 |
||
|
Water |  |
 |
||
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
|
|
WaterNews for July 1, 2003G. Tracy Mehan, III WaterNews is a weekly on-line publication that announces publications, policies, and activities of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Water. Inside this week’s WaterNews
July is Lakes Awareness MonthEPA in conjunction with the North American Lake Management Society (NALMS) and others, is celebrating “Lakes Awareness Month” in July as part of the Year of Clean Water, 2002-2003. Boating, fishing and swimming are favorite recreational uses of American lakes and reservoirs. Lakes and reservoirs also play other vital, and often under-appreciated, roles. They provide drinking water and irrigation water for agricultural fields and are a source of electricity and power generation. They also serve the important function of absorbing rainfall and runoff from land, help to prevent floods, and provide homes for precious wildlife. It is clear that as we enjoy and use lakes, we have to protect them. Because lake pollution is caused by so many different activities, no single approach will suffice to prevent it. Education and outreach aimed at changing individual behavior are key components to any successful lake protection effort. Door Hanger: Open the Door to Clean Lakes EPA Issues Construction General PermitEPA’s Construction General Permit was published in the Federal Register today and covers all construction activity on sites one acre or larger * in states, territories, and Indian country where EPA is the permitting authority. The new permit implements Phase II of the NPDES Stormwater Regulations which contains new requirements for construction sites between one and five acres. (Construction sites that are five acres or larger were regulated previously under Phase I of the program and earlier construction general permits.) Under this Permit, construction site operators will need to develop and implement stormwater pollution prevention plans and file a “Notice of Intent” form at least 7 days prior to initiation of land-disturbing activities. For more information, see www.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater/cgp. *or smaller sites that are part of a larger common plan of development or sale NPDES Permits Available OnlineEPA is making electronic copies of NPDES permits and fact sheets for major facilities available online. Permit documents are now available through Envirofacts for about 450 facilities that have had their NPDES permits issued or reissued since November 1, 2002. EPA will continue to post copies of permits and fact sheets for major industrial and municipal facilities as existing permits are reissued and new permits are issued. For more information about this project and detailed instructions on how to access the documents, see www.epa.gov/npdes/permitdocuments/. Withdrawing Federal Criteria for San Francisco BayIn a Federal Register notice published on June 25th, EPA proposed to withdraw federal aquatic life copper and nickel water quality criteria for south San Francisco Bay (the area south of Dumbarton Bridge). The State of California adopted, and EPA approved, numeric aquatic life copper and nickel water quality criteria for south San Francisco Bay. The federal criteria are no longer necessary. You can learn more about this action by visiting the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/standards/sanfranbayfs.htm.
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
