding his potential whereabouts after Baggett was listed on the EPA's fugitive website (http://www.epa.gov/fugitives). 

EPA requires the proper handling and disposal of hazardous wastes to protect human health and the environment. EPA requires that industry pre-treat toxic pollutants chemicals in their wastes in order to protect local sewers and wastewater treatment plants. The pretreatment process also ensures that these pollutants do not pass through the treatment process into rivers, lakes and streams. 

The environmental case was investigated by EPA's Office of Criminal Enforcement. The assault and gun charges were investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Monroe County, Fla. Sheriff's Office, and the U.S. Marshall's Service. The case was prosecuted in the District of South Florida by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jodi Mazer and Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Watts-Fitzgerald and in the District of Utah by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared C. Bennett. 

More information on Baggett case: http://www.epa.gov/fugitives/fugitives-captured.html

EPA Begins New Scientific Evaluation Of Atrazine
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is launching this year a comprehensive new evaluation of the pesticide atrazine to determine its effects on humans. At the end of this process, the agency will decide whether to revise its current risk assessment of the pesticide and whether new restrictions are necessary to better protect public health. One of the most widely used agricultural pesticides in the U.S., atrazine can be applied before and after planting to control broadleaf and grassy weeds. EPA will evaluate the pesticide's potential cancer and non-cancer effects on humans. Included in this new evaluation will be the most recent studies on atrazine and its potential association with birth defects, low birth weight, and premature births. 

"One of Administrator Jackson's top priorities is to improve the way EPA manages and assesses the risk of chemicals, including pesticides, and as part of that effort, we are taking a hard look at the decision made by the previous administration on atrazine," said Steve Owens, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances. "Our examination of atrazine will be based on transparency and sound science, including independent scientific peer review, and will help determine whether a change in EPA's regulatory position on this pesticide is appropriate." 

During the new evaluation, EPA will consider the potential for atrazine cancer and non-cancer effects, and will include data generated since 2003 from laboratory and population studies. To be certain that the best science possible is used in its atrazine human health risk assessment and ensure transparency, EPA will seek advice from the independent Scientific Advisory Panel (SAP) established under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act. 

EPA will engage the SAP to evaluate the human health effects of atrazine over the coming year. Below is the timeline:

• November 2009: EPA will present SAP its plan for the new atrazine evaluation. 
• February 2010: EPA will present and seek scientific peer review of its proposed plan for incorporating population studies into the atrazine risk assessment. 
• April 2010: EPA will present and seek peer review of its evaluation of atrazine non-cancer effects based on animal laboratory toxicology studies, selection of safety factors in the risk assessment, and the sampling design currently used to monitor drinking water in community water systems. 
• September 2010: EPA will present and seek peer review of its evaluation of atrazine cancer and non-cancer effects based on animal toxicology studies and epidemiology studies. This review is intended to include the most recent results from the National Cancer Institute's Agricultural Health Study, anticipated for publication in 2010. 
  At the conclusion of this process, EPA will ask the SAP to review atrazine's potential effects on amphibians and aquatic ecosystems. The SAP meetings will be open to the public.
  

In addition to the scientific review of the effects of atrazine, EPA plans to meet with interested groups to explore better ways to inform the public more quickly about results of atrazine drinking water monitoring. 

More information on atrazine: http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/reregistration/atrazine/atrazine_update.htm 

More information on the SAP meetings: http://www.epa.gov/scipoly/sap/index.htm

EPA Releases List Of Priority Drinking Water Contaminants For Regulatory Consideration
EPA is releasing its third list of drinking water contaminants that are known or anticipated to occur in public water systems and may require regulation. EPA will continue to evaluate and collect data on the contaminants, and determine by 2013 for some of them whether or not to propose drinking water regulations. 

The contaminant candidate list (CCL 3) includes 104 chemical contaminants or groups and 12 microbes. Among them are contaminants, pesticides, disinfection byproducts, pharmaceuticals, chemicals used in commerce, waterborne pathogens and algal toxins. The agency's selection of the contaminants builds upon evaluations used for previous lists and is based on substantial expert input and recommendations from different groups including stakeholders, the National Research Council and the National Drinking Water Advisory Council. 

EPA will make regulatory determinations for at least five contaminants in accordance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. For those CCL 3 contaminants that lack sufficient information for a regulatory determination by 2013, EPA will encourage research to provide the information needed. 

The agency evaluated approximately 7,500 chemicals and microbes and selected 116 candidates for the final list based on their potential to pose health risks through drinking water exposure. 

The agency considered the best available health effects and occurrence data and information to evaluate unregulated contaminants. 

A draft CCL 3 was published for review and comment on February 21, 2008. EPA reviewed and analyzed the information provided in the comments in developing the final CCL 3. 

More information on the contaminant candidate list: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/ccl

EPA Expects To Revise Rules For Wastewater Discharges From Power Plants
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency plans to revise the existing standards for water discharges from coal-fired power plants to reduce pollution and better protect America's water. Wastewater discharged from coal ash ponds, air pollution control equipment, and other equipment at power plants can contaminate drinking water sources, cause fish and other wildlife to die and create other detrimental environmental effects. 

Earlier this year, EPA completed a multi-year study of power plant wastewater discharges and concluded that current regulations, which were issued in 1982, have not kept pace with changes that have occurred in the electric power industry over the last three decades. Air pollution controls installed to remove pollution from smokestacks have made great strides in cleaning the air people breathe, saving lives and reducing respiratory and other illnesses. However, some of the equipment used to clean air emissions does so by "scrubbing" the boiler exhaust with water, and when the water is not properly managed it sends the pollution to rivers and other waterbodies. Treatment technologies are available to remove these pollutants before they are discharged to waterways, but these systems have been installed at only a fraction of the power plants. 

As part of the multi-year study, EPA measured the pollutants present in the wastewater and reviewed treatment technologies, focusing mostly on coal-fired power plants. Many of the toxic pollutants discharged from these power plants come from coal ash ponds and the flue gas desulfurization systems used to scrub sulfur dioxide from air emissions. 

Once the new rule for electric power plants is finalized, EPA and states would incorporate the new standards into wastewater discharge permits. 

More information about EPA's study is provided in an interim report published in August 2008. A final study will be published later this year. 

More information on wastewater discharges from power plants: http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/guide/steam/

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SOURCE: EPA