Environment and Conservation Releases Draft List of Tennessee Impaired Waters for Public Review

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation has released a statewide listing of streams, lakes and reservoirs that do not support the public’s use of them. This draft list – also called the 2010 303(d) List – is a requirement of the federal Clean Water Act and can be viewed at http://tn.gov/environment/wpc/publications/pdf/2010draft303dlist.pdf.

 

The department will take public comments on the draft 303(d) List at a series of public meetings. Written comments will be accepted through June 15, 2010. After responses are prepared for the comments Environment and Conservation has received, the 303(d) List may be modified and will be submitted to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for review and approval.

 

“The primary mandate of the Department’s Division of Water Pollution Control is to preserve and protect the right of the people of Tennessee to safe and clean water,” said Paul Sloan, Deputy Commissioner for Environment.  “To fulfill its mandate, our program must monitor and assess surface waters to determine if they are suitable for their intended uses.”

 

Tennessee has an abundance of water resources, with more than 60,000 miles of rivers and streams and more than 500,000 acres of lakes and reservoirs within its borders. Waters are classified for specific uses. All streams, rivers, lakes and reservoirs in Tennessee are classified at a minimum to meet the national goal of fishable and swimmable waters. Tennessee’s classified uses include designations to protect fish and other aquatic life; to maintain streams for recreational uses, such as swimming, wading and boating; to minimize human health risks from pollutants; and to provide for public water supplies.

 

Water quality criteria establish how clean the water needs to be to maintain the public’s use of a stream or lake. When different criteria are assigned for different uses of the same stream or lake, the department’s rules require that the most stringent criterion be met. The department has tested water quality at more than 6,000 locations across the state in the last 36 years.

 

“We use a combination of chemical, physical and biological monitoring methods to obtain information for our assessments,” said Paul Davis, director of the department’s Division of Water Pollution Control. “Reliable data from partner agencies and other sources are also utilized. Our assessments help the department, other agencies and watershed and community groups plan restoration activities to improve the quality of waters affected by pollution.”

 

The draft 303(d) List compiles all the waters known by the state to violate one or more water quality standards in a single document. Once identified, these streams and lakes are prioritized for specialized studies called total maximum daily loads. TMDLs identify the sources of pollutants and propose strategies to restore bodies of water through various pollutant controls.

 

“Everyone is affected by water pollution and has a vested interest in improving water quality,” Sloan said. “Everyone contributes to pollution in large and small ways. By understanding the effects of pollution and what each of us can do to reduce those effects, we can make a difference in Tennessee and the world.”

 

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 Public meeting times and locations are included, below. 

 

2010 303(d) List    Public Meeting Schedule

 

 

 

 

·         The May 27 meeting in Jackson and the June 10 meeting in Chattanooga will video link with the Nashville and Knoxville meetings, respectively.