Potable Water Treatment Facility General Permit (PWTF GP) for Massachusetts & New Hampshire
2023 Draft Potable Water Treatment Facility General Permit (Draft PWTF GP)
EPA Region 1 is issuing a renewal of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit for discharges from Potable Water Treatment Facilities (Draft PWTF GP). This draft permit is meant to replace the 2017 PWTF GP. The Draft PWTF GP establishes effluent limitations and requirements, effluent and ambient monitoring requirements, reporting requirements, and standard conditions for certain eligible dischargers in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Specifically, the Draft PWTF GP will cover discharges of wastewater generated from common water treatment processes such as clarification, coagulation, media filtration, and disinfection from potable water treatment facilities. See below for copies of the draft permit and associated documents as well as instructions on commenting on the Draft PWTF GP.
How to Submit Comments
EPA has published a Notice of Availability for this Draft General Permit in the Federal Register on February 21, 2023. The Public Comment Period will begin on February 21, 2023 and be open for 60 days. The Draft General Permit, Fact Sheet, and supporting information are provided on this webpage. Comments must be submitted by the close of the comment period (April 21, 2023) electronically to the following email address: Chien.Nathan@epa.gov.
Draft PWTF GP Documents
- Draft Potable Water Treatment Facility General Permit (pdf) (507 K)
- Appendix A - Freshwater Acute Toxicity Test Procedure and Protocol, February 2011 (pdf) (98 K)
- Appendix B - Freshwater Chronic Toxicity Test Procedure and Protocol, April 2013 (pdf) (80 K)
- Appendix C - Marine Acute Toxicity Test Procedure and Protocol, July 2012 (pdf) (63 K)
- Appendix D - Marine Chronic Toxicity Test Procedure and Protocol, November 2013 (pdf) (125 K)
- Appendix E - Endangered Species Act Guidance and Eligibility Criteria (pdf) (289 K)
- Appendix F - National Historic Preservation Act Review Requirements (pdf) (519 K)
- Appendix G - Notice of Intent (NOI) Instructions (pdf) (381 K)
- Appendix H - Site Specific Effluent Limitations (pdf) (123 K)
- Appendix I - Reasonable Potential Analysis and Limit Derivation (pdf) (212 K)
- Appendix J - PFAS Analyte List (pdf) (229 K)
- Appendix K - List of Eligible Facilities (pdf) (97 K)
- Fact Sheet (pdf) (519 K)
Contacts
EPA: Nathan Chien (Chien.Nathan@epa.gov) 617-918-1649
Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection: Xiaodan Ruan (xiaodan.ruan@mass.gov) 857-256-4172
New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services: Hayley Franz (hayley.franz@des.nh.gov) 603-271-0671
Informational Webinar (2/16/2023)
On February 16, 2023, EPA held an informational webinar on the public notice process for the Draft General Permit. A link to the webinar and the slides can be found below.