Utah Water Quality Politics & Pollution May 20, 2010 Mike Allred DEQ Division of Water Quality

Outline for this Session Regulatory Background – Federal & State Statutes Beneficial Uses, W.Q. Standards, Monitoring & Assessment 305(b) and 303(d) Tools for WQ Maintenance & Improvement (Programs) Emerging Issues – Endocrine Disruptors, Mercury, etc.

Regulatory Background 1948Water Pollution Control Act No goals, objectives, limits or guidelines States have the primary responsibility to control water pollution 1950First municipal wastewater treatment plant constructed 1953 Utah Water Pollution Control Act - Water Quality Standards and treatment requirements Utah’s Early Years

Regulatory Background Early Years Cont’d 1964Elimination of last community sewer discharge without treatment 1965Federal Water Quality Act passed providing grants for municipal wastewater construction 1965Major sewered Utah communities achieve secondary treatment

Regulatory Background Clean Water Act (1972)  Restore and Maintain the Chemical, Physical, and Biological Integrity of the Nation’s Waters  Focus was on Point Source Discharges  Fishable Swimmable Waters by 1983  Administered by EPA

Regulatory Background Clean Water Act cont’d.  Amended in 1987 to add Nonpoint Source Component –Nonpoint Source - runoff from agriculture, forestry, mining, urban stormwater etc.  Delegated to the States for implementation at the state level  Utah Environmental Quality Code –Chapter 5 Water Quality Act (UAC 19-5)

Regulatory Background Utah Water Quality Act (1953)   Established the Utah Water Quality Board   Surface water and ground water pollution control   Classify waters according to beneficial uses   Establish WQ standards to protect waters   Enforcement and penalty authority   Establish plans to improve water quality   Approve the construction of pollution control projects

Regulatory Background Beneficial Use Designations (Classifications)  Class 1C - Drinking Water  Class 2A, 2B - Recreation ( e.g. swimming, boating etc.)  Class 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D - Wildlife Uses  Class 4 - Agricultural Uses  Example: Weber River - 1C, 2B, 3A & 4

Regulatory Background Water Quality Standards  Water Quality Standard - the maximum amount of pollutant a waterbody can carry and still maintain its beneficial uses.

Regulatory Background Narrative Standards (R )  Unlawful to discharge or place waste that: –Offensive, unnatural deposits –Floating debris, oil, scum –Other nuisances – color, odor, taste, etc. –Undesirable physiological responses in fish or aquatic life, or human health effects

Regulatory Background Numeric Criteria for Class 1C  List of 24 Numeric Criteria;  Examples include: –Arsenic.01 mg/l –Cadmium.01 mg/l –Lead.015 mg/l –Nitrate 10 mg/l (as N) –Radium 226 & pCi/l –2, 4-D 70 ug/l –E. Coli 206 (#/100ml)

Monitoring & Assessment WQ Monitoring & Assessment  305(b) Report –Submitted to EPA / Congress every other year –Assessment of water quality in Utah’s streams and lakes  303(d) Impaired Waters –Waters that are not meeting WQ standards for their beneficial use classifications

Monitoring & Assessment chemical physical biological Ecological Integrity The Challenge… Protect the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of ALL Utah’s waters. Monitoring to support all programs aimed at meeting these goals.

Monitoring & Assessment Water chemistry: the traditional backbone of UT-DWQ WQ programs Data Collected at Each Site: Stream Discharge Field parameters: temp., conductance, DO, pH Chemistry: Nutrients- total and dissolved Metals- major salts always, heavy metals quarterly Chemistry- TDS, TSS Others- Dependent on permit requirements of specific WQ concerns

Monitoring & Assessment Moniitoring logistics? 8 full-time staff who collect data year round Water chemistry samples, typical year: ~299 sites (10 to 12 visits per year) ~3,400 site visits ~9,775 samples = 6800 liters of water We also get about 33% more data in cooperation with other state and federal agencies.

Monitoring & Assessment Clean (we hope) Lake Monitoring Priority lakes were identified based on importance and susceptibility to human-caused disturbance. ~60 lakes/reservoirs are sampled each year, with a rotation every other year. ≥1 site per lake, plus all inflows. Samples are collected during peak growing season (July & August); unless identified as impaired and sampled 4X per year.

Monitoring & Assessment Clean Lake Monitoring Samples are collected at numerous depths and data are used to determine trophic status or violations of standards. Standard Lake parameters -Lake DO/temperature profiles -Algae composition -Secchi Disc -Water Chemistry: nutrients, TDS, TSS, and metals

Monitoring & Assessment Measures of biological condition are useful because they: o directly measure beneficial uses, o can simultaneously measure the effects of multiple pollutants, o provide a continuous record of degradation, o are cost effective, o are of direct interest to the public,and o measure the effects of both point- and nonpoint-source pollutants.

Monitoring & Assessment UCASE (Utah’s Comprehensive Assessment of Stream Ecosystems): Biological, Chemical, and Physical Habitat Monitoring - Biological data include diatoms, macroinvertebrates, and fish. - Physical habitat data collected following EPA’s EMAP protocols. - Current budget is for about 75 sites/year.

Monitoring & Assessment Total assessed = 10,442 miles Stream Water Quality Status 2008

Monitoring & Assessment Water Quality Status Lakes and Reservoirs

Monitoring & Assessment Historical Stream Water Quality Assessment

Water Quality Tools CWA Programs Tools to Achieve & Maintain Water Quality  Construction Assistance  Surface and Groundwater Discharge Permits  Non-point Source Program  TMDL

Water Quality Tools Construction Assistance  SRF – State Revolving Fund –Low interest loans to public treatment facilities  Community Loans & Grants for wastewater systems  Non-point source loans & grants for water quality improvement projects

Water Quality Tools UPDES – Utah Pollution Discharge & Elimination System  Surface Water Discharge Program –Discharge Permits –Bio-solids –Storm Water –CAFO/AFO –SSO’s –Pre-Treatment & Local Limits

Water Quality Tools

UPDES Permits

Water Quality Tools Storm Water

Water Quality Tools

Concentrated Animal Feeding Operatons CAFO

Ritewood Egg Pond Failure

Water Quality Tools Total Maximum Daily Load  The sum of the nonpoint sources, (including natural background concentrations), point sources, and a margin of safety, so as to attain or maintain the water quality standards of a water body.

Water Quality Tools Impaired Waters  Stream, River, Lake or Reservoir that is not meeting water quality standards.  303(d) List - All waterbodies that are impaired  Utah’s 303(d) list on DWQ Website: –  Impaired waterbodies require a TMDL

Water Quality Tools 2006 TMDL Water Quality Studies

Water Quality Tools BEFORE Non-Point Source Program

Water Quality Tools AFTER Non-Point Source Program

Emerging Issues  Persistent Toxics –Mercury –PCBs  Pharmaceutical & Personal Care Products –Endocrine Disruptors  In Stream Flows  Nutrients

Emerging Issues Salt Lake Tribune Toxic mercury lurking in Great Salt Lake A poison wind: Toxic mercury blows into Utah from Nevada Mercury a worry for duck hunters Government, industry need to do more to resolve mercury issue Mercury too high in Utah test fish It's raining mercury Activists say Utah should test its waters for mercury

Emerging Issues Utah Fish Tissue Data  Total samples (with results) to date – 1,411  Total locations sampled (with results) –170 Rivers/streams –55 Lakes/reservoirs  152 Samples above 0.3 mg/kg (11%)  (DEQ & Wildlife Resources collected approx. 260 fish in 2007; analysis is ongoing at State Lab)

Emerging Issues Joe’s Valley Res. Gunlock Res. Upper Enterprise Res. Newcastle Res. Calf Creek Mill Creek Weber River Green River Jordanelle Res. Waterfowl - GSL Utah Mercury Advisories

Emerging Issues

Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs)  Industrial chemicals (PCB, Dioxin, Pesticides (DDT, organo-chorines, others  Plastics (phthalates, Bisphenol A  Consumer products (lacquers lining cans, building products, car products, clothing, children’s products, some medical products, cosmetics, personal care products  EPA estimates there are 80,000 chemicals that need examination to determine if EDC

Emerging Issues Estrogenicity of Treated Sewage  Over the past 10 years feminization of male fish have been detected in Europe, US, Japan. (1)  Estrogenicity of sewage effluent has been demonstrated in US, Europe, China, and Korea. (1)  “The occurrence of feminized fish is associated with effluent discharges … the incidence and severity is positively correlated with the proportion of treated sewage effluent in receiving waters.” (6)

East Canyon Creek August 2003

Utah Population Projections

East Canyon Creek Summer 2001

Walking Utah’s Environmental Tightrope Politicians Environmental Advocates