[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 100 (Friday, May 22, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31184-31185]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-11126]
[[Page 31184]]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OW-2019-0675; FRL 10008-88-OW]
Draft Ambient Water Quality Criteria Recommendations for Lakes
and Reservoirs of the Conterminous United States: Information
Supporting the Development of Numeric Nutrient Criteria
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
announces the release of the Draft Ambient Water Quality Criteria
Recommendations for Lakes and Reservoirs of the Conterminous United
States: Information Supporting the Development of Numeric Nutrient
Criteria for a 60-day comment period for scientific input. These draft
national criteria recommendations are models for total nitrogen and
total phosphorus concentrations in lakes and reservoirs to protect
three different designated uses--aquatic life, recreation, and drinking
water source protection--from the adverse effects of nutrient
pollution. Nutrient pollution can degrade the conditions of water
bodies worldwide, and in lakes and reservoirs the effects of excess
nitrogen and phosphorus may be particularly evident. These draft
criteria recommendations are based on stressor-response models, which
link nutrient pollution stressors (nitrogen, phosphorus) to responses
associated with protection of designated uses. These draft criteria
recommendations, when finalized, will replace the EPA's previously
recommended ambient nutrient criteria for lakes and reservoirs. Models
and associated criteria provided in this document are based on national
data. States and authorized tribes can also incorporate local data,
when available, into the national models, helping states and authorized
tribes to develop numeric nutrient criteria that apply relationships
estimated from national data while accounting for unique local
conditions.
Following closure of this 60-day public comment period, the EPA
will consider the comments, revise the draft document, as appropriate,
and then publish a final document that will provide recommendations for
states and authorized tribes to establish water quality standards under
the Clean Water Act (CWA).
DATES: Comments must be received on or before July 21, 2020.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-
2019-0675, to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov (preferred method). Follow the online instructions
for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or
withdrawn. The EPA may publish any comment received to its public
docket. Do not submit electronically any information you consider to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio,
video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written
comment is considered the official comment and should include
discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will generally not
consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary
submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). For
additional submission methods, the full EPA public comment policy,
information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general guidance
on making effective comments, please visit https://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.
Out of an abundance of caution for members of the public and our
staff, the EPA Docket Center and Reading Room was closed to public
visitors on March 31, 2020, to reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-
19. Our Docket Center staff will continue to provide remote customer
service via email, phone, and webform. We encourage the public to
submit comments via https://regulations.gov, as there is a temporary
suspension of mail delivery to the EPA, and no hand deliveries are
currently accepted. For further information on the EPA Docket Center
services and the current status, please visit us online at https://www.epa.gov/dockets.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lester Yuan, Health and Ecological
Criteria Division, Office of Water (Mail Code 4304T), Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20460;
telephone number: (202) 566-0908; email address: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. General Information
A. How can I get copies of this document and other related information?
You may access this Federal Register document electronically from
the Government Printing Office under the ``Federal Register'' listings
in govinfo (https://www.govinfo.gov/app/collection/FR/).
II. What is nutrient pollution and why is the EPA concerned about it?
While certain levels of nutrients are essential for healthy aquatic
ecosystems, nutrient pollution, or the excess loading of nitrogen and
phosphorus, can degrade the conditions of water bodies and potentially
make them unsafe for aquatic life, recreation, or to use as drinking
water sources. Nutrient pollution stimulates excess growth of algae,
which can limit the recreational use of lakes and reservoirs.
Overabundant algae also increase the amount of organic matter in a lake
or reservoir, which, when decomposed, can depress dissolved oxygen
concentrations below levels needed to sustain aquatic life. In extreme
cases, the depletion of dissolved oxygen causes fish kills. Nutrient
pollution can stimulate the excess growth of nuisance algae, such as
cyanobacteria, which can produce cyanotoxins that are toxic to animals
and humans. Elevated concentrations of these cyanotoxins can reduce the
suitability of a lake or reservoir for recreation and as a source of
drinking water.
III. Information on the Draft Ambient Water Quality Criteria
Recommendations for Lakes and Reservoirs
These draft ambient water quality criteria recommendations for
lakes and reservoirs are part of the EPA's ongoing efforts to support
states and authorized tribes in developing and adopting numeric
nutrient criteria. Numeric nutrient criteria provide an important tool
for managing the effects of nutrient pollution by providing nutrient
goals that support the protection and maintenance of the designated
uses of the waters of the United States. Recognizing the utility of
such criteria, the EPA published recommended numeric nutrient criteria
for lakes and reservoirs for twelve out of fourteen ecoregions of the
conterminous United States from 2000 to 2001. These criteria were
derived by analyzing available data on the concentrations of total
nitrogen, total phosphorus, chlorophyll a, and Secchi depth. Scientific
understanding of the relationships between nutrient concentrations and
deleterious effects in lakes has increased since 2001, and
standardized, high-quality data collected from lakes across the United
States have become available. In this document, the EPA describes
analyses of these new data and provides models to derive draft numeric
nutrient criteria for lakes that
[[Page 31185]]
replace the recommended numeric nutrient criteria of 2000 and 2001.
These draft models and associated recommended criteria are provided in
accordance with the provisions of Section 304(a) of the CWA for the EPA
to revise ambient water quality criteria from time to time to reflect
the latest scientific knowledge. CWA Section 304(a) national water
quality criteria serve only as non-binding recommendations to states
and authorized tribes in defining ambient water concentrations that
will protect against adverse effects to aquatic life and human health.
The ecological responses on which these draft models and criteria are
based were selected by applying a risk assessment approach to
explicitly link nutrient concentrations to the protection of designated
uses.
The draft ambient water quality criteria recommendations for lakes
and reservoirs are based on the available data from the EPA's National
Lakes Assessment (NLA) survey. The NLA surveys are carried out under
the EPA's National Aquatic Resource Survey program, which conducts
water quality and biological surveys of the Nation's surface waters in
partnerships with state and authorized tribal water quality monitoring
programs (https://www.epa.gov/national-aquatic-resource-surveys). The
NLA surveys were designed using random sampling of lakes and reservoirs
across the United States, and as a result, the data generated represent
the characteristics of the full population of United States lakes and
reservoirs. The NLA surveys were implemented using standardized field
sampling and analytical methods, with internal oversight and
independent quality control surveillance yielding data of high quality
and statistical rigor.
The stressor-response models used in generating the draft ambient
water quality criteria recommendations are based on previously
published EPA technical guidance (U.S. EPA 2010, Using stressor-
response relationships to derive numeric nutrient criteria, Office of
Water, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA-820-S-
10-001), as well as scientific peer-reviewed statistical and modeling
techniques. Models provided in the draft recommended criteria document
are based on national data, but states and authorized tribes may have
additional data collected during routine monitoring. Incorporating
these local data into the national models can refine and improve the
precision of the estimates of the stressor-response relationships. In
the appendices of the draft criteria document, the EPA describes case
studies in which state monitoring data have been combined with national
data, yielding models that can be used to derive numeric nutrient
criteria that account for both unique local conditions and national,
large-scale trends.
IV. What are CWA Section 304(a) recommended water quality criteria?
CWA Section 304(a) water quality criteria are non-binding
recommendations developed by the EPA under authority of Section 304(a)
of the CWA based on the latest scientific information on the effect
that pollutant concentrations have on aquatic species, recreation, and/
or human health.
Section 304(a)(1) of the CWA directs the EPA to develop, publish,
and, from time to time, revise criteria for water quality accurately
reflecting the latest scientific knowledge. Water quality criteria
developed under CWA Section 304(a) are based on data and scientific
judgments on the relationship between pollutant concentrations and
environmental and human health effects. CWA Section 304(a) recommended
criteria do not reflect consideration of economic impacts or the
technological feasibility of meeting pollutant concentrations in
ambient water.
CWA Section 304(a) recommended criteria provide non-binding
guidance to states and authorized tribes in adopting water quality
standards that ultimately provide a basis for controlling discharges of
pollutants. Under the CWA and its implementing regulations, states and
authorized tribes are to adopt water quality criteria to protect
designated uses (e.g., aquatic life, recreational use). The EPA's water
quality criteria recommendations are not regulations and do not
constitute legally binding requirements. States and authorized tribes
may adopt other scientifically defensible water quality criteria that
differ from these recommendations. The CWA and its implementing
regulations require that any new or revised water quality standards
adopted by the states and authorized tribes be scientifically
defensible and protective of the designated uses of the bodies of
water. States and authorized tribes have the flexibility to do this by
adopting criteria based on (1) the EPA's recommended criteria, (2) the
EPA's criteria modified to reflect site-specific conditions, or (3)
other scientifically defensible methods.
V. Use of the Ambient Water Quality Criteria Recommendations for Lakes
and Reservoirs by States and Authorized Tribes
The EPA is publishing the draft ambient water quality criteria
recommendations for lakes and reservoirs for consideration by states
and authorized tribes as they develop numeric nutrient criteria to
protect aquatic life, recreation, and drinking water sources from
nutrient pollution. States and authorized tribes could consider using
the recommendations, once final, as an alternative to or as a
supplement of other water quality data and scientifically defensible
approaches. States and authorized tribes may also modify the criteria
to reflect site-specific conditions or establish criteria based on
other scientifically defensible methods (40 CFR 131.11(b)). When
finalized, these updated CWA Section 304(a) recommended nutrient
criteria for lakes do not compel a state or authorized tribe to revise
current EPA approved and adopted criteria, Total Maximum Daily Load
nutrient load targets, or nitrogen or phosphorus numeric values
established by other scientifically defensible methods. As part of
their triennial review, if a state or authorized tribe uses its
discretion to not adopt new or revised nutrient criteria based on these
CWA Section 304(a) criteria models, then the state or authorized tribe
shall provide an explanation when it submits the results of its
triennial review (40 CFR 131.20(a)).
VI. Solicitation of Scientific Views
The EPA is soliciting public comment, including, but not limited
to, additional scientific views, data, and information, regarding the
science and technical approach used in the derivation of these draft
ambient water quality criteria recommendations for lakes and
reservoirs.
David P. Ross,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Water.
[FR Doc. 2020-11126 Filed 5-21-20; 8:45 am]
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