TMDL Handout

COAST ACTION GROUP, P. 0. BOX 215, POINT ARENA, CA 95468

alevine@mcn.org

TMDLs [Handout, RRWC Meeting, Cloverdale, Jan. 29]

Impaired - Does not meet water quality objectives/criteria - fishable/swimable - beneficial uses.

Limiting factors/stressors - Pollutant or pollutants listed.

Basin Plan - Water Quality Control Plan

305(b) Report - Water Quality Assessment = what conditions are known to exist in your watershed - documentation of limiting factor or impairment.

303(d) List - list of impaired waterbodies, type of impaired condition, prioritized schedule of load limitation, consideration for listing for other factors such as temperature and nutrients.

TMDL - broad assessments of water quality, identifying stressors causing water quality problems, developing action plans to address these problems, coordinating implementation of these action plans, and monitoring results. States and tribes are required to set beneficial uses standards - narrative and numeric criteria designed to protect use - with antidegradation policy. EPA must approve standards with quantifiable water quality goals. Water quality standards/objectives are the basis for water quality impairment and for developing a TMDL. A TMDL specifies the amount of pollutant or other stressor that needs to be reduced to meet water quality standards, allocates pollution control responsibilities between pollution sources in a watershed.

TMDLs are to be developed for listed waters. Under 303 (d) each State is required to identify "water quality limited segments " for which Federal technology based controls or local effluent limitations or other pollution control requirements (e.g., best management practices) required by the State or federal authority are not stringent enough to achieve water quality standards, including waters not meeting standards due to thermal discharges (40 CFR section 130.7 (b)). Each State must consider all existing and readily available data in assembling the § 303 (d) list (40 CFR section 130.7). At a minimum this should include: Waters identified as impaired, threatened, or not meeting designated uses by other lists required by the Clean Water Act, such as Section 305 (b) report, and nonpoint source assessments, submitted to EPA under section 319 (this can include information supplied by the public).

A TMDL reflects the total pollutant loading a waterbody may receive and still meet water quality standards. By statute, § 303(d)(1)(C), 40 CFR section 130.7(c)(1), TMDLs are to be developed for all waters on the Section 303 (d) list. EPA's regulations at 40 CFR section 130.2(i) define a TMDL as the sum of "waste load allocations" (point sources) plus "load allocations" (loads allotted to existing and future nonpoint sources, plus loads from natural background) plus a margin of safety to account for uncertainty.

Ultimately, TMDLs are designed to assure that waterbodies meet water quality standards. Water quality standards have three components including designated beneficial uses, narrative and/or numeric criteria and antidegradation policy. TMDLs require that a waterbody meet its designated use. The basis for achievement of a designated use (i.e. fishing or swimming) is the determination and allocation or distribution and implementation of policy that would control conditions representative of acceptable pollutant loads. Simply stated, to develop a TMDL one must determine what is causing the problems, evaluate how much loading is acceptable, determine the loads form each source, and distribute the allowable load between the various sources and the margin of safety.

EPA regulations (40CFR section 130) state that the TMDL development process should be described in the State's continuing planning process under section 303(e) of the Clean Water Act. In addition, the regulations require EPA-approved TMDLs to be incorporated in to a State's Water Quality Management Plan. Thus, TMDLs should be integrated with other State Water quality activities.

A narrative or qualitative measure, such as assuring the preservation of habitat can be the basis of listing. The diversity and site-specific nature of problems and waterbody types precludes development of a single method.

Composition of TMDL: Problem Statement - provides a description of the waterbody/watershed setting, beneficial use impairments of concern, and the pollution or stressors, causing the impairment - identification of needed pollutant load reduction. Source Assessment Sediment Components = Mass Wasting - Fluvial Erosion - Surface Erosion. Allocation of Responsibility - determination of pollutant source factors, how much from where acceptable loading, and source reduction responsibility. This must include Allowance for future loading and seasonal variations. Numeric Targets - scientifically based desired future condition for instream and near stream conditions. Implementation Plan - the final strategy results in a Basin Wide Conservation Plan with the incorporation of Site Specific Conservation Plans with timelines and assurances, to be approved (with provided numeric targets and source analysis) and Monitoring Program for the management and reduction of sediment sources (and possibly temperature), which should be amended into the Basin Plan.

Public Participation - is a necessary component of the TMDL process.

State Antidegradation Policy - Basin Plan (Chapter 3. Water Quality Objectives): "Controllable water quality factors shall conform to the water quality objectives contained herein. When other factors result in the degradation of water quality beyond the levels or limits established herein as water quality objectives, then controllable factors shall not cause further degradation of water quality. Controllable water quality factors are those actions, conditions, or circumstances resulting from man's activities that may influence the quality of waters of the State and that may reasonably be controlled." Thus, existing pollutant emitters (violations) on impaired waterbodies are in current violation of the Basin Plan.

Sites: Clean Water Network (TMDLs), Ami Grace, (202) 299-2421, <cleanwaternt@igc.org>

EPA - www.epa.gov

TMDLs - Getting Started: www.ctic.purdue.edu/kyw/tmdl/tmdlprimer/intro.html