1. Staying on Top of Permits & Public Comments Public Comments Policy Track: Sunday, February 28, 2010 4-5:30 pm

2. 1.Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) List90 email list: List90@adem.state.al.us permitsmail@adem.state.al.us 2.Alabama Surface mining Commission (ASMC) Email list: Nancy.Stockman@asmc.alabama.gov 3.Local newspaper legal classifieds 4.Municipal government 5.County government 7. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Email list: http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/listserv.html 8. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Email list: dll-cesam-rd-pn@sam.usace.army.mil Include the following information in your email: Name, Email address, Mailing address, Phone #, Agency Name (If applicable) 9.U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) Public Notice list: denise_rowell@fws.gov 10. Regulations.gov http://www.regulations.gov 11. Federal Register http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr Permit & Public Comment Resources

3. http://www.adem.alabama.gov eFile http://edocs.adem.alabama.gov/eFile Enforcement Notices http://www.adem.alabama.gov/compInfo/adminOrders.cnt Public Notices & Permits http://www.adem.alabama.gov/newsEvents/publicNotices.cnt Permit Applications http://www.adem.alabama.gov/MoreInfo/permitApps.cnt Permit Wizard http://www.adem.alabama.gov/PermitWizard/default.aspx Alabama Environmental Regulations & Laws http://www.adem.alabama.gov/alEnviroRegLaws/default.cnt Water Quality http://www.adem.alabama.gov/programs/water/waterquality.cnt Public Participation in the ADEM Rulemaking & Permitting Process http://www.adem.alabama.gov/newsEvents/pubs/Permit1004.pdf Public Hearings & Meetings http://www.adem.alabama.gov/newsEvents/pubHearings.cnt

4. Region IV http://www.epa.gov/region4 Water Discharge Permits (PCS) http://www.epa.gov/enviro/html/pcs/pcs_query.html Enforcement & Compliance History Online (ECHO) http://www.epa-echo.gov/echo Envirofacts Data Warehouse http://www.epa.gov/enviro/index.html Surf Your Watershed http://cfpub.epa.gov/surf/locate/index.cfm EPA http://www.epa.gov

5. Alabama Ecological Services Field Office (Daphne) http://www.fws.gov/daphne Daphne Special Agent http://www.fws.gov/southeast/law/SA/daphne.htm Montgomery Special Agent http://www.fws.gov/southeast/law/SA/montgomery.htm http://www.fws.gov USFWS

6. Mobile District http://www.sam.usace.army.mil Planning & Environmental http://www.sam.usace.army.mil/pd/Pd1.htm Regulatory Program http://www.sam.usace.army.mil/RD/reg/ Public Notices http://www.sam.usace.army.mil/RD/reg/public.htm http://www.sam.usace.army.mil/pd/Pd1.htm#Public_Notices USACE http://www.usace.army.mil

7. http://www.adph.org Fish Consumption Advisories http://www.adph.org/tox/Default.asp?id=1360

8. Persons wishing to comment may do so, in writing, to the Department's named contact above within 30 days following the publication date of this notice. COMMENTERS SHOULD IDENTIFY THE APPROPRIATE NPDES NUMBER ON THE FIRST PAGE OF THEIR COMMENTS. In order to affect final decisions, comments must offer technically substantial information that is applicable to the proposed permit. A written request for a public hearing may also be filed within that 30-day period and must state the nature of the issues proposed to be raised in the hearing. The Director shall hold a public hearing whenever it is found, on the basis of hearing requests, that there exists a significant degree of public interest in the permit application or draft permit. The Director may also hold a hearing if he determines that it would clarify one or more issues involved in the permit decision. After consideration of all written comments, review of any public hearing record, and consideration of the requirements of the Alabama Water Pollution Control Act, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act and applicable regulations, the Department will make a final determination. The Department will develop a response to comments, which will become part of the public record and will be available to persons upon request. Notice will be sent to any person requesting notice of the final action. Russell A. Kelly, Chief Permits and Services Division ADEM PO Box 301463 Montgomery, AL 36130-1463 (334) 271-7714 ADEM Public Comment Guidelines

9. File Review Instructions: ADEM eFile Open your internet browser and navigate to http://edocs.adem.alabama.gov/eFile On the search page put a check mark in the box for “Water” next to the heading “Media Area” In the box next to the heading “Permit Number” type in the permit number of a facility as it is given to you Leave all of the other search options blank and click on “Search” at the bottom of the page

10. File Review Instructions: Getting Started After you click “Search” the eFile server will display the files that ADEM has made available to the public at the bottom of the page, with up to 10 search results listed per page Depending on the size, importance, and age of the facility, there might be only one or two pages (10 to 20 documents) of search results, or there might be up to around 20 pages (200 documents) The documents will be listed with several columns giving the Facility Name, Permit Number, Date of the Document, Type of Document, and File Name To view a particular document, simply click the link to “Download” it in the left column of the search results

11. File Review Basics: What Are the Different Types of Documents? Discharge Monitoring Reports (DMR) – Self-generated reports detailing the concentrations and quantities of pollutants in the discharges from the facility Inspection Reports (IR) – Reports generated by ADEM after an inspection will often indicate if there are any problems with the facilities operations or discharges Toxicity Reports (TOX) – Analyses of samples taken by the facility to determine if their discharges have the potential to kill or disrupt the life-cycles of fish

12. File Review Basics: What Are the Different Types of Facilities/Permits? Individual Permits Municipal – Water/Waste Water Treatment Plants and Lagoons Industrial Mining – Quarries/Coal Mines General Permits* – Usually smaller industrial facilities that fit within a certain category and do not need individual coverage State Indirect Discharge (SID) Permits – Permit to discharge to municipal waste water collection system, rather to surface water Underground Injection Control (UIC) Permits – Permit to inject water into the ground via well, instead of to surface water

13. ADEM Records Review Azure D. Jones ADEM Permits & Services (334)271-7712 Ajones@adem.state.al.us records@adem.state.al.us ARA River Protection Essential – How to Check a Company’s Pollution Record http://www.alabamarivers.org/River%20Resources/rpe- adem-file-review-brochure

14. Grassroots Water Advocacy Resources Alabama Rivers Alliance http://www.alabamarivers.org River Network http://www.rivernetwork.org American Rivers http://www.americanrivers.org Clean Water Network http://www.cleanwaternetwork.org

15. Nelson Brooke (205) 458-0095 nbrooke@blackwarriorriver.org www.blackwarriorriver.org