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EPA Regulations fuels. The steam electric power plant ELGs, which are found at 40 CFR Part 423, were first issued in 1974 and last updated in 1982. EPA acknowledges that the current ELGs "do not adequately address the pollutants being discharged and have not kept pace with changes that have occurred in the electric power industry over the last three decades." According to EPA, steam electric power plants contribute more than half of all toxic pollutants discharged to surface waters by all industrial categories regulated under the CWA. Accordingly, EPA has proposed amendments that would strengthen the existing controls on steam electric power plants and that would set limits on the levels of toxic metals that may be discharged. Pursuant to a consent decree, EPA has a deadline of May 22, 2014, to issue the final regulation. However, on Dec. 16, 2013, EPA filed a status report with the court stating that it requires more time to issue the final rule, pushing the publication date further into 2014. ELGs Construction And Development Point Source Category The CWA also regulates the discharges of stormwater that leave certain earth disturbances associated with land development and building construction. In December 2009, EPA proposed new regulations and ELGs which, for the first time, would have required the land development industry to sample stormwater discharged from certain larger construction sites and analyze the samples for turbidity, to which the proposed regulations included a maximum standard. As part of a 2012 settlement agreement, EPA agreed to amend several nonnumeric portions of the ELG for the construction and development point source category found at 40 CFR Part 450 and to withdraw the numeric limit for turbidity. EPA proposed a rule to accomplish this in April 2013 and agreed to take final action on the proposed rule by Feb. 28, 2014. Water Quality EPA has issued a proposed rule (the comment period closed on Jan. 2, 2014) that was written to provide clarification and greater specificity in connection with six areas of the water quality standard (WQS) regulation found at 40 CFR Part 131. The six areas include: (1) the EPA Administrator's determinations that new or revised water quality standards are necessary, (2) designated uses for water bodies, (3) triennial reviews of state and tribal WQS, (4) antidegradation provisions to protect water quality, (5) variances to WQS, and (6) compliance schedule authorizing provisions. National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Updates EPA also plans to issue a proposed rule in 2014 that would update and harmonize the NPDES application system and its forms in an effort to improve permit documentation and transparency. This effort may include making NPDES forms more consistent with each other and ensuring that the forms reflect current EPA standards. Long-Term Actions In addition to expected proposed and final rules in 2014, EPA's Regulatory Agenda also identifies a series of "long-term actions" for which regulatory action is not projected to take place until after December 2014, but which EPA will be working on. These efforts include the development of drinking water regulations to address lead and copper, perchlorate, and carcinogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs), as well as development of effluent guidelines and standards for "unconventional oil and gas production" utilized in directional drilling and hydraulic fracturing. Of particular note, as EPA continues to battle the harmful effects of stormwater discharges into surface waters, is a long-term action to address stormwater discharges from already-developed areas (as opposed to an area actively undergoing earth disturbance). As land development increases the amount of impervious cover every year, EPA is evaluating actions that it could take pursuant to the CWA that may require stormwater management from developed and redeveloped sites or additional regulation of municipal separate storm sewer systems. In each of these areas, opportunities for public participation may be afforded in 2014. Image credit: "Environmental Protection Agency," © 2011 jareed, used under a Attribution- ShareAlike 2.0 Generic license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/ 25 Bridget L. Dorfman is an attorney at the environmental, energy, land use law, and litigation firm of Manko, Gold, Katcher & Fox, LLP in Bala Cynwyd, PA. She can be reached at (484) 430-2330 or bdorfman@mankogold.com. Early indications suggest that the regulated community believes that the proposed rule [clarifying the definition of "waters of the United States"] will greatly expand EPA's jurisdiction pursuant to the CWA, creating a huge economic impact. wateronline.com ■ Water Online The Magazine 2 4 _ V E R T _ 0 2 1 4 E Z i n e _ M G K F _ D G . i n d d 2 24_VERT_0214 EZine_MGKF_DG.indd 2 1 / 3 1 / 2 0 1 4 1 : 1 1 : 4 6 P M 1/31/2014 1:11:46 PM