The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) is soliciting public comment on Indiana's Water Quality Standards (WQS). The federal Clean Water Act (CWA) requires all states to develop, review, revise, and adopt WQS. WQS must include the designated uses of the waterbody, water quality criteria necessary to protect those uses, and antidegradation provisions to protect the water quality.

The CWA requires the states to periodically review and update their water quality standards as appropriate. The most significant recent rulemaking to revise Indiana's WQS was development of the statewide antidegradation standards and implementation procedures, LSA Document #08-764, that was final adopted on March 14, 2012. Another rulemaking, LSA Document #11-320, to amend the WQS for chloride and sulfate, was final adopted on May 23, 2012. Currently, IDEM has proposals and plans for rulemakings affecting WQS or use designations for the following:

(1) Nutrients, specifically Total Phosphorus, in lakes and reservoirs, First Notice of Comment Period posted in the Indiana Register on June 30, 2010, for LSA Document #10-424.

(2) Special Designations and Exceptional Use Waters, First Notice of Comment Period posted in the Indiana Register on July 3, 2013, and Second Notice of Comment Period posted in the Indiana Register on October 23, 2013, for LSA Document #13-290.

(3) Site-specific modification procedure for copper criteria with regard to the Town of Kendallville. Rulemaking notice is yet to be posted.

(4) Revision of the Aquatic Life Ambient Water Quality Criteria (WQC) and Human Health WQC for metals. Revisions to these metal criteria reflect updates to National Recommended Water Quality Criteria (NRWQC) at Section 304(a) of the CWA. Rulemaking notice is yet to be posted.

IDEM believes these rulemakings focus on key updates needed to improve Indiana's WQS but is interested in hearing public opinion on all aspects of the WQS. With this notice, IDEM requests feedback from all interested parties on any aspect of Indiana's WQS contained in Title 327 of the Indiana Administrative Code (IAC), Article 2. Public comments should include the matter at issue, whether it is currently covered by the WQS, and, if so, where any suggested change should be made and the basis for the suggested change. Technical information or reports supporting the comment should be included.

The estimated fiscal impact of changes to the WQS is impossible to determine at this notice stage without knowing what changes may ultimately occur.

A copy of this notice is now on file at the Office of Legal Counsel, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, Indiana Government Center North, 100 North Senate Avenue, Room N1315 and Legislative Services Agency, Indiana Government Center North, 100 North Senate Avenue, Room N201, Indianapolis, Indiana.

Public hearings or meetings will be considered if requested by commenters. The purpose of the hearings/meetings would be to solicit public comments on Indiana's WQS to determine whether additional rulemaking should be initiated. Public comment will be accepted at the hearings/meetings.

Written comments in response to this notice may be submitted to IDEM through December 20, 2013, in one of the following ways:

(1) By mail or common carrier to the following address:

Notice of Review of WQS

MaryAnn Stevens

Rules Development Branch

Office of Legal Counsel

Indiana Department of Environmental Management

100 North Senate Avenue

MC 65-41

Indianapolis, IN 46204-2251

(2) By facsimile to (317) 233-5970. Please confirm the timely receipt of your faxed comments by calling the Rules Development Branch at (317) 233-8903.

(3) By electronic mail to mstevens@idem.in.gov. To confirm timely delivery of your comments, please request a document receipt when you send the electronic mail. PLEASE NOTE: Electronic mail comments will NOT be considered part of the official written comment period unless they are sent to the e-mail address indicated in this notice.

(4) Hand delivered by 4:45 p.m. to the receptionist on duty at the thirteenth floor reception desk, Office of Legal Counsel, Indiana Government Center North, 100 North Senate Avenue, Indianapolis, Indiana.

Regardless of the delivery method used, in order to properly identify each comment, it must clearly specify the title of "Notice of Review of WQS".

Additional information regarding this action may be obtained from MaryAnn Stevens, Rules Development Branch, Office of Legal Counsel, (317) 232-8635 or (800) 451-6027 (in Indiana) or Shivi Selvaratnam, Ph.D., Technical Environmental Specialist, Office of Water Quality, (317) 234-7914 or (800) 451-6027 (in Indiana).

Bruno Pigott, Assistant Commissioner

IDEM

Office of Water Quality

DIN: 20131113-IR-318130496ONA

Composed: Apr 27,2024 12:28:08AM EDT

A PDF version of this document.