Rulemaking information
NOTE: Official dates for Notices asking for comment and ad hoc meeting dates are published in the Virginia Register. Look for submittals in the Register under the State Water Control Board. Submittals may be found under Proposed Regulations, Final Regulations or General Notices (for ad hoc or standing advisory committee meetings). You can also track these amendments through the Virginia Regulatory Town Hall. Search for Water Quality Standards.
1. Exceptional State Waters. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requires all states to allow citizens to nominate surface waters or stream segments as outstanding natural resource waters, called exceptional (or tier 3) waters in Virginia. The intent is to provide extra protection for waters that exhibit exceptional scenic beauty, aquatic life or recreational opportunities. The Exceptional Waters Program prevents new or increased discharges into a water body to preserve its current water quality for the benefit of future generations. Guidance for exceptional state waters designations is available.
Nominations are presented for consideration as exceptional state waters to the State Water Control Board, comprised of citizens who make regulatory decisions about water issues in Virginia. The exceptional water designation is a part of the state's water quality regulations, as required by the EPA. The regulatory process takes about two years to complete. It provides considerable opportunity for public comment and participation before the water board makes a final decision on the exceptional water designation.
For information regarding effective Exceptional State Water designations click here.
| Action | Schedule | Other Information |
|---|---|---|
Bull Run - petition (text only) | Received by State Water Control Board April 14, 2011 Riparian landowner and locality 60 day comment period ends June 23, 2011.
General public 21-day comment period ends June 27, 2011. Link to notice | Staff instructed to proceed with locality and landowner notification |
| SWCB meeting | House Room D General Assembly Building 9th and Broad Streets Richmond, VA 23219 CONVENE - 9:30 A.M Thursday - August 4, 2011 | Board minutes - Approval to proceed to Notice Of Intended Regulatory Action (NOIRA).
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Notice Of Intended Regulatory Action (NOIRA) Link to notice - page 562 | Comment period November 21, 2011 - January 3, 2012 |
2. Freshwater Nutrient Criteria. The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is requiring states to consider nutrient criteria for all waters. VA DEQ submitted a draft Nutrient Criteria Development Plan to Region III on October 31, 2002 and published the plan for public comment on November 4, 2002. DEQ made minor revisions and resubmittals at the request of EPA. In a June 15, 2004 letter EPA provided written concurrence of the version of the VA Plan resubmitted on March 30, 2004. The current 2010 Nutrient Criteria Development Plan posted on this web page reflects an EPA-requested update.
Nutrient criteria for lakes and reservoirs were approved by EPA Region 3 in a letter dated July 17, 2007; these amendments became effective in Virginia on August 14, 2007. Freshwater nutrient criteria are under development for streams and rivers.
| Action | Schedule | Other Information |
|---|---|---|
| Academic Advisory Committee (AAC) Meeting |
| AAC Report 2004 AAC Lake Dissolved Oxygen Responses |
| Stakeholders Meeting | August 18, 2004 | Presentations from Stakeholder meeting: |
| Action (RIVERS and STREAMS) | Schedule | Other information |
| Notice of Intended Regulatory Action (NOIRA) | Pending | AAC Final Report 2010- Wadeable & Non-Wadeable Streams & Rivers |
| Stakeholders Meeting | October 23, 2006 at DEQ Piedmont Regional Office in Glen Allen 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. | Presentations from Stakeholder meeting Current AAC recommendation status Presentation - Va. Association of Municipal Wastewater Agencies (VAMWA) |
Stakeholders Meeting | June 12, 2008 at DEQ Piedmont Regional Office in Glen Allen 1:30 - 3:30 | Presentations from Stakeholder meeting Wadeable streams nutrient criteria development - current status (DEQ) |
3. James River Chlorophyll Study. DEQ will undertake a comprehensive review of the existing James River Site-Specific Numeric Chlorophyll-a Criteria and associated modeling framework for the tidal James River to determine the best scientific basis for the standard. This effort is being initiated as a result of the Chesapeake Bay TMDL Phase I Watershed implementation Plan (WIP).
First Meeting of Science Advisory Panel for the Monday, August 22, 2011 at Presentations Notice Of Intended Regulatory Action (NOIRA) - link to notice - page 4 Meeting of Science Advisory Panel for the Action Schedule Other Information
Background Resource Information |
|---|
Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) information (EPA web page) DEQ Technical Report - Chlorophyll a Numerical Criteria for the Tidal James River November 30, 2004 James River Alternatives Analysis June 23, 2005 October 2007 - Chesapeake Bay & Tidal Tributaries - Chlorophyll Criteria addendum (See Chapter VI for chlorophyll a characterization of Harmful Algal Bloom) September 2008 - Chesapeake Bay & Tidal Tributaries - Technical Support for Criteria Assessment Protocols addendum May 2010 - Chesapeake Bay & Tidal Tributaries - Technical Support for Criteria Assessment Protocols addendum Freshwater James River - Bukaveckas et al, 2011 |