Public Health Pesticides and the Clean Water Act: Current Status

1. Public Health Pesticides and the Clean Water Act:Current Status Joseph M Conlon Technical Advisor

2. FIFRA vs CWA FIFRA CWA Cost/benefit No cost/benefit Risk-based Hazard-based $7000/incident $37,000/day No citizen suits Citizen suits

3. Pesticide General Permit: Contents • Fact sheet • Notice of Intent • Effluent Limits • Pest Management Discharge Plan • Monitoring • Annual Reporting • Recordkeeping

4. Pesticide General Permit: Contents • Fact sheet • Notice of Intent • Effluent Limits • Pest Management Discharge Plan • Monitoring • Annual Reporting • Recordkeeping

5. Fact Sheet Components • Fact sheet will be public noticed with draft permit. • Fact sheet includes information such as: • Principal facts and significant factual, legal, methodological, and policy questions considered in preparing the permit. • Description of types of activities covered. • Types of discharges covered. • Rationale for permit requirements, incl. calculations and analysis. • Brief summary of the basis for permit conditions.

6. Pesticide General Permit: Contents • Fact sheet • Notice of Intent • Effluent Limits • Pest Management Discharge Plan • Monitoring • Annual Reporting • Recordkeeping

7. Notice of Intent (NOI) • Type or scale of application – water-acres? • Identify the responsible entity • Contact information - address, phone, email • Description of entity • Type of discharges (pesticide use patterns) • Receiving stream(s) • File electronically by > 10 days prior to discharge • Authorization date – 10 days after EPA receipt • 25 (B) not “exempt”

8. Pesticide General Permit: Contents • Fact sheet • Notice of Intent • Effluent Limits • Pest Management Discharge Plan • Monitoring • Annual Reporting • Recordkeeping

9. Technology-Based Effluent Limits General Concept • Minimize pesticide discharges • Based on integrated mosquito management practices • Minimize pesticide discharges by BMPs that are available and economically practicable • Use lowest effective amt. and optimize frequency of applications • Regular maintenance • Calibrate

10. Technology-Based Effluent Limits Integrated Mosquito Management • Identify problem • Mosquito management • Prior/each year select for each treatment area • Water quality/non-target/resistance/feasibility/cost effectiveness • No action • Prevention • Mechanical/physical methods • Cultural methods • Biological control • Pesticides • Pesticide Use - larvicides are primary

11. “Best Management Practices for Integrated Mosquito Management” • Mosquito Surveillance • Mapping • Action Thresholds • Physical Control or Source Reduction • Biological Control • Chemical Control • Monitoring for Efficacy/Resistance • Education and Community Outreach • Record-keeping

12. Water Quality-Based Effluent Limitations • Narrative • Discharge must be controlled as necessary to meet numeric WQS • EPA may impose additional limitations or require individual permit

13. Pesticide General Permit: Contents • Fact sheet • Notice of Intent • Effluent Limits • Pest Management Discharge Plan • Monitoring • Annual Reporting • Recordkeeping

14. Pesticide Discharge Management Plan - General • Within 90 days of NOI • Documents implementation of permit requirements • Can reference pre-existing IMM plans • Not subject to challenge

15. Pesticide Discharge Management Plan - Components • Pesticide Discharge Management Team • Problem • Control measures • Surveillance • Schedules and procedures • Spill prevention/response • Equipment maintenance • Adverse incident response plan • Pesticide monitoring

16. Pesticide Discharge Management Team • Person(s) responsible for: • Managing mosquitoes • Developing PDMP • Taking corrective actions • Pesticide applications

17. Problem Description • Treatment area – description and boundaries • Mosquito management objective • Target species • Action thresholds • Applicable WQS and data source

18. Description of Control Measures • Water quality/non-target/resistance/feasibility/cost effectiveness • No action • Prevention • Mechanical/physical methods • Cultural methods • Biological control

19. Description of Control Measures • Name of pesticide and EPA registration # • Procedures for determining lowest effective amt. and freq of application • Document why larviciding is not primary method

20. Surveillance • Must document procedures for conducting pre and post-application surveillance • Where • When • How

21. Schedules and Procedures • Spill prevention/response • Equipment maintenance/calibration • Adverse incident response procedure • Pesticide monitoring • Process for determining monitoring location • Schedule and procedures for monitoring • Person(s) responsible for monitoring

22. Pesticide General Permit: Contents • Fact sheet • Notice of Intent • Effluent Limits • Pest Management Discharge Plan • Monitoring • Annual Reporting • Recordkeeping

23. Site Monitoring • Required • “visual monitoring” of “application area” • During application in daylight – except aerial/truck • During post application efficacy check • Unanticipated death/distress of non-targets • Disruption of wildlife habitat, recreational, or municipal water • “enhanced visual monitoring” for some applications • No ambient water quality testing foreseen – yet

24. Pesticide General Permit: Contents • Fact sheet • Notice of Intent • Effluent Limits • Pest Management Discharge Plan • Monitoring • Annual Reporting • Recordkeeping

25. Annual Reporting • Permittee’s name • NPDES Permit tracking # • Permittee’s mailing address • Contact name, title, e-mail, phone # • EPA registration #s • Amount of product used • Location/names of waters • Mosquitoes controlled • Submit electronically

26. Pesticide General Permit: Contents • Fact sheet • Notice of Intent • Effluent Limits • Pest Management Discharge Plan • Monitoring • Annual Reporting • Recordkeeping

27. Recordkeeping • Required to be on hand • Copy of permit – can be electronic • Copy of any adverse incident reports • Copy of NOI

28. EPA Permit Issuance as Federal Action • Endangered Species Act (ESA) requires EPA consultation with USFWS and NOAA • EPA is discussing PGP with the Services • Discussions may result in additional permit requirements.

29. Schedule Oct 2009 Public Comment on Draft Permits – 60/90 Days Discuss Prototype Issue Final Permit Mandate Issues 2 mo. 8 mo. 8 mo. 4 mo. Dec 2010 June 2009 Apr 9, 2011 Apr/May 2010

30. Update • Cert petitions appealing 6th CCA decision to SCOTUS filed on 11 January 2010 • Congressional amicus curiae • AMCA filed amicus curiae in two cases involving CWA • NPDES – 6th Circuit (with NASDA, et al.) • Peconic – 2nd Circuit

31. Supreme Court CertAmicus Curiae • Industry - invasive species • Solicitor General Files in opposition • Argued opinion and should have deferred to EPA expertise • However: • Only applies to very narrow range of activities • Cited grant of 2 year stay • Sufficient time for general permit development to minimize potential disruptions

32. Supreme Court CertEnvironmentalist Amicus Curiae "Imagining catastrophe, Petitioners argue that the Sixth Circuit's opinion will sweep into the Act's permitting program a variety of activities Congress did not intend to regulate…they suggest that this case warrants review because other courts may mistakenly extend the Sixth Circuit's analysis beyond the opinion's holding.”

33. Second Circuit • Peconic Baykeeper • Appealing dismissal of claims made against Suffolk County for spraying w/o permit • No precedence to abide by 6th Circuit • Court wants to wait until permit to be issued

34. What Now? • Supreme Court to accept/deny Cert by February 22 • If accepted, oral arguments by October • If cert denied, mandates goes into effect 9 April 2011 • Second Circuit to opine April – June in Peconic