Water Quality BriefingWater Quality BriefingCommunity Program Advisory Community Program Advisory Committee MeetingCommittee Meeting

June 18, 2003

AgendaAgenda

• Introductions

• Program Update

• Water Quality Standards

• Next Meeting

OverviewOverview

• History of water quality protection

• Where are we today?

• Toledo supports improving water quality

• Water quality standards are used to protect uses

• How do we meet water quality standards?

• Can we meet water quality standards?

Problem Recognition Problem Recognition (1960s-1970s)(1960s-1970s)

"We have met the enemy, and he is us“

A national audience saw the Cuyahoga River burn in 1969

•Raw sewage

•Industrial discharges

•Dead fish

•Algal mats

•Dead birdsBy the late 1960's, Lake Erie had been declared ecologically "dead"

1972: An Ambitious Goal1972: An Ambitious Goal

“[R]estore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Nation's waters”

• Eliminate discharge of pollutants by 1985• Wherever attainable, achieve an interim goal

of water quality to provide for protection and propagation of fish, shellfish, and wildlife and recreation by July 1, 1983

• Establish national policies for control of point and nonpoint sources

Clean Water Act. Title 33, Chapter 26, Subchapter I, Sec. 1251

Example Tools of the Example Tools of the Clean Water ActClean Water Act

• Construction grant funding for cities• Technology-based effluent limits

• Secondary treatment for wastewater plants

• “Best” practical/available technologies for industries

• Pretreatment requirements• Pollutant lists = water quality based effluent limits• Storm water permits• State nonpoint source control plans• National Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Policy

1972

1977

1987

1994

Where are we today?Where are we today?

Recreation on Lake Erie is worth $3 billion a year.

Today, almost 2/3 of water bodies now meet Clean Water Act uses and goals.

Jet skis and water taxis replaced fire patrol on the Cuyahoga.

Remaining IssuesRemaining IssuesWet weather discharges

• Combined sewer overflows• Storm water runoff (urban areas)• Agricultural runoff• Sanitary sewer overflows

Legacy pollutants (contaminated sediments)

Failing septic tanks

Other• Funding for wastewater infrastructure• Exotic species

2121stst Century Challenge Century Challenge

• What water quality can be attained?

• What will it cost?

• Who should participate?

• Are the controls affordable?

• If not, how do we define how the river should be used and when?

Residential Customer Residential Customer SurveySurvey• Problems facing Toledo

• #1 Public schools / education (22%)

• #8 Pollution/utilities/sewers (3%)

• Rivers and Lake Erie are of high value • Frequency of river use

• #1 Enjoy scenery / walking / jogging

• Fishing• #3 Lake Erie

• #5 rivers

• #6 Swimming

Residential Customer Residential Customer Survey (cont.)Survey (cont.)• Preventing sewer overflows is important

• Residents have somewhat realistic expectations for water quality improvement

• Support for increased sewer rates

How do we get there?How do we get there?

Water quality

objectives

Water Quality StandardsWater Quality Standards

Uses•Swimming

•Aquatic life (fish & bugs)

•Industrial & agricultural water supply

Criteria•Numeric (less than / more than X)

•Narrative (no aesthetic impacts)

Risk of Illness from Risk of Illness from Exposure to BacteriaExposure to BacteriaFecal coliform*

(counts per 100 milliliters)

• Bathing beach < 400

• Swimming < 2,000

• Wading < 5,000

E. Coli*• Bathing beach < 235

• Swimming < 298

• Wading < 576*Only 10% of samples can exceed these values over a 30-day period. May 1 to Oct. 15.

Aquatic Life Require Aquatic Life Require Dissolved OxygenDissolved OxygenMinimum range in dissolved oxygen for survival and reproduction

Milligrams per liter (mg/L)

> 3 to 8

> 3 to 6.5> 4 to 10

> 2 to 4

Causal FactorsCausal Factors

• CSOs• Storm water

• Illicit connections

• Animal waste

• Agricultural runoff• Leaking septic tanks• Sanitary sewer overflows

• Decaying organic material (sediments)

• Stagnant water (lack of reaeration)

• CSOs• Elevated temperatures• Sanitary sewer overflows

Bacteria problems Diss. oxygen problems

What is the water quality What is the water quality like today?like today?

Water BodyFecal bacteria

(# per 100 mL)Minimum diss. oxygen (mg/L)

Swan Creek <200 to 130,000 4 to 5

Ottawa River <600 to 240,000 2 to 3

Maumee River <200 to 60,000 4 to 5

How do we know if we How do we know if we can meet WQ standards?can meet WQ standards?• Determine relative contribution of CSO and other

sources• Measurement of pollutant loads• Computer model of sewer overflows

• Determine impact of those sources on the river• Monitor sources of pollution and river impacts• Computer model of river flow and water quality

• Evaluate how well different pollution control technologies can work

• Determine the cost and affordability of pollution control

Questions to be Questions to be Answered with the LTCPAnswered with the LTCP• How much would it cost to:

• Eliminate all CSOs?

• Have only 4 to 6 CSO events a year? Or more?

• If we eliminated some or all of the CSOs:• Where could we swim and when?

• Would dissolved oxygen in the Ottawa improve?

• Could water quality be improved more if money were spent elsewhere (e.g., storm water, agriculture)?

• How much time is needed to implement the LTCP and what funding is available?

Other ConsiderationsOther Considerations

• The CSO Policy recognizes that it may be appropriate to review and revise WQ standards• Some water quality standards illogical in wet

weather• Generally not an easy process• Momentum for this is gaining, particularly for wet

weather conditions

• EPA also recognizes that a “watershed approach” is more cost-effective than just evaluating / controlling CSO

SummarySummary

• Water quality has significantly improved

• There’s still a way to go

• Reducing wet weather discharges is part of the answer• The LTCP will help improve water quality

• Additional steps are also likely to be needed• Revising water quality standards• Watershed improvements