[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 196 (Wednesday, October 10, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51665-51667]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-25415]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-7077-3]
Nutrient Criteria Development; Notice of Nutrient Criteria
Technical Guidance Manual: Estuarine and Coastal Marine Waters
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Nutrient Criteria Technical Guidance Manual:
Estuarine and Coastal Marine Waters.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency announces the availability
of a nutrient criteria technical guidance manual for estuaries and
coastal marine waters. This document provides State and Tribal water
quality managers and others with guidance on how to develop numeric
nutrient criteria for estuaries and coastal marine waters. This
document does not contain site-specific numeric nutrient criteria for
any estuary or coastal marine water. This guidance was principally
developed to assist States and Tribes in their efforts to establish
nutrient criteria. States and Tribes are clearly in the best position
to consider site-specific conditions in developing nutrient criteria.
While this guidance contains EPA's scientific recommendations regarding
defensible approaches for developing regional nutrient criteria, this
guidance is not regulation; thus it does not impose legally binding
requirements on EPA, States, Territories, Tribes, or the public, and
might not apply to a particular situation based upon the circumstances.
States, Territories, and authorized Tribes retain the discretion to
adopt, where appropriate, other scientifically defensible approaches to
developing regional or local nutrient criteria that differ from these
recommendations.
We have decided to issue technical guidance in a manner similar to
that which we are using to issue new and revised criteria (see Federal
Register, December 10, 1998, 63 FR 68354 and in the EPA document
titled, National Recommended Water Quality-Correction EPA 822-Z-99-001,
April 1999). Therefore, we invite the public to provide scientific
views on this guidance. We will review and consider information
submitted by the public on significant scientific issues that might not
have otherwise been identified by the Agency during development of this
guidance. This guidance has been through external peer review, and a
summary of these comments will be available on the Nutrient website
within 30 days of this notice (http://www. EPA.gov/OST/standards/nutrient.html). After review of the submitted significant scientific
information, we may publish a revised document, or publish a notice
indicating its decision not to revise the document.
This document has been prepared for publication by the Office of
Science and Technology, Office of Water, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not
constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.
DATES: All significant scientific information must be submitted to the
Agency by December 10, 2001. Any scientific information submitted
should be adequately documented and contain enough supporting
information to indicate that acceptable and scientifically defensible
procedures were used and that the results are likely reliable.
ADDRESSES: This document contains a summary of the Nutrient Criteria
Technical Guidance Manual: Estuarine and Coastal Marine Waters. Copies
of the complete document may be obtained from EPA's National Service
Center for Environmental Publications (NSCEP) by phone at (513) 489-
8190 or toll free (800) 490-9198, or by e-mail to: [email protected], or
by conventional mail to 11029 Kenwood Road, Cincinnati, OH 45242. The
document is also available electronically at http://www.epa.gov/OST/standards/nutrient.html. An original and two copies of written
significant scientific information should sent to Robert Cantilli (MC-
4304), U.S. EPA, Ariel Rios Building, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW ,
Washington, DC 20460. Written significant scientific information may be
submitted electronically in ASCII or Word Perfect 5.1, 5.2, 6.1, 8.0 or
9.0 formats to [email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. David Flemer, USEPA, Health and
Ecological Criteria Division (4304), Office of Science and Technology,
Ariel Rios Building, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20460;
or call (202) 260-0619; fax (202) 260-1036; or e-mail
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Introduction
On June 25, 1998, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
presented a National Strategy for the Development of Regional Nutrient
Criteria that described the approach the Agency would follow in
developing nutrient information and working with States and Tribes to
adopt nutrient criteria as part of State/Tribal water quality
standards. The stated goal of the strategy was the development of
waterbody-type technical guidance and recommended ecoregion-specific
nutrient criteria by the year 2000. Once EPA developed waterbody-type
guidance and recommended nutrient criteria, EPA would assist States and
Tribes in adopting numeric nutrient criteria into water quality
standards.
Overview of the Problem
Cultural eutrophication (i.e., that associated with humans) of
United States surface waters is a long-standing problem; approximately
half of the reported impairments in National waters are attributable to
excess nutrients. Nitrogen and phosphorus are the primary cause of
eutrophication, and algal blooms are often a response to enrichment.
Within estuaries and potentially some coastal marine waters, chronic
symptoms of overenrichment include low dissolved oxygen, fish kills,
increased sediment accumulation, and species and abundance shifts of
flora and fauna. The problem is National in scope, but varies in nature
from one region of the country to another due to geographical
variations in geology and soil types. For these reasons, EPA has
decided to develop its recommend nutrient criteria on a regional basis
for use by States and Tribes.
Summary of Nutrient Criteria Technical Guidance Manual for
Estuarine and Coastal Marine Waters
EPA initiated the National Strategy to Develop Regional Nutrient
Criteria to address enrichment problems. The Nutrient Criteria
Technical Guidance Manual: Lakes and Reservoirs, First Edition was the
first of a series of waterbody-type specific manuals produced to assist
EPA Regions, States, and Tribes in establishing ecoregionally
appropriate nutrient criteria. EPA also developed a manual for rivers
and streams, and, in addition to today's manual for estuarine and
coastal marine waters, is developing a manual for wetlands. EPA expects
States and Tribes to use these manuals as the basis for developing
State water quality standards for nutrients, to help identify water
quality impairments, and to evaluate the relative success in reducing
cultural eutrophication. In addition to developing these waterbody-type
specific manuals, EPA is developing nutrient criteria guidance under
section 304(a) for each of the 14 ecoregions it has identified in the
continental United States. EPA expects States and Tribes to use the
manuals, other information and local expertise to refine EPA's 304(a)
nutrient criteria guidance so that the nutrient water quality criteria
eventually adopted by States and Tribes are tailored to more localized
conditions. In order to assist States and Tribes in this undertaking,
as well as to verify section 304 (a) nutrient criteria guidance, and to
provide national consistency wherever possible, EPA has established
Regional Technical Assistance Groups (RTAGs). RTAGs are a collection of
EPA, State, Tribal representatives who are working together to take
EPA's forthcoming section 304(a) nutrient criteria guidance
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as a starting point to develop more refined ecoregional nutrient
criteria. (EPA is also using data and expertise provided by the RTAGs
in the development of its section 304(a) nutrient criteria guidance for
the 14 ecoregions it has identified.) EPA expects the RTAGs to use the
processes set forth in the waterbody-type specific manuals to develop
recommended nutrient criteria on an ecoregional basis or a more refined
basis (such as subecoregion, coastal province, State or Tribe-level,
more defined class of estuary/coastal marine water). Today's manual for
estuarine and coastal marine waters also explains how States or Tribes
can adopt nutrient water quality standards based on the criteria values
recommended by the EPA and/or RTAGs.
The key parameters addressed in Nutrient Criteria Technical
Guidance Manual: Estuarine and Coastal Marine Waters are total
phosphorus, total nitrogen, algal biomass, and a measure of water
clarity, such as Secchi depth. EPA encourages states and tribes to
include additional response variables which they consider necessary to
protect water quality. These variables may include (but are not limited
to) dissolved oxygen, submerged aquatic vegetation, and macrobenthos.
As set forth in the manual, the elements that EPA expects States and
Tribes to consider in developing a nutrient criterion are:
(1) historical data and other information to establish perspective;
(2) current or historical reference site information;
(3) models used to simulate or validate the empirical relationships
established between causal (nutrients) and response (biological
indicators) variables; and
(4) evaluation of downstream consequences before finalizing
criteria values.
EPA also expects the States or Tribes (or the RTAG when developing
criteria guidance) to use their best professional judgement when
examining the information and establishing criteria.
EPA expects the criteria development and implementation process
(undertaken by EPA, the RTAGs and others) to proceed as follows:
Data acquisition and review, as well as additional data
gathering and processing methods.
Classification of the estuarine and coastal waters by
physical characteristics.
Reference site selection and data reduction to identify
current or historical reference conditions.
Development of defensible nutrient criteria, verified by
an RTAG and evaluated for potential downstream effects.
Adoption of nutrient criteria by States and Tribes into
their water quality standards, ideally taking into account the
reference condition data and designated uses.
Implementation of EPA-approved nutrient criteria by EPA,
States, and Tribes to identify areas of water quality impairment due to
nutrients and to respond appropriately.
These subjects are described in detail in the Nutrient Criteria
Technical Guidance Manual: Estuarine and Coastal Marine Waters.
The manual concludes with chapters describing data models and
management options that actively protect or restore estuarine and
coastal marine waters. Case histories illustrating nutrient criteria
development experiences are appended with the names of individual
specialists to contact for more information.
The Nutrient Criteria Technical Guidance Document: Estuarine and
Coastal Marine Waters that is being announced in this Notice was
developed after consideration of peer review comments provided by a
panel of five external reviewers.
Dated: September 18, 2001.
Geoffrey H. Grubbs,
Director, Office of Science and Technology.
[FR Doc. 01-25415 Filed 10-9-01; 8:45 am]
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