Potomac Roundtable October 8, 2010

1. Update on the Development of EPA’s Chesapeake Bay TMDL and Virginia’s Watershed Implementation Plan Russ Perkinson Potomac Roundtable October 8, 2010

2. Chesapeake Bay TMDL • EPA sets pollution diet to meet clean water standards • Caps on nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment loads for all 6 Bay watershed states and DC • States allocate loads to point and non-point sources so not to exceed TMDL cap [i.e., diet] • Must demonstrate “reasonable assurance” of actions • VA draft Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) sent to EPA on Sept 3 • EPA has provided comments and “Backstops”

3. Schedule for Bay TMDL Process Major basin jurisdiction loading targets Local Program Capacity/Gap Evaluation Final TMDL Established December 2010 Oct 2009 Bay TMDL Public Meetings Phase 2 Watershed Implementation Plans: Jan – Nov 2011 Divide Target Loads among Watersheds, Counties, Sources November-December 2009 Phase 1 Watershed Implementation Plans: November 2009 – Sept 1, 2010 2-year milestones, reporting, modeling, monitoring Starting 2011 Public Review And Comment October 1-Nov 1, 2010

4. Federal ConsequencesDec. 29, 2009 EPA Letter Directed at states not achieving expectations Includes: Expand NPDES coverage to currently unregulated sources Object to state-issued NPDES permits and increase program oversight Require net improvement offsets Establish finer scale wasteload and load allocations in the Bay TMDL Require additional reductions of loadings from point sources (e.g., wastewater, stormwater, CAFOs) Increase and target federal enforcement and compliance assurance in the watershed Condition or redirect EPA grants Federal promulgation of local nutrient water quality standards

5. Virginia Draft AllocationsNitrogen – [Million Pounds/Year]

6. Virginia Draft AllocationsPhosphorus– [Million Pounds/Year]

7. Virginia TMDL Stakeholder Advisory Group Membership • 40 members representing agriculture, wastewater, developed and developing lands, local and federal government, NGOs, seafood industry and consultants Charge • Provide for a transparent process, a forum for open discussion, advice on pollutant load reductions by sector and on the ability of current, expanded, and new programs to achieve needed pollution reductions SAG has met four times to date, future meetings possible

8. Overview of WIPWastewater Significant dischargers will not exceed current allocations based on Water Quality Management Planning Reg and Chesapeake Bay Watershed general Permit Reg Nonsignificant discharger loads based on 2005 Code of Va procedures Combined sewer systems based on long-term control plan for bacteria

9. Overview of WIPAgriculture Implementation of Plan(s) that include: Nutrient Management Plans Soil Conservation Plans 35’ grass or forest buffers between crop and hay land and perennial surface waters Livestock stream exclusion from perennial streams 95% coverage needed of the above. Better accounting of voluntary and currently required practices. Expanded cost-share program to assist in transition to expected practices and to encourage many other “incentive based” practices

10. Overview of WIPUrban Stormwater Revise VA Stormwater Management Regulations to prevent loads from increasing above loads allowed for previous land uses. Maximize implementation of urban nutrient management: All municipal / county owned lands implement NMPs Lawn service companies follow DCR criteria for fertilizer use and reporting NMPs on all golf courses Sales restrictions or controls on do-it-yourself fertilizers Prohibit use of nitrogen based deicers Require proper storage and disposal of non-ag fertilizers by retailers Retrofit existing developed lands with BMPs over 15 years Impervious lands 9% N ↓ , 16% P ↓ Pervious lands 6% N ↓ , 7% P ↓ Federal Lands – Twice these reductions Or much greater reductions in some basins unless offset loads

11. Overview of WIPOnsite / Septic Consider revisions to Code of VA to require the use of either: Shallow-placed drainfields to reduce nitrogen loss, or Denitrification systems (sites where shallow-placed is not an option) Consider requiring denitrification systems in certain defined sensitive areas Consider Code revision to encourage the use of community systems Explore tax credits or other financial incentives to upgrade existing septic systems, grants for low income families Expanded nutrient credit exchange program

12. Possible Expanded Nutrient Credit Exchange Consider revisions to Code of VA to expand current nutrient credit exchange Would allow stormwater to buy and sell credits Would allow on-site / septic sector to buy credits Based on proposed sector allocations in VA’s draft WIP, only the wastewater sector will likely have any significant credits to sell in the future

13. EPA Backstops Wastewater – 4 mg/L TN and 0.3 mg/L TP at design flow (ENR) MS4s – 50% of urban MS4 land gets aggressive high efficiency BMP retrofits 25% of present unregulated land gets aggressive retrofits (designated as new MS4 areas) Confined Animal Feeding Operations All CAFOs have waste storage, barnyard runoff control, mortality composting, feed management to reduce N & P All AFOs – achieve essentially the same standards as CAFOs, designated as CAFOs as needed to achieve objective

14. EPA Comments on VA WIP Agriculture Reasonable assurance not demonstrated adequate to achieve BMP levels – need to describe regulatory and other drivers Need to better address P saturated soils in Shenandoah Valley Consider expanding VPA program to small dairies Develop alternative uses of poultry manure with integrators Stormwater Stronger performance standard on new development to address volume and flow (retention, not detention) No driver to force retrofits down to E3 levels in WIP input deck Proposed Nutrient Credit Exchange WIP proposes that all onsite/septic systems are retrofit or obtain offset credits, but no regulatory driver to require all owners of septic systems or owners of impervious surfaces to purchase annual credits or retrofit

15. Specific Issues for the Potomac and Shenandoah Watershed Wastewater loads are already close to or exceed EPA backstops – at least for significant municipal plants EPA backstops would require reduction of urban stormwater loads to extremely low levels Perhaps some opportunity for higher implementation long term futuristic Ag practices (Precision Ag, Continuous No-till, etc.)

16. Agency Websites EPA http://www.epa.gov/chesapeakebaytmdl/ VA-DEQ http://www.deq.virginia.gov/tmdl/chesapeakebay.html VA-DCR http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/soil_and_water/baytmdl.shtml

17. Question & Answer

18. Extra Slides

19. Phase II - Local Target Loads and Action Plans Will work closely with local stakeholders to identify specific controls and practices to be implemented Agencies will initiate work later in 2010 Due by November 2011

20. 2-Year Milestone Process Biennial Milestones –Use adaptive management; identify specific actions needed to maintain schedule Continue to engage stakeholders and public Monitor and evaluate progress Next milestone period – January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2013 to be completed with phase II plan

21. Summary Table of 2025 by Sector for Shenandoah - Potomac

22. Summary Table of 2025 by Sector for Shenandoah - Potomac