WATER QUALITY
REGULATIONS
Module 22, part A – Regulations
Objectives
Students will be able to:
 differentiate between government bills, acts and U.S.
codes.
 explain the role that states play in environmental water
laws.
 describe the goals of the Clean Water Act 1972.
 explain how Water Quality Standards relate to the
Anitdegredation Policy.
 determine designated uses for various bodies of water.
 explain methods used to monitor and assess water
quality.
 describe major components of the Safe Water Drinking
Act.
 provide examples of other environmental laws enacted
by congress.
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Water regulations
 Government Process
 Major Water Related
Acts
 Other Environmental
Acts
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Government process – bill to code
 Bill: Formally
introduced
legislation.
 Act: Passed
legislation that
becomes law.
 U.S. Code: Official
record of all federal
laws.
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Law to reality
 In order to make the laws work, congress
authorizes certain government agencies to
create regulations that specify what is and is
not legal.
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Law to reality - a public process
 Regulations proposed
 Public comment period
 Revisions
 Final Rule
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Code of Federal Regulation (CFR)
 Codification of the general and permanent
rules published in the federal register by the
executive departments and agencies of the
federal government.
 Divided into 50 titles that represent broad areas
subject to federal regulation.
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Where do states enter the picture?
 Most federal environmental laws are
"delegated" to State governments where the
laws are implemented and administered.
 A state may seek to have EPA delegate all (or
part) of an environmental program to it.
 When a program is delegated to a state, the
state conducts most of the permitting,
inspection, and enforcement activities, with
EPA maintaining a back-up or oversight role.
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Major water-related acts
 Much of the water
quality and
environmental
regulations appear
in Titles 33 and 42.
 Clean Water Act
(Title 33, CFR)
 Safe Drinking Water
Act (Title 42, CFR)
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Desotelle Consulting, PLC
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SDWA vs CWA
EPA Drinking Water Academy
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Clean Water Act (CFR - Title 33)
The objective of the Clean
Water Act (CWA) is to
restore and maintain the
chemical, physical, and
biological integrity of the
Nation’s waters so that they
can support "the protection
and propagation of fish,
shellfish, and wildlife and
recreation in and on the
water."
Desotelle Consulting, PLC
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Federal Water Pollution Control Act to
Clean Water Act
 1st passed in 1972 as the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act
 As amended in 1977, this law became
commonly known as the Clean Water Act.
 Over the years, many other laws have changed
parts of the Clean Water Act.
MN Pollution Control Agency
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CWA goals
 Eliminate pollutant
discharges
 Provide interim water
quality goals
 Prohibit discharge of
toxicants
 Provide financial assistance
 Provide for a plan
 Develop technologies
 Provide for pollution
programs
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CWA point source to nonpoint source
 At first focus mainly on “point
source pollution” related to
chemical integrity.
 Municipal sewage plans
 Industrial facilities
 Last 10 plus years attention
given to physical and
biological integrity.
MN Pollution Control Agency
Dane County, WI
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CWA – a watershed perspective
 Evolution of CWA programs
 shift in philosophy
 Equal emphasis on protecting
healthy waters as well as
restoring impaired ones.
Desotelle Consulting
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Major CWA programs
 Water quality standards
 Designated uses
 Water quality criteria
 Antidegradation policy
 Waterbody monitoring and assessment
 Reports on condition of the nation’s waters
 Total maximum daily loads (TMDLs)
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Water Quality Standards (WQS)
 Translates statutory
Developed by: Desotelle
Desotelle Consulting
goals into measurable
objectives.
 Employ
antidegradation
policies when all WQS
met.
 Develop strategies to
meet WQS when all
WQS are not met.
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Waters of the United States
 Applies only to
surface waters–
rivers, lakes,
estuaries, coastal
waters, and wetlands.
 The exact dividing
line between "waters
of the United States"
and other waters can
be hard to determine.
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Designating WQS
 WQS should be set for
all waters defined as
"waters of the U.S."
 The CWA does not
require WQS for ground
water.
 Standards for
additional surface
waters including
ground water can be
adopted, however.
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EPA Watershed Academy
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Designated Uses (DUs)
 The uses the community wants or might want
to place on a particular waterbody.
 Examples of DUs with subcategories in
parenthesis include:
 drinking water (treated/untreated)
 water-based recreation (noncontact, short or
long term)
 fishing/eating
 aquatic life (warm or cold water species/habitat)
 agriculture water supply
 industrial water supply
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Designated Uses (DUs)
 Generally
waterbodies, and
different portions of
a given waterbody,
are assigned various
combinations of
DUs.
 Economic factors
can be considered
when setting the DU
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EPA Watershed Academy
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Water Quality Criteria (WQC)
 WQC are levels of individual pollutants or water
quality characteristics, or descriptions of
conditions of a waterbody that, if met, will
generally protect the DU of the water.
 For a given DU, there are likely to be a number
of WQC.
 Only scientific considerations can be taken into
account.
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Antidegradation policy
 The purpose of this policy is to keep clean
waters clean. States, tribes, and territories
usually cover this program as part of their
water quality standards regulations.
 A waterbody could have antidegradation apply
to some uses and criteria, whereas a cleanup
strategy, such as a Total Maximum Daily Load
(TMDL) would be needed, for others.
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Antidegradation application
EPA Watershed Academy
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Waterbody monitoring and assessment
 Monitor to determine
whether the WQS are
being met.
 Responsibility falls
primarily on the
states.
 EPA does not operate
a large national
network of water
quality monitoring
stations.
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EPA Watershed Academy
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Reports on condition of the nation’s waters
 States, tribes, and territories are required to
provide the results of their monitoring efforts in
the form of two reports, submitted to EPA and
made available to the public.
 305(b) Report - National Water Quality
Inventory
 303(d) Threatened and Impaired Waters List
 Consolidated Reports
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What do the reports tell us?
 Information represents
the number of
waterbodies for which
the listed stressors were
cited as a cause of
impairment.
 Three most frequently
encountered causes of
impairment are nutrients
(nitrogen and
phosphorus), pathogens
and sediments.
Developed by: Desotelle
EPA
Watershed
Academy
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Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs)
 When a waterbody or segment is impaired by
one or more pollutants, a strategy must be
developed leading to attainment of the WQS.
 TMDLs are to be developed only for waters
affected by pollutants where implementation of
the technology-based controls imposed upon
point sources would not result in achievement
of WQS.
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TMDLs
 “Pollutant budgets" for a specific waterbody or
segment, that if not exceeded, would result in
attainment of WQS.
 Done pollutant by pollutant for each waterbody
or segment
 if there are two or more pollutants, the TMDLs
for each pollutant could be done simultaneously.
 flow alterations and physical habitat
modifications are included in addition to all
pollutants.
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Watershed framework for TMDLs
 TMDLs should be completed on a "watershed
basis" in order to realize program efficiencies
and foster more holistic analysis.
 Ideally, TMDLs are incorporated into
comprehensive watershed strategies to:
 address protection of high quality waters
(antidegradation) as well as restoration of
impaired segments (TMDLs).
 address the full array of activities affecting the
waterbody.
 provide a collaborative effort framework among a
variety of stakeholders.
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Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)
(CFR - Title 42)
 To protect the quality of drinking water in the
U.S.
 Originally passed in 1974
 Amended 1996
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Drinking water facts
 Our society uses
almost an average of
100 gallons of
drinking water per
person per day.
 Of the drinking water
supplied by public
water systems, only
a small portion is
actually used for
drinking.
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EPA Drinking Water Academy
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Application and responsibility
 Every public water system in the U.S. (about
170,000).
 Must have at least 15 service connections or
serve at least 25 people per day for 60 days per
year.
 Responsibility is divided among EPA, states,
tribes, water systems, and the public.
 SDWA provides framework for parties to work
together
 EPA sets national standards based on sound
science to protect against health risks.
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Setting primary drinking water standards
 Identify drinking
water
contaminants that
may adversely
affect public
health.
 Determine a
maximum
contaminant level
(MCL) goal for
regulated
contaminants.
 Specify an
enforceable MCL.
Example of MCLs – does not include all
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Other environmental laws enacted by
congress - EPA carries out its efforts
 1938 Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act
 1947 Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, & Rodenticide Act
 1948 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (also known
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as Clean Water Act)
1955 Clean Air Act
1965 Shoreline Erosion Protection Act
1965 Solid Waste Disposal Act
1970 National Environmental Policy Act
1970 Pollution Prevention Packaging Act
1970 Resource Recovery Act
1971 Lead-Based Paint Poisoning Prevention Act
1972 Coastal Zone Management Act
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Other environmental laws enacted by
congress - EPA carries out its efforts
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1972 Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act
1972 Ocean Dumping Act
1973 Endangered Species Act
1974 Safe Drinking Water Act
1974 Shoreline Erosion Control Demonstration Act
1975 Hazardous Materials Transportation Act
1976 Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
1976 Toxic Substances Control Act
1977 Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
1978 Uranium Mill-Tailings Radiation Control Act
1980 Asbestos School Hazard Detection & Control Act
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Other environmental laws enacted by
congress - EPA carries out its efforts
 1980 Comprehensive Environmental Response,
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Compensation, and Liability Act
1982 Nuclear Waste Policy Act
1984 Asbestos School Hazard Abatement Act
1986 Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act
1986 Emergency Planning and Community Right to
Know Act
1988 Indoor Radon Abatement Act
1988 Lead Contamination Control Act
1988 Medical Waste Tracking Act
1988 Ocean Dumping Ban Act
1988 Shore Protection Act
1990 National Environmental Education Act
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References
 Local Government Environmental Assistance Network. Regulatory
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Information. International City/County Management Association.
http://www/lgean.org/html/regs.cfm.
U.S. Federal Government. Electronic Code of Federal Regulations.
Sept. 28, 2004. http://www.gpoaccess.gov/ecfr/
Environmental Pollution Control Agency. Understanding the Safe
Drinking Water Act. EPA 810-F-99-008. December 1999.
http://www.epa.gov/safewater/sdwa/pdfs/25ann/fs_sdwa_understa
nd_25.pdf
Environmental Pollution Control Agency. Watershed Academy Web
– Introduction to the Clean Water Act. April 19, 2003.
http://www.epa.gov/watertrain/
Environmental Pollution Control Agency. Drinking Water Academy.
April 23, 2004.
http://www.epa.gov/safewater/dwa/electronic/introsdwa.html
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