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NACWA has released a report summarizing an analysis of EPA’s use of its Technical Support Document for Water Quality-Based Toxics Control as guidance for nutrient permitting. The Review of USEPA Methods for Setting Water Quality-Based Effluent Limits for Nutrients (Report) finds that due to fundamental differences in how nutrients and toxics affect receiving waters, the use of toxics-based methods is often inappropriate.

Developed with financial support from NACWA’s Targeted Action Fund (TAF), the Report will provide NACWA and its members with a valuable advocacy tool.  This Advocacy Alert provides a brief overview of the report, why it was developed, and how it will help both NACWA in its national advocacy efforts and NACWA’s members facing nutrient permit limits.

Background

EPA, in an effort to accelerate nutrient control efforts, is working to characterize and address the barriers to controlling nutrient pollution.  One of the barriers identified relates to the difficulty in developing defensible Clean Water Act permit limits for nutrients.  To address this barrier, EPA has developed training materials for permit writers that describe how permit limits for nutrients should be developed. EPA’s training materials focus exclusively on permitting publicly owned treatment works (POTWs).  The approach being advocated by EPA is based primarily on the permit limit derivation procedures outlined in EPA’s 1991 Technical Support Document (TSD).  It is well documented that the dynamics of nutrient impacts on designated uses is very different than that of toxics like metals and organics, so using the TSD, which was developed with toxics in mind, is likely not appropriate in many situations.  NACWA has been discussing its concerns with EPA since the Agency first unveiled its training materials in July 2013.  The new report analyzes each assumption and process of the TSD approach for validity given the unique qualities and nature of nutrients in surface waters.

Overview of Report

The analysis employed in the Report separately evaluated individual permitting elements from the TSD for appropriateness for nutrient permitting based on conceptual models of nutrient impacts, the scientific literature, and regulatory precedents. If a toxics-based permitting element was deemed to require modification for nutrients, recommendations for such modifications were provided. Similarly, if a permitting element was deemed not appropriate for nutrients, recommendations were provided on alternative approaches. The Report also identifies permitting elements that need to be included for nutrients, but are not fully addressed by the TSD or otherwise routinely considered for toxics permitting. In the second step of the review, results of the evaluation were used to develop recommendations on an overarching permitting framework for nutrients.

NACWA worked with Corporate Affiliate Member Brown and Caldwell on the Report.  Brown and Caldwell assembled a team of subject matter experts to conduct the analysis and develop the Report

The Report Is a Key Resource for Member Negotiations, National Advocacy

NACWA views the Report and its conclusions as a powerful resource for the municipal clean water community to address the significant concerns with EPA’s approach to evaluating the need for, and establishing, numeric nutrient permit limits for clean water utilities. 

The Report will serve as a powerful tool for individual Member Agencies that are negotiating permit limits with their permitting authority.  EPA is making a concerted effort to increase the number of POTWs with nutrient permit limits – in some cases pushing states to use existing narrative criteria as the basis for numeric limits – and the Report will be a valuable resource for Member Agencies during permit negotiations.  
  
NACWA will be actively using the Report in its advocacy efforts with EPA and will be briefing other key stakeholders, including the Association of Clean Water Administrators (ACWA), on the issues the Report raises with EPA’s approach.  NACWA is also working to set up a meeting with EPA Office of Water personnel to discuss the report and recommended revisions to the Agency’s permit writer training materials. The Association will update members on these efforts.