Minnesota Statewide Mercury TMDL - Proposed MPCA Amendement

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has recently proposed adding a total of 126 lakes, streams and rivers to its list of mercury impaired water bodies. Excess mercury in fish from these additional water bodies will be addressed under the existing Statewide Mercury TMDL, or under a water body specific TMDL, depending on fish tissue concentrations.

The MPCA Mercury TMDL relies on a reduction goal for mercury atmospheric deposition. The TMDL contains the list of lakes and river segments covered by the TMDL. The Statewide Mercury TMDL also contains the list of NPDES permittees covered by the TMDL.

The 2008 Mercury TMDL listed 998 water bodies. Subsequently, three water bodies were split, resulting in a total of 1001 water bodies. An additional 95 waterbodies are being added in the 2010 cycle, resulting in a grand total of 1096 water bodies in the 2010 revision the EPA-approved Mercury TMDL.

The water bodies listed in the Statewide Mercury TMDL have fish tissue concentrations greater than 0.2 mg/kg [the Minnesota State water quality standard] and equal to or less than 0.572 mg/kg. Fish tissue concentrations that exceed 0.572 mg/kg are not eligible to be included in the Statewide Mercury TMDL. Those mercury impairments are subject to a future TMDL studies. In 2010, MPCA is proposing to add 28 water bodies to the list of mercury impaired waters not eligible to be addressed under the Statewide Mercury TMDL, bringing the total to 326.

Caltha LLP provides expert consulting services to public and private sector clients nationwide to address water quality standards, wastewater permitting and assessing potential impacts of chemicals in the aquatic environment.

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Court Approves MPCA Vessel Discharge Permit Rules

The Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s (PCA) new regulations to control ballast water discharges from ships on Lake Superior.

The Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy had filed suit against the PCA saying the agency was moving too slowly and had standards too lax to regulate ballast water. The group wanted tougher standards on ships imposed sooner than 2012 for new ships and 2016 for existing ships the PCA has called for.

The court’s decision upholds the rules promulgated by the PCA last year for nearly all ships that discharge any ballast water or carry ballast water through Minnesota waters of Lake Superior.

[Read more about Vessel Discharge Permits]

Caltha LLP provides expert consulting services to public and private sector clients nationwide to address water quality standards, wastewater permitting and assessing potential impacts of chemicals in the aquatic environment.

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Mercury TMDL - MPCA Proposal To Control Hg Air Emissions

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is requesting comments on new air quality rules involving mercury air emissions reporting. The Rules are being drafted in accordance with a statewide mercury TMDL, which aims to reduce mercury in fish.

The impeding rulemaking falls into two general categories:

1) Mercury Emissions Reporting, and
2) Plans for Mercury Emissions Reductions at Certain Facilities

Rulemaking will require certain facilities holding an MPCA air emissions permit to develop their own Mercury Emissions Reducing Plan for incorporation into their State air emissions permit. Some facilities will also be expected to develop reduction plans to meet sector or source reduction targets and timeframes listed in the “Strategy Framework for the Implementation of Minnesota’s Statewide TMDL”, which outlines the State's strategy to address the many lakes & rivers in the State impaired due to high concentrations of mercury in fish.

The proposed new and amended rules will also establish the emission calculation methods for facilities to track their mercury emissions and submit an annual mercury emissions report to the MPCA. Although MPCA is considering having mercury emissions reporting take place concurrent with the annual air emissions inventory process, the proposed rulemaking does not include any major changes to the criteria pollutant emissions inventory.

The proposed rule will also establish the minimum requirements for Mercury Emissions Reduction Plans from each facility to address how they will reduce mercury emissions. The Plans will either be incorporated into their air emissions permit as enforceable requirements or will be made enforceable using other means available to the MPCA. Reduction targets are established for taconite processing facilities, utility boilers, commercial, institutional and industrial boilers, petroleum refineries, secondary metal smelters, sewage sludge incinerators.

As a separate element of the Statewide TMDL, MPCA is also proposing evaluations for mercury sources as a requirement under its Multi-sector Industrial Stormwater General permit. Facilities that identify mercury sources will need to develop a Mercury Minimization Plan relative to stormwater discharges.

Caltha LLP provides expert consulting services to public and private sector clients nationwide to address water quality standards, wastewater permitting and assessing potential impacts of chemicals in the aquatic environment.

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Use of Aquatic Life Standards As Stormwater Benchmark Values

On July 6, 2009, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) released the draft of its proposed multi-sector industrial stormwater discharge general permit. This permit, once promulgated, will replace the existing industrial stormwater permit, which expired in October of 2002.

The MPCA draft permit is of interest outside of Minnesota because of the numerous unique requirements that MPCA has included. Many of these go well beyond other current State general permits, and even the most recent US EPA general permit (“MSGP-2008”). Unique features of the MPCA permit include special stormwater antidegradation requirements, design and performance requirements for stormwater infiltration, requirements for mercury minimization, and others.

One unique feature of the draft MPCA general permit is the use of Aquatic Life Standards as Stormwater Benchmarks. Stormwater benchmarks are used to evaluate the effectiveness of stormwater Best Management Practices (BMP). MPCA is currently proposing to use some Final Acute Values (FAV) and “Great Lakes” derived water quality standards as stormwater benchmarks. For other proposed benchmarks, “Best Professional Judgment” is the basis for the values.

MPCA is proposing to use FAV that apply to cold water fisheries or “trout streams” (Class 2A) for a number of benchmark chemicals, including:

Aluminum
Ammonia
Arsenic
Cadmium
Chromium
Copper
Cyanide
Lead
Nitrogen
Phenol
Selenium
Silver
Zinc

For some of these chemicals, MPCA is apparently considering water quality-based adjustments, based on parameters such as hardness, pH, temperature, etc.

These water quality-based benchmarks, as proposed, would not apply to all industrial categories. The industry sectors that would be subject to one or more water quality derived benchmarks include:

Sector A - Timber Products
Sector C - Chemical and Allied Products Manufacturing
Sector E - Glass, Clay, Cement, Concrete, and Gypsum Products
Sector I - Oil and Gas Extraction and Refining
Sector K - Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage, or Disposal Facilities
Sector L - Landfills, Land Application Sites, and Open Dumps
Sector M - Automobile Salvage Yards
Sector N - Scrap Recycling and Waste Recycling Facilities
Sector Q - Water Transportation
Sector U - Food and Kindred Products
Sector X - Printing and Publishing
Sector Y - Rubber, Miscellaneous Plastic Products, and Miscellaneous Manufacturing
Industries
Sector Z - Leather Tanning and Finishing
Sector AA - Fabricated Metal Products
Sector AC - Electronic and Electrical Equipment and Components

Looking for other sector information? Click here for information on proposed stormwater requirements for a specific sector.

Caltha LLP provides expert consulting services to public and private sector clients nationwide to address water quality standards, wastewater permitting and assessing potential impacts of chemicals in the aquatic environment.

Caltha LLP Aquatic Toxicology / WQ Standards Services Website

Tiered Aquatic Life Use - TALU - Proposed By Minnesota MPCA

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is currently working to revise the Minnesota Water Quality Standards to incorporate a tiered aquatic life use framework for rivers and streams in the state. The Tiered Aquatic Life Use (TALU) framework represents a significant revision to the Water Quality Standards of the State’s aquatic life use classification.

MPCA conducted several public meetings to discuss the approach in January 2009, and is currently following up with smaller focused stakeholder groups. Rulemaking to incorporate TALU into State Water Quality Standards would not occur until 2010-2011.

The TALU approach utilizes biological assessments of water bodies to identify “stressed” aquatic communities. This assessment would be separate from, and in addition to, traditional current chemical monitoring of lakes and streams to determine if they meet State Water Quality Standards. TALU also provides a mechanism to determine impairments of “modified or limited water resources”, which may include channelized streams and agricultural ditches.

The biological monitoring program in Minnesota relies establishes a reference condition to set expectations for water bodies. This approach identifies water bodies that are the least stressed and uses them to establish the “reference condition.” This reference condition can then be used to evaluate other water bodies. If the condition of the water body is lower than that of the reference condition, it would be considered impacted or stressed.

TALU presents a few issues related to integration into existing regulatory programs and requirements, including:

• How will assessments made using TALU relate to determination of impairment, and the State list of Impaired Waters (“303d List”)?
• If listed on 303d List, how would a TMDL be implemented?
• How would permitted discharges be controlled if discharging to a “stressed” water body?
• How would it be determined that a discharge “causes or contributes to” an impairment if discharging to a “stressed” water body?
• How would TALU be used for “development and modification of water quality standards to produce improved standards”?

Caltha LLP provides expert consulting services to public and private sector clients nationwide to address water quality standards, wastewater permitting and assessing potential impacts of chemicals in the aquatic environment.

Caltha LLP Aquatic Toxicology / WQ Standards Services Website

MPCA Water Quality Standards - Revised Rule 7050 - 7052

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is requesting comments on its planned amendments (“Triennial Review”) to rules governing state water quality standards found in Minnesota Rules Chapters. 7050 and 7052.

- Chapter 7050 includes provisions to protect Minnesota’s waters from pollution.
- Chapter 7052 provides standards specific to surface waters of the state in the Lake Superior Basin.

The Federal Clean Water Act (CWA) requires States to review their water quality standards every three years (“Triennial Review”) and to amend and update them if necessary. The MPCA initiated this triennial review by seeking comments in a Request for Comments published in the July 28, 2008, State Register. The key amendments being considered for the upcoming Triennial Review include:

• Planned Amendments for Numeric Standards for Class 2 waters
• Eutrophication standards for river systems.
• Revised turbidity standards
• New or revised contaminant standards for protection of aquatic life and human health from toxic effects related to:
  1. Cadmium
  2. Copper
  3. Chloride
  4. Diazinon
  5. Nonylphenol
  6. Nitrate
  
• Updates in methods to human health-based chronic water quality standards
• Amendments to Class 3 (Industrial Consumption) and Class 4 (Agriculture and Wildlife) standards.
• Potential Water Use Classification Changes for Specific Water Bodies

Caltha LLP provides expert consulting services to public and private sector clients nationwide to address water quality standards, wastewater permitting and assessing potential impacts of chemicals in the aquatic environment.

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Industrial Pretreatment Rules - New MPCA Regulations

The new Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) Wastewater Pretreatment Rules (Minnesota Rules 7049) recently became effective. Prior to promulgation of these Rules, Minnesota industries that discharged to their local Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW) and where subject to Federal pretreatment requirements did not have easy options to demonstrate compliance, especially if they were located outside of a major metropolitan area.

Changes in the new pretreatment requirements will primarily affect:

1. Industrial dischargers that are subject to Federal Categorical Effluent Standards;


2. Industrial dischargers that have higher flow or loads to their POW compared to other dischargers; and


3. POTWs that have not been delegated authority to operate their own industrial pretreatment program
   

One of the key elements of the new MPCA Rule is the definition of “Significant Industrial Users”. These industrial dischargers will have increased reporting and monitoring requirements. POTWs must identify all their Significant Industrial Users and report on them annually to MPCA.

For more information on this new Rule, go to Regulatory Briefing - New Minnesota Pretreatment Rule. Caltha publishes Regulatory Briefings to highlight new or proposed Federal and State regulations; Click here to register to receive these Briefings by email.

Caltha LLP provides expert consulting services to public and private sector clients nationwide to address water quality standards, wastewater permitting and assessing potential impacts of chemicals in the aquatic environment.

Caltha LLP Aquatic Toxicology / WQ Standards Services Website

MPCA Antidegradation Requirements for Storm Water Discharges

On December 18, 2008, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) released a redraft of the Multisector Industrial General Permit (MSGP) currently being written. Similar to previous drafts, this version is incomplete. [Read about previous draft of MPCA permit]

One of the important elements of this draft is the proposed antidegradation requirements for stormwater [Read further information on Antidegradation Policies].

Two overall categories are presented to determine potential antidegradation policy status:

All waters of State (Statewide). Any facility that requires an NPDES permit for stormwater discharge AND after January 1, 1988 increased the area of industrial activities by more than 91 acres (by expansion or new construction) must implement specific additional stormwater controls listed in the permit. As currently drafted, this requirement appears to apply retroactively, meaning that a facility that expanded by more than 91 acres anytime after January 1, 1988 could be required to retrofit stormwater controls to meet the new requirements.

Sites Near “Special Waters”. This requirement applies to facilities located within 1-mile of listed special waters, including Lake Superior, upper Mississippi River, lake trout lakes and other outstanding resource value waters. This requirement, as currently drafted, applies to all facilities within 1-mile of these waters, regardless of a “new or expanded” discharge. Facilities currently permitted and in compliance with the MPCA general permit would need to meet all permit requirements, including the listed additional stormwater controls. These permittees could be required to retrofit existing stormwater controls to meet the new requirements.


The MPCA MSGP is a work in progress; revisions and additions to the permit continue to be made. Once a draft is completed, the permit will be issued for public comment. Because of the size and complexity of the draft permit (especially compared to the current permit, written in 1997), it is expected that there will be significant public comments.

Caltha LLP provides expert consulting services to public and private sector clients nationwide to address water quality standards, wastewater permitting and assessing potential impacts of chemicals in the aquatic environment.

Caltha LLP Aquatic Toxicology / WQ Standards Services Website