Water Online

March 2013

Water Online the Magazine gives Water & Wastewater Engineers and end-users a venue to find project solutions and source valuable product information. We aim to educate the engineering and operations community on important issues and trends.

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Regulations Water Regulations: A Fix For The Environment And The Economy An overview of the most significant U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulations affecting the water/wastewater industry in 2013. By Dawn Kristof Champney T he American people have spoken. President Obama has been re-elected for a second term, yet he will face an even more divisive Congress than existed during his first four years in office. How that will impact his ability to carry out his environmental agenda remains in question. What is not in doubt is that his emboldened administration must make the case that environmental protection and economic prosperity are not mutually exclusive; environmental rules can actually drive economic growth and job creation. The Administration will be given ample chance to make that case with the plethora of pent-up water-related regulations waiting to be proposed or finalized in the next two years. Ballast Water Discharge Standards The U.S. Coast Guard issued a final rule on March 23, 2012, establishing for the first time a national standard for the treatment of ballast water discharges to protect U.S. waters from invasive species. Vessels subject to the regulations will be required to install and operate ballast water management systems to satisfy the treatment standards set forth by the rule, which mimics the standards established previously by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The EPA, in turn, is scheduled to release a revised vessel general permit by March 15, 2013, to become effective December 19, 2013, establishing technologybased effluent limits for ballast water discharges similar to those issued by the Coast Guard and the IMO. The vessel general permit currently in place regulates ballast water through use of best management practices, including mandatory saltwater flushing in certain zones and ballast water exchanges at 50 nautical miles from shore. Progressing toward a treatment standard is a necessary step to thwart further introduction of invasive species, which have wreaked havoc with the nation���s wastewater treatment plants as in the case of zebra mussels. Total Coliform Rule Final revisions to the existing total coliform rule were released by the EPA in December 2012, requiring pub14 wateronline.com ��� lic water systems vulnerable to microbial contamination in their distribution system to take corrective action and achieve compliance by April 1, 2016. The revised rule establishes a maximum contaminant level goal (MCLG) of zero for E. coli ��� a more specific indicator of fecal contamination and potential harmful pathogens than total coliform ��� and thereby eliminates the MCLG for total coliforms. It also provides an incentive for systems that improve their operations to qualify for reduced monitoring. First published in 1989, the revised rule is estimated to affect approximately 154,000 public water systems ��� and 307 million individuals ��� at a cost of $14 million annually. The revisions will provide greater public health protection against waterborne pathogens in public drinking water distribution systems, according to the agency. Cooling Water Intake Structures Rule The EPA has extended by one year, until June 2013, release of a final cooling water intake structure rule requiring existing power plants and factories to install site-specific controls, or reduce their intake velocity, in order to reduce injury and death of fish and other aquatic life caused by cooling water intake structures. The EPA claims that the withdrawal of cooling water by facilities removes billions of aquatic organisms from the waters of the United States each year, impacting early life stages of fish and shellfish through impingement and entrainment. The proposed rule, published in April 2011, will affect an estimated 1,260 existing facilities that each withdraw at least 2 million gallons per day of cooling water, 590 of which are manufacturers and the other 670 are power plants. Post-Construction Stormwater Rule Due to the complex nature of this rulemaking, the EPA missed its fifth court-ordered deadline to propose a major ���post-construction��� stormwater rule setting numeric limits for pollution related to new development and redevelopment, such as subdivisions, roadways, shopping centers, etc. The rule is now scheduled to be proposed in June Water Online The Magazine

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