Numeric Nutrient Criteria in Florida: Historical and Current Events Kevin Carter South Florida Water Management District Office Of Everglades Policy and Coordination 561-682-6949 [email protected]2011 American Planning Association – Florida Chapter Annual Conference West Palm Beach, Florida September 9, 2011
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced its intent to adopt numeric nutrient criteria for Florida’s water bodies (lakes, streams, canals and estuaries). The criterion is unprecedented in the nation and has drawn national attention to Florida’s water quality programs. The panel will discuss the legal genesis of this proposed rule, including the most up to date developments in the state legislature and Congress; its technical aspects, including the scientific basis for the rule; implementation and relief mechanisms; and the criteria’s impact on Florida’s current permitting programs, as well as its impact on a wide variety of stakeholders in Florida.
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Transcript
Numeric Nutrient Criteria in Florida: Historical and Current Events
2011 American Planning Association – Florida Chapter Annual Conference
West Palm Beach, Florida
September 9, 2011
Purpose of Presentation
Overview of the Numeric Nutrient Criteria (NNC) historic events
National Perspectives from United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Technical Advisory Committee (TAC)
NNC: An Abbreviated History
1998 EPA develops policy document for a ‘National Nutrient Strategy’(http://water.epa.gov/scitech/swguidance/waterquality/standards/criteria/aqlife/pollutants/nutrient/strategy_index.cfm#strategy)
2000-2001 EPA develops series of Technical Guidance Documents for NNC
‘Nutrient Criteria Technical Guidance Manuals’ for Lakes, Rivers and Streams, and Estuaries
‘Ambient Water Quality Recommendations’ for different ecoregions around the country
* Marine Waters may have a Downstream Protection Values component in rule
South Florida Canals Freshwater Canals
South of Lake Okeechobee
Marine Waters* Estuaries and Coastal
Waters statewide
Both Water Types: EPA Scientific Advisory
Board Review complete
Proposed Rule due November 2011
Final Rule due August 2012
Presented final document to EPA (July 2011) on review of NNC for marine waters and SF Canals
“SAB was not convinced by the available data that nutrient criteria based on instream protection values were meaningful for man-made and managed canals.”
Majority of document focused on technical review of marine methodologies (pros and cons):
EPA Final Lakes Criteria November 2010A B C D E F Long Term Average Lake
Chlorophyll a f (μg/L) a
Baseline Criteria b Modified Criteria (within these bounds) c
Color and Alkalinity
TP (mg/L) a TN (mg/L) a TP (mg/L) a TN (mg/L) a
Colored Lakes > 40 PCU
20 0.050 1.27 0.050-0.16 1.27-2.23
Clear Lakes, Alkaline ≤ 40 PCU d and > 50 mg/L CaCO3 e
20 0.030 1.05 0.030-0.090 1.05-1.91
Clear Lakes, Acidic ≤ 40 PCU d and ≤ 50 mg/L CaCO3 e
6 0.010 0.51 0.010-0.030 0.51-0.93
EPA Rivers and Streams Proposed and Final Criteria
Rule has equations in place for downstream protection values for Lakes could potentially lower these criteria
Nutrient Watershed Region
EPA's Proposed and Final Instream Protection Value Criteria for Rivers and Streams
TN (mg/L) Proposed
TN (mg/L) FINAL
TP (mg/L) Proposed
TP (mg/L) FINAL
Panhandle 0.824 N/A 0.043 N/APanhandle West N/A 0.67 N/A 0.06Panhandle East N/A 1.03 N/A 0.18North Central 1.479 1.87 0.359 0.3Bone Valley (now called West Central)
1.798 1.65 0.739 0.49
Peninsula (District waters)
1.205 1.54 0.107 0.12
From Presentation by Dr. Dana Thomas USEPA (February 15, 2011)