CWA Water Quality Compliance and LCTP Developments: LCTPs and Watershed Planning

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CWA Water Quality Compliance and LCTP
DevelopmentsLCTPs and Watershed Planning
Stumbling Blocks or Stepping Stones? By LaJuana
S. Wilcher, Esq. Chicago, IL April 27, 2007
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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Block or
Stepping Stones?
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Watersheds and Watershed Planning

• 1991 EPAs Watershed Protection Approach
  Framework

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Recent EPA Watershed Guidance

• 2005 Draft Guidance Seeks Measurable,
  Demonstrable Results

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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Blocks or
Stepping Stones?

• April 19, 1994 CSO Control Policy
• Permitting authorities are encouraged to
  evaluate water pollution control needs on a
  watershed management basis and coordinate CSO
  control efforts with other point and nonpoint
  source activities.

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CSOs in the US

• 9,348 CSO outfalls
• 746 CSO communities
• 32 states
• 9 regions
• EPA 2004 report to Congress

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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Block or
Stepping Stones?
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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Blocks or
Stepping Stones?

• Public Perception
• Water Quality Standards
• Permitting/
• Enforcement
• Silos
• Monitoring
• Politics

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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Blocks or
Stepping Stones?

• Public Perception 1994 CSO Control Policy
• State WQS authorities, NPDES authorities, EPA
  regional offices, permittees, and the public
  should meet early and frequently throughout the
  long-term control planning process.

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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Blocks or
Stepping Stones?

• April 19, 1994 CSO Control Policy
• Key Principles include Review and revision, as
  appropriate, of water quality standards and their
  implementation procedures when developing CSO
  control plans to reflect the site-specific wet
  weather impact of CSOs.

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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Blocks or
Stepping Stones?

• April 19, 1994 CSO Control Policy
• Coordination with State Water
• Quality Standards
• Water Quality Standards Reviews, including
  site specific criteria, modifying the designated
  use, defining designated uses more explicitly,
  modifying criteria, adopting partial uses,
  defining aquatic uses more precisely, granting
  variances.

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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Blocks or
Stepping Stones?

• Permitting/Enforcement
• Some successes
• Trading
• Nuese River Watershed
• Sanitation District No. 1 (N. KY)

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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Blocks or
Stepping Stones?

• Sanitation District No. 1 (N. KY)
• Consent Decree Filed 10-17-05
• Provisions
• -Adaptive Watershed Management
• -Initial Watershed Management Projects
• -Watershed Plans for each of four Watersheds,
  with LTCP component in each

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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Blocks or
Stepping Stones?

• Silos The bane of watershed protection
  (stumbling blocks on steroids)
• Stormwater
• CSOs
• SSOs
• Nonpoint Sources

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Monitoring (or the lack thereof)

• EPA and many states have begun to focus more on
  bioassays and biocriteria and less on
  chemical-specific, measurable, water quality
  criteria and standards. Moving to a more
  subjective approach.

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Politics, n. Strife of interests masquerading as
a contest of principles., The Devil's Dictionary

• I have come to the conclusion that politics are
  too serious a matter to be left to the
  politicians. Charles De GaulleFrench general
  politician (1890 - 1970)

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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Block or
Stepping Stones?

• The block of granite, which was an obstacle in
  the path of the weak, becomes a stepping stone in
  the path of the strong.
• Thomas Carlyle
• "This ain't no stumbling block it's just a
  stepping stone... I'm gonna climb right on top
  and take a good look at where I'm going, And it
  ain't gonna slow me down, hold me back, or turn
  me around... This ain't no stumbling block, It's
  just a stepping stone..." -Lari White

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LTCPs and Watershed Planning

• Non-structural, green solutions will be essential
  to success.

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LTCPs and Watershed PlanningStumbling Block or
Stepping Stones?
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STEPPING STONES (OPPORTUNITIES)

• Clarify that wet weather, WQS should not be based
  on 7Q10
• Clarify that WQ monitoring should rely on some
  parameter-specific data
• Clarify that LCTPs should consider all
  contributors to wet weather flows
• Work with all interests to educate and advocate
  meaningful watershed improvements
• Develop legislation that provides incentives and
  flexibility for watershed permitting and
  cost-effective wet weather controls
• Coordinate stormwater, CSO and SSO permitting

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CONTACT INFORMATION

• LaJuana S. Wilcher
• English, Lucas, Priest and Owsley
• 1101 College Street
• PO Box 770
• Bowling Green, KY 42101
• Office 270-781-6500
• Cell 860-227-3524
• lwilcher_at_elpolaw.com
• lajuanawilcher_at_aol.com