Wyoming Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Fact Sheet Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality
Water Quality Division 122 West 25th Street Cheyenne, WY 82002 (307) 777-7781
General Permit Number
WYGXX00000
General Permit Name
Wildcat Creek Watershed General Permit for Surface Water Discharges from Coal Bed Methane Development February 25, 2009
Draft Date
Permit Writer and Title
Kathy Shreve Environmental Scientist I
Description of Activities Covered Under General Permit Proposed Action
This general permit provides WYPDES permit coverage for coal bed methane production facilities operating within the Wildcat Creek sub-watershed of the Little Powder River Basin in northeastern Wyoming. New General Permit
Effective Date of Permit
TBD
Expiration Date of Permit
TBD
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1. INTRODUCTION 1.1. Overview In 1972, the federal Clean Water Act (CWA) was amended to provide that the discharge of any pollutants from a point source into surface waters of the United States had to be regulated through the issuance of a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit. Under the CWA, states were also given the authority to assume “primacy” to administer the NPDES program (now called the Wyoming Pollutant Discharge Elimination System or “WYPDES” program to avoid confusion with permits issued within the boundaries of the State of Wyoming under the auspices of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)) and issue such permits. The State of Wyoming obtained primacy in 1974. Chapter 2 of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, Water Quality Rules and Regulations states that owners or operators of any facility within the State of Wyoming who propose to commence discharging wastes into the waters of the state must file WYPDES permit applications and obtain a WYPDES permit. Surface waters of the state have been broadly defined as all permanent and intermittent defined drainages and lakes, reservoirs, and wetlands which are not manmade retentions ponds used for the treatment of municipal, agricultural, or industrial waste; and all other bodies of surface water, either public or private, which are wholly or partially within the boundaries of the state. Discharges of pollutants to areas such as fields or roads, which are not considered to be surface waters of the state, are not regulated under the WYPDES program; however, these discharges may fall under the jurisdiction of another program.
On November 13, 2003, the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, numerous CBM operators, and Edward and Troy Swartz, landowners within the Wildcat Creek drainage, entered into a settlement agreement regarding a consolidated appeal to the Wyoming Environmental Quality Council (EQC) under EQC Docket # 02-3801. The settlement agreement set forth various conditions and permit requirements for existing and new CBM surface discharge permits located within the Wildcat Creek drainage. This general permit in no way attempts to alter any of the conditions set forth in the settlement agreement. Rather, the intent of the WYPDES in issuing this general permit is to provide an administratively efficient method for issuing permits that are consistent with the conditions of the settlement agreement. Please note that all CBM discharges with the potential to impact agricultural activities on the Swartz property, whether or not such discharges were identified in the course of the Swartz appeal, are bound to the conditions of this general permit. 1.2. General Permits: History and Criteria In 1979, EPA enacted regulations - 40 CFR §122.28 – that created a class of permits called “general permits”. The State of Wyoming (Section 4, Chapter 2 of the Wyoming Water Quality Rules and Regulations) also has virtually identical regulations that allow for the use of general permits. It has been determined by the EPA (40 CFR §122.28) and the WYPDES program (Section 4, Chapter 2 of the Wyoming Water Quality Rules and Regulations) that the use of a general permit can be an effective tool, allowing agencies to issue permits with a relatively small administrative burden. Under the general permitting approach, a single generic permit is issued to cover a number of similar facilities within a limited geographic area, as long as the following criteria, which are virtually identical in both the federal and State of Wyoming regulations, can be met: Criteria 1: All discharges within the permitted category or subcategory involve similar types of operations.
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Determination 1: As all operators eligible for coverage under this general permit will be discharging groundwater produced during the development of coal bed methane operations, these operations are similar. Criteria 2: Facilities must discharge the same types of wastes to be covered under a general permit. Determination 2: As all operators eligible for coverage under this general permit will be discharging groundwater produced during coal bed methane development operations, these operations are expected to discharge similar waste streams. Criteria 3: Require the same effluent limitations or operating conditions. Determination 3: Neither the EPA nor the State of Wyoming have interpreted this requirement to mean that effluent limitations or operating conditions being established under the general permit must be identical. General permits may also establish multiple “classes” or “categories” of discharges for which separate effluent limitations and/or operating conditions will be defined. The general permit can be fine-tuned with requirements that ensure that state water quality standards are not exceeded, or that facilities operating under special circumstances are either excluded under the general permit or must comply with special conditions not applicable unless the facility demonstrates potential to exceed those conditions. In addition, all of the discharges covered under this general permit will be authorized pursuant to the Wildcat Creek Settlement Agreement, which sets specific effluent limits for the watershed. Criteria 4: Require the same or similar monitoring. Determination 4: Neither the EPA nor the State of Wyoming have interpreted this requirement to mean that monitoring requirements being established under the general permit must be identical. The general permit can be structured to require different monitoring procedures based on discharge volume, geographic location, or potential to impact higher-class streams. The Division has implemented a categorical approach in which, based upon information elicited from the permittee, a particular category of effluent limits and monitoring requirements applies to each discharge. In addition, all of the discharges covered under this general permit will be authorized pursuant to the Wildcat Creek Settlement Agreement, which sets specific end-of-pipe and instream monitoring requirements for the watershed. Criteria 5: Discharges are more appropriately controlled under a general permit. Determination 5: The Division has determined that permitting on an individual basis within the Wildcat Creek watershed is no longer the most effective means of permitting coal bed methane discharges within the watershed. This determination is based on experience with permitting coal bed methane facilities in adjacent and similar watersheds of the Little Powder River Basin, and with issuing permits in the drainage since the implementation of the Wildcat Creek settlement agreement, which establishes uniform effluent limitations, permit requirements, and provides for a collective monitoring plan within the Wildcat Creek drainage.
2. WATERSHED DESCRIPTION
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Wildcat Creek watershed encompasses approximately 208,291 acres in the southeastern portion of the Little Powder River Basin of Wyoming. Sharing its northern boundary with the Horse Creek drainage, its southern boundary with the Rawhide Creek drainage, and lying to the west of the Little Powder River, it occupies a significant portion of central Campbell County. Livestock production and associated hay production are major economic activities within the Wildcat Creek watershed. Landowner Notification and Involvement: As per Wyoming Water Quality Rules and Regulations, Chapter 2, Section 4.l.(iii), permittees will be required to notify Wildcat Creek landowners upon whose property outfalls will be (or are located, in the case of major modifications and renewals) located prior to the submittal of a notification of intent (NOI) to obtain coverage under this general permit. The Wildcat Creek General Permit website will provide landowners and other interested parties with access to the issued general permit and fact sheet. Approved NOIs may be reviewed by any interested party at the Campbell County Public Library. 3. ACTIVITIES COVERED BY THIS GENERAL PERMIT The only activities covered by this general permit are discharges of groundwater pumped to the surface and discharged to waters of the state of Wyoming in the course of coalbed methane gas production 4. ACTIVITIES NOT COVERED BY THIS GENERAL PERMIT The following types of discharges will not be covered under this general permit:
Discharge of any drilling fluids, acids, stimulation waters or other fluids derived during the course of drilling, maintaining, and/or completing wells, Storm water runoff from construction activities, Discharges to off-channel pits cannot be covered under this general permit due to previous legal settlements between the WQD and outside parties. To be considered off-channel, a pit must meet the siting criteria established in “Off-Channel, Unlined CBM Produced Water Pit Siting Guidelines for the Little Powder River Basin, Wyoming”, established August 6, 2002 and updated June 14, 2005, Discharges to containment units (reservoirs or infiltration pits) located in the Little Powder River alluvium, Direct discharges to the Little Powder River, Discharges not related to coal bed methane production, Discharges for which the effluent limits and requirements established in this general permit would not provide adequate protection of designated uses and/or water quality, and Discharges occurring outside of the Wildcat Creek watershed of the Little Powder River Basin. Discharges to on-channel man-made 50-year/24 hour containment reservoirs. Discharges to playa lakes (naturally closed basins), involving relaxed effluent limits typically associated with such discharges. Discharges not required to comply with the provisions of the Swartz settlement agreement.
In the event that any proposed discharge cannot be covered under this general permit, the permittee may request that the discharge be permitted through an individual WYPDES permit, or any other applicable general permit.
5. EFFLUENT LIMITS
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Effluent limits are based on Chapters 1 and 2 of the Wyoming Water Quality Rules and Regulations, and have been established to protect existing uses within the Wildcat Creek Watershed, which include, but are not limited to: stock and wildlife watering and propagation, agriculture, scenic value, and aquatic life. In accordance with the agency’s anti-degradation policy, effluent limits protective of all designated uses have been established to provide a level of protection consistent with the circumstances of the discharge. The following sections describe the rationales for effluent limits based on protection of designated uses within the watershed. See Table 2 for a complete list of effluent limits established in the Wildcat Creek General Permit. Permit effluent limits are based on federal and state regulations and are effective as of the date of issuance of this general permit. The permit limits pH to a range between 6.5 and 8.5 standard units. Effluent limits for specific conductance (7500 micromhos/cm), and sulfate (3000 mg/l) are included to protect for stock and wildlife watering. These limits are based upon Wyoming Water Quality Rules and Regulations, Chapter 2 (WWQRR), and apply to discharges from any outfall authorized to discharge under this general permit. In addition, the permit establishes the following water quality based effluent limits at each outfall authorized to discharge under this general permit: A radium 226 effluent limit of 5 pCi/l, a dissolved iron limit of 1000 µg/l, a dissolved manganese effluent limit of 718 µg/l, a total barium effluent limit of 1800 µg/l, a total arsenic limit of 3.6 µg/l, a chloride limit of 46 mg/l, and a dissolved copper limit of 14.6 µg/l. These limits are based on standards for class 3B and class 2AB waters, which are intended to protect for the above listed designated uses and reflect the application of the antidegradation provisions required under Chapter 1 of the WWQRR. 5.2. Irrigation Protection The Wildcat Creek drainage is typical of intermittent/ephemeral plains drainages in the Little Powder River basin. The main uses for water within the drainage are livestock production and irrigation of various types of hay, ranging from native grass species to alfalfa. Alfalfa hay has been identified as the most salt-sensitive crop irrigated within the Wildcat Creek drainage. In order to monitor and regulate coal bed methane discharge for compliance with Chapter 1, Section 20 (protection of agricultural water supply) of the WWQRR, effluent limits for sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) and specific conductance (SC or EC) are included in this general permit. During the course of the Swartz appeal, various irrigation diversions were identified in the Wildcat Creek drainage (See Part I, Appendix B). Various studies were conducted, and it was determined that the various diversions all required some minimum volume of water in the stream channel before water would pool behind the diversion and flow out onto the adjacent agricultural land. The amount of channel flow necessary to cause water pooling and irrigation was different for each diversion, and is termed the “irrigable flow rate” in the Swartz appeal and in this general permit. See Table 1 for a list of diversions and irrigable flow rates applicable to each diversion. Also defined and discussed in the Swartz settlement agreement, and in permits previously issued in the Wildcat Creek drainage, is the concept of an “Attenuation Zone Terminus” or “AZT”. AZTs are locations in Wildcat Creek located immediately upstream of irrigation diversions (spreader dikes). The concept behind an AZT is that, due to interaction with stream bed materials and soils in the Wildcat Creek drainage, CBM surface discharges would “pick up” calcium and magnesium prior to the point(s) of use (in the “attenuation zone”, which is a stream segment between the outfall and the point of use), buffering the sodium in the discharge to the point that the discharge’s sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) would be within an acceptable range for irrigation use by the time the discharge reaches the end (or terminus) of the “attenuation zone”. (See Table 1 for a list of AZTs and their associated diversions). During periods of time in which flow at any particular diversion is below the irrigable flow rate, a specific conductance (EC) limit of 7500 at the end of pipe and no sodium adsorption ratio
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(SAR) limit at the associated AZT applies. During periods of time in which flow at any particular diversion is at or above the irrigable flow rate, an effluent limit of 2500 µmohs/cm for specific conductance applies at the end of pipe, and a sodium adsorption ratio limit of SAR< (7.10 X EC dS/m) – 2.48 applies at the applicable AZT location, where “EC” represents the EC of the water within the drainage at the time the SAR sample is taken. The concepts described above and the supporting evidence for these concepts are described in greater detail in Appendix B.
Table 1: AZT and DIV Descriptions and Locations
AZT-DIV Descriptions and Locations
Attenuation Zone Terminus (AZT) AZT Code AZT Location SENW Section 24, T52N, R74W SWSW Section 13, T52N, R74W SWSE, Section 13, T52N, R74W SWSW, Section 20, T53N, R73W SWSE, Section 20, T53N, R73W SESE, Section 20, T53N, R73W NWSE, Section 20, T53N, R73W SWSE, Section 21, T53N, R73W SESE, Section 21, T53N, R73W NENW, Section 27, T53N, R73W Minimum Irrigable Flow Rate (cfs) 20 Location of first downstream point of irrigation diversion (DIV) SD-33 - SESE, Section 21, T53N, R73W SD-3 - NENW, Section 24, T52N, R74W SD6 - SWSE, Sectin 13, T52N, R74W SD-31 - SWSE Section 21, T53N, R73W SD-31 - SWSE Section 21, T53N, R73W SD-31 - SWSE Section 21, T53N, R73W SD-31 - SWSE Section 21, T53N, R73W SD-33 - SESE, Section 21, T53N, R73W SD-33 - SESE, Section 21, T53N, R73W SD-52 - NENW, Section 7, T53N, R73W DIV Name
AZT-Earl
AZTE
DIV3
AZT-Gupton1
AZTG1
5
DIVB
AZT-Gupton2
AZTG2
5
DIVC
AZT - NFWC
AZTNF
20
DIV1
AZT-Butcher
AZTBTC
20
DIV1
AZT-Hanna
AZTHAN
20
DIV1
AZT-Hensley
AZTHSL
20
DIV1
AZT-JP&SD
AZTJP
20
DIV3
AZT-Creek
AZTCK
20
DIV3
AZT-Mickey
AZTMKY
20
DIV5
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AZT-DIV Descriptions and Locations
Attenuation Zone Terminus (AZT) AZT Code AZT Location SENW, Section 23, T53N, R73W SWNE, Section 15, T53N, R73W Minimum Irrigable Flow Rate (cfs) 20 Location of first downstream point of irrigation diversion (DIV) SD-52 - NENW, Section 7, T53N, R73W SD-52 - NENW, Section 7, T53N, R73W DIV Name
AZT-MD
AZTMD
DIV5
AZT-Lone Tree
AZTLT
20
DIV5
Water quality-based effluent limits for SAR and EC are effective during any weekly monitoring period when irrigable flow is present at the first downstream point of irrigation diversion (DIV). There are numerous diversion points located throughout the Wildcat Creek drainage. Applicability of any particular diversion (and the associated irrigable flow rate) to a particular facility authorized to discharge under the Wildcat Creek General permit will be identified in the discharge authorizations issued by WDEQ. In addition, the applicability of associated AZTs will be identified in discharge authorizations issued by WDEQ. The AZTs are designated monitoring points on Wildcat Creek or tributaries of Wildcat Creek upstream of the first downstream point of irrigation (prior to the point of use). During periods when irrigable flow is present at a DIV, the Wildcat Creek General permit establishes a limit for SAR at the associated AZT location. The effluent limit for SAR at each AZT during periods in which irrigable flow is present at an associated DIV is calculated as follows: (7.10 x EC dS/m) – 2.48, where EC is the actual EC of the effluent in the drainage at the respective AZT in the same sample being analyzed for SAR. The effluent limit for SAR at the AZTs was derived from Figure 3 of the USDA “Agricultural Salinity and Drainage” handbook, Hanson et al., 1999 revision. The effluent limit for SAR in the Wildcat Creek General Permit is intended to prevent a reduction in soil permeability within the downstream irrigated areas of Wildcat Creek. During periods when irrigable flow is present at a DIV, the Wildcat Creek General permit also establishes an effluent limit for specific conductance (2,500 µmohs/cm) at each permitted outfall upstream of the DIV. The effluent limit for EC in the Wildcat Creek General Permit is intended to prevent a measurable decrease in crop production within the downstream irrigated areas of Wildcat Creek. Based on earlier soil chemistry studies conducted in downstream irrigated areas adjacent to Wildcat Creek and tributaries of Wildcat Creek, (see Golder Associates technical report “Evaluation of Soil and Surface Water Salinity in Wildcat Creek and Adjacent Drainages” – March 31, 2002), WDEQ has determined that an SC limit of 2,500 µmohs/cm at each outfall, in conjunction with implementation of the approved “Sampling and Monitoring Protocol” (see Appendices C and D), will satisfy requirements for protection of agricultural water supplies within the Wildcat Creek drainage in accordance with Chapter 1, Section 20, WWQRR. Limits for SAR at a particular AZT [(7.1 x EC dS/m) – 2.48)] and for SC at each upstream outfall (2,500 µmohs/cm) are effective only during those periods of time in which irrigable flow occurs at the associated DIV. Permittees obtaining authorizations under the Wildcat Creek General Permit are required to implement the sampling and monitoring protocol established in Appendices C and D. The sampling and monitoring
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protocol identifies the criteria for evaluating physical trends or conditions that would indicate potential adverse impact to crop production. WDEQ anticipates the possibility that, during the life of this general permit, physical alterations could be made to the DIV structures, which may affect where and how those structures function. In the event that the location and/or unrestricted flow capacity of the DIV structure(s) become altered in the field to the extent that they would affect the downstream irrigable flow rate and/or the location where the irrigable flow rate is measured for this permit, the permit may need to be modified to reflect those physical changes in the field. If any of these changes occurs, WDEQ may administratively modify (following applicable public notice procedures) this permit to reflect those changes. Prior to approving any such modification to the permit, the WDEQ will review the updated physical and/or hydraulic data related to the affected irrigation diversion structures. This data must be submitted to WDEQ in conjunction with a completed request to modify the Wildcat Creek General Permit. WDEQ will not modify the Wildcat Creek General Permit until changes in the field have been completed and all of the associated physical/hydraulic data have been reviewed. In the event that such a modification to the Wildcat Creek General Permit occurs, the WDEQ may unilaterally modify all active authorizations issued to that point under the Wildcat Creek General Permit, or a previouslydefined subset of authorizations, as applicable. 5.0 Monitoring Requirements Operators obtaining surface discharge authorizations under this general permit are required to participate in cumulative impact and assessment monitoring on Wildcat Creek and the Little Powder River, as per the Water Administration Plan section of the Swartz settlement agreement (See Appendix B). 5.1 Routine End-of-Pipe Monitoring As a condition upon obtaining coverage under the Wildcat Creek General permit, self monitoring and reporting of effluent quality are required on a regular basis. Monitoring and reporting schedules vary based upon the constituent in question. Discharges with greater potential to impact the class 2 perennial receiving water (the Little Powder River), have more frequent monitoring and reporting requirements, and persistent and more toxic constituents may also have more frequent monitoring and reporting requirements associated with them. Monitoring and reporting have been summarized in Table 2. All operators are required to report information collected in the course of self-monitoring to the WYPDES Program by filling out and submitting the appropriate discharge monitoring reports (DMRs) and other reports as applicable for the monitoring period in question. Operators having no discharge during a defined monitoring period at a particular outfall are still required to submit DMRs for the nondischarging outfall(s) for the monitoring period in question, and must report “no discharge”. Routine end-of-pipe monitoring must be done in accordance with requirements established in Part I, Section 3 of the Wildcat Creek General Permit. 5.2 Water Quality Monitoring Stations Operators authorized for discharge under the Wildcat Creek General Permit are required to perform and report monitoring completed at one or more tributary monitoring stations, as applicable depending upon the location of the outfalls. Operators issued coverage under this general permit may elect to participate in cumulative impact and assessment monitoring for the stations listed in Part 1, Appendix B, in which case only one set of sampling results need be submitted to the WQD. Such reports will consist of one printed copy of the report, and one electronic copy, which may either be e-mailed to the WYPDES Program, or submitted concurrently with the printed version on a CD or DVD. All submissions, both written and electronic, must clearly identify which authorizations, by authorization number, are being satisfied by the submission in question. Operators electing non-participation in the collective cumulative impact and assessment monitoring efforts will be required to provide
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separate monitoring submissions. Whether cumulative or individual, all sampling and reporting must follow requirements established in Part I, Section 4 of the Wildcat Creek General Permit. 5.3 Irrigation Diversion (DIV) and Attenuation Zone Terminus (AZT) Monitoring and Reporting Requirements. In order to assure compliance with the irrigation protection limits established in the permit, this general permit requires monitoring for EC and SAR at applicable irrigation monitoring locations (DIV and AZT locations). Applicable AZT and DIV locations will vary by authorization, depending upon the location of the outfalls. In addition to routine monitoring, the Wildcat Creek General Permit also requires periodic evaluation of potential impacts to irrigation activities within the Wildcat Creek drainage, see Part I, Appendices C and D for additional information. Part I, Appendices C and D also define criteria for evaluating physical trends or conditions indicating potential adverse impact to crop production. The permit requires daily monitoring on the receiving stream at applicable “DIV” and/or “AZT” locations in order to determine whether effluent discharged from the outfalls reaches the established diversion locations, and the quantity of effluent reaching the diversion locations. Applicable diversion and/or AZT locations will be identified in each authorization issued under the Wildcat Creek General Permit, and will be dependent upon the location of the outfalls. Daily monitoring is necessary because the permit establishes different effluent limits for SAR and EC and sampling and analysis requirements based on the quantity of effluent reaching the irrigation diversion(s). Once effluent flow at or above the “irrigable flow rate” reaching the irrigation diversions (DIV and/or AZT), the permittee is required to collect daily samples for irrigation constituents (dissolved sodium, dissolved calcium, dissolved magnesium and specific conductance) and to measure flow at the irrigation diversion location (DIV and/or AZT) until such time that flow in the channel is reduced to below the “irrigable flow rate”. Results are to be reported quarterly (four times a year) and if there is no flow at the applicable diversion locations (DIV and/or AZT) for the entire reporting period, then “no flow” is to be reported on the quarterly reports for the applicable reporting period. 5.4. Location of Surface Water Irrigation Diversion Points The locations of downstream-most surface water irrigation diversion points (spreader dikes) were identified and surveyed during negotiations related to the Swartz settlement agreement. All diversions were in existence prior to the advent of CBM discharges within the drainages. For diversion locations, see Part I, Appendix B. 5.5. Location of Termination of Attenuation Zones (AZTs) The locations of Attenuation Zone termini are given in Part 1, Appendix B. These locations were selected and agreed upon by all parties required to comply with the provisions of the Swartz settlement agreement. 5.6. Irrigation Management Plan All parties required to comply with the provisions of the Swartz settlement designed and agreed to an irrigation management plan. The plan is included in Part I, Appendix B. 5.7. Flow Monitoring
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This permit requires daily measurement of channel flow at the instream locations listed in Appendix B. Applicable flow monitoring locations will be identified in each authorization issued under the Wildcat Creek General Permit. All daily flow rate measurements will be listed in an addendum report (in electronic form) to accompany quarterly discharge monitoring reports. Information in the addendum report must include, for each station, the date and recorded flow, in cubic feet per second, for each day. 5.8. Soil and Crop Sampling Protocols All parties required to comply with the provisions of the Swartz settlement agreement designed and agreed to soil and crop sampling protocols. These protocols are included in Part I, Appendices C and D. 5.9. Processes for Determining Non-Irrigable Flow, Reservoir Releases During Periods of NonIrrigable Flow All parties required to comply with the provisions of the Swartz settlement agreement designed and agreed to process for determining irrigable flow and for allowing reservoir releases during periods of non-irrigable flow. These processes are included in Part I, Appendix B. 5.10. Process for Determining Effluent Limit Exceedances and Permit Violation Penalties All parties required to comply with the provisions of the Swartz settlement agreement have agreed to a process that would allow the WYPDES Program to attribute culpability and assess penalties and other enforcement actions in the event the effluent limits and/or conditions of permits issued under the settlement agreement were violated. This process is included in Part I, Appendix E. 5.11. General Requirements There shall be no discharge of floating solids or visible foam other than in trace amounts, nor shall the discharge cause formation of visible deposits of iron, hydrocarbons, or any other constituent on the bottom or shoreline of the receiving water. In addition, erosion control measures will be implemented to prevent significant damage to or erosion of the receiving water channel at the point of discharge. 6.0 PERMIT IMPLEMENTATION 6.1. How to obtain coverage under this general permit In order to request coverage under this general permit, the operator is required to complete and submit a technically adequate Notice of Intent (NOI) to the WYPDES Program, no less than 60 days prior to the desired commencement of discharge from the facility. The WYPDES Program will review the NOI and determine if the proposed activity is eligible for coverage under this general permit. Discharges deemed to be ineligible for coverage under this general permit may seek coverage under an individual WYPDES permit. Incomplete and/or technically inadequate NOIs will be returned to the permittee for completion. All materials requested by the WYPDES Program to address NOI deficiencies must be submitted within 30 days of receipt of request for additional materials. If the proposed activity is eligible for coverage under this general permit, the WYPDES Program will send the operator notification through the vehicle of an authorization to discharge, that the activity has been granted coverage. The authorization will establish effluent limits and monitoring requirements based upon the circumstances of the discharge.
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Applications for the renewal of currently active individual permits may be processed as general permit authorizations. 6.2. Modification of the General Permit This permit is scheduled to expire 5 years from the time of its issuance. In the event that significant changes to the permit become necessary, based on new information not available at the time this general permit was originally issued, WDEQ will propose the changes in a public notice, in accordance with requirements in Chapter 2, Section 15 of the Wyoming Water Quality Rules and Regulations. Individual discharge authorizations would then be modified accordingly by WDEQ, in order to keep the authorizations consistent with the general permit. 6.1 Landowner Notification and Public Access to Records Prior to submitting an NOI, the permittee must notify all landowners upon whose property outfalls being requested for coverage under the Wildcat Creek General Permit are located. The permittee must also send a copy of the notifications to the WYPDES Program at the same time such notifications are sent to the landowners. Landowners must be notified a minimum of 30 days prior to the NOI submission. The general permit specifies further notification requirements, including the information that must be submitted in the notification. Applicants must use the same proposed facility name on their NOIs and their landowner notification letters. Once an NOI is approved, the WQD will post the approved authorization letter on a WQD website. The operator must also submit one copy of the issued authorization letter to the Campbell County Public Library, where it will be available for public review. Landowners and other interested parties should access the WYPDES website to view a NOI in its entirety. Hard copies of the NOI should be requested from the permittee, should a landowner not have internet access.
6.2
Expiration date This permit is schedule to expire five years from the time of its issuance. All authorization issued under this general permit will also expire on the same date as this general permit.
Wildcat Creek Watershed General Permit Kathy Shreve Department of Environmental Quality Water Quality Division WYPDES Program Draft Date: February 25, 2008
Table 2. Effluent Limit Summary
Constituents and Units Chloride, mg/l
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Effluent Limit 46
Monitoring Requirements Annually
Reporting Requirements Annually
Constituents and Units Dissolved Iron, µg/l Dissolved Cadmium, µg/l Dissolved Copper, µg/l Total Recoverable Arsenic, µg/l Total Recoverable Barium, µg/l Total Recoverable Radium226, pCi/l Specific Conductance, µmhos/cm*
Effluent Limit 1000 0.6 14.6 3.6 1800 5
Monitoring Requirements Annually Annually Annually Annually Annually Annually Monthly, unless there is flow present at the applicable DIV and/or AZT location at or above the irrigable flow rate, in which case EC shall be monitored daily. Monthly, unless there is flow present at the applicable DIV and/or AZT location at or above the irrigable flow rate, in which case EC shall be monitored daily. Annually Quarterly Annually
Reporting Requirements Annually Annually Annually Annually Annually Annually
2500 (7500 (EOP) no irrigable flow at DIVAZT)
Quarterly (four times a year)
Sodium Adsorption Ratio, calculated as unadjusted ratio** Sulfate, mg/l pH, standard units Dissolved Manganese, µg/l
of SAR< (7.10 X EC dS/m) – 2.48 (where EC = EC of flow at DIV/AZT) 3000
6.5-9.0 718
Quarterly (four times a year) Annually Quarterly Annually
*The EC effluent limit of 2500 µmohs/cm applies at the outfall (end-of-pipe) only when flow at the irrigation diversion (DIV and/or AZT) is at or above the identified irrigable flow rate. Otherwise, the EC effluent limit at the outfall is 7500 µmohs/cm. ** The SAR effluent limit only applies at the irrigation diversion (DIV and/or AZT) when flow is present at or above the quantity identified at that particular diversion as being the “irrigable flow rate”. The Wildcat Creek General permit, as per the Swartz settlement agreement, does not establish an SAR limit at the outfall.
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