The Indiana Department of Environmental Management’s (IDEM’s) Consolidated Assessment and Listing Methodology (CALM) is a document that guides IDEM's Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 305(b) assessments and the Section 303(d) listing processes. The CALM describes IDEM’s methods for defining waterbody assessment units. Waterbody assessment units for flowing waters may consist of an entire stream or reaches of a stream that have similar features. These features could include hydrology, surrounding land uses, and any other features that make one or more streams representative, either individually or combined into a single assessment unit, for the purposes of water quality assessments. Lakes are each assigned a single waterbody assessment unit for assessment purposes.
The CALM:
- Is based on federal CWA requirements and Indiana’s water quality standards;
- Describes the type and amount of data needed to make water quality assessments for each designated use;
- Describes the water quality criteria and other decision-making criteria used to determine, based on the available data, whether a waterbody is meeting its designated uses;
- Provides the scientific and policy rationale for any new or revised assessment methodologies;
- Provides guidelines regarding the placement of Indiana waterbodies into the appropriate category of Indiana’s Consolidated List for each designated use; and,
- Explains the decision-making criteria for adding and removing waterbodies from Indiana’s 303(d) List of Impaired Waters.
Much of IDEM’s surface water quality data is collected using a rotating basin approach to monitoring Indiana waters, which divides the state into nine major water management basins. One basin is monitored each year, and the data collected for that basin is analyzed the following year. IDEM also collects water quality data through other programs targeted to specific needs such as total maximum daily load (TMDL) development, measuring the success of grant-funded restoration efforts and supporting the development of fish consumption advisories and watershed management plans.
IDEM’s monitoring programs provide most of the data used in water quality assessments. However, IDEM also solicits and reviews existing and readily available water quality data from external organizations for potential use in its 305(b) assessment and 303(d) listing processes. Once the water quality data for a basin has been compiled, IDEM makes its assessments in accordance with the processes documented in the CALM.
The CALM is updated every two years to incorporate changes in water quality standards, changes in U.S. EPA guidance, new scientific information, and other applicable criteria. To provide greater transparency and encourage public input to the Agency’s assessment and listing processes, IDEM includes the CALM with the draft 303(d) list in one notice during the state-mandated 45-day public comment period.
IDEM’s 2024 CALM: