Ground Water Protection Standards Withdrawn

The head of New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) says she is withdrawing proposed standards to protect ground water from chemical pollution dumped at toxic waste sites, or leaking from underground tanks, pipelines or abandoned industrial sites.

DEP Commissioner Lisa Jackson gave testimony to the state Senate Legislative Oversight Committee in May that the environmental community submitted comments on the DEP’s proposal that asked for stricter standards for ground water remediation. At the same time, comments from builders complained that the agency’s proposal was too strict, and asked for predictability, transparency and flexibility.

Commissioner Jackson stated that she has elected not to adopt ground water soil standards, but to develop guidelines that will address comments provided by both sides. In the interim, Jackson is recommending that a proposed licensed site professional program go forward. It would require that a professional who gets a license from the state and knows the end goal can advise clients which standards must be met.

Jackson stated that, coupled with other legislative codes and standards, this program will address the majority of builders’ concerns to make the site cleanup process predictable.

According to the DEP, half of New Jersey residents depend on 900 million gallons of ground water a day for drinking water. The agency has identified more than 6,000 polluted ground water sites, forcing closure of hundreds of municipal and residential wells across the state.

New Mexico’s New Water-planning Law

President Bush has signed a law that includes legislation that will give New Mexico added federal water-planning assistance to more accurately assess its water resources.

The legislation, called the New Mexico Water Planning Assistance Act, was included in an amalgamation of 62 individual bills cleared by the State Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

The water legislation authorizes the Bureau of Reclamation and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to provide specific technical assistance to the New Mexico Office of the State Engineer for assessing water resources of New Mexico, and their future use.

The legislation also authorizes the Bureau of Reclamation and USGS to provide technical assistance to the state of New Mexico, and authorizes an annual $3 million for five years to the Office of the State Engineer to perform hydrologic models of New Mexico’s most important water systems, basins and tributaries.

The technical and financial assistance will help the Office of the State Engineer acquire hydrologic data, assess existing water resources, coordinate efforts with federal water management initiatives, and assist with numerical analysis and modeling to provide an integrated understanding of water management options.

Oklahoma Ground Water Bill Passed

A bill passed by the Oklahoma State Legislature will help to replenish selected underground water supplies throughout the state.

The bill, which received unanimous bipartisan support in both the House and Senate, authorizes the Oklahoma Water Resources Board to oversee aquifer recharge pilot projects that will channel surface runoff into subsurface cavities and pores for storage and later use. The Oklahoma Water Resources Board will collect and analyze data from the projects, and submit the findings to the Legislature, other governmental entities and the public.

The agency also is directed to form a technical workgroup to review findings of the pilot projects, as well as assist in selecting potential aquifers and locations for the most feasible recharge demonstration projects.

The bill was signed by Governor Henry in April, and went into immediate effect. 

Stormwater Permits

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to reissue its stormwater Construction General Permit for a two-year time period. The draft permit uses the same terms and conditions as EPA’s 2003 permit, which expires this July. EPA is proposing the permit to coordinate with a second effort that is underway to establish national clean water standards, known as an effluent limitation guideline, for the construction and development industry. Upon finalization of the guideline, EPA plans to include its provisions into a new and improved Construction General Permit to be reissued no later than July 2010.

“Construction-related runoff can threaten water quality and watershed health,” says Benjamin Grumbles, Assistant Administrator for Water. “Our proposed general permit is an important part of a broader strategy to reduce stormwater pollution through new effluent standards, which we’re developing this year, and a national partnership on green infrastructure solutions, such as green roofs, rain gardens and stormwater wetlands.” 
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