TMDL

Chesapeake

EPA needs to take a hand to keep the restoration plan on track. We’ll see how that goes soon.

The effort to restore Chesapeake Bay is something I knew vaguely about but had never looked into. A new on-line  dashboard of relevant material inspired me to take a deeper dive. The restoration plan is definitely worth a closer look., It’s the U.S. leading effort to reduce“nonpoint source” water pollution such as agricultural runoff. It …

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TMDL Fight Brewing in Chesapeake Bay

On December 29, 2010, EPA finalized a plan to reduce nutrient pollution in Chesapeake Bay by implementing a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) budget using its Clean Water Act authority. That plan will require a 25% reduction in nitrogen, a 24% reduction in phosphorus and a 20% reduction in sediment throughout the watershed. This includes …

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Settlement marks a step forward on ocean acidification*

Cross-posted at CPRBlog. As Cara and Dan have explained, ocean acidification is the other big climate change problem. As atmospheric CO2 levels rise, more CO2 dissolves in the oceans. That in turn increases ocean acidity, which changes the ecology of the seas, most obviously by reducing the ability of corals and a variety of other …

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NPDES permits on impaired waterways

Cross-posted at CPRBlog. Precisely what the Clean Water Act requires of point sources that discharge to already-polluted waterways has long been a point of confusion. Now, according to Inside EPA (subscription required) EPA may revise the rules it applies to new permits on impaired waterways. A rulemaking seems far from certain at this point — …

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Is an ocean acidification TMDL on the (distant) horizon?

In  January, Dan posted on the problem of ocean acidification and Sean noted that a lawsuit by the Center for Biological Diversity had convinced EPA to look into the possible application of the Clean Water Act.  Now EPA has issued a call for interested parties to submit information as it considers whether to tighten its …

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