UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460



### OCT 2 6 

### 20 15

Re: No tification of Co n s ultation and Coordination o n Prop osed Renewal of th e EP/\ ·s Pes ticide Gen e r a l P e r mit. D ea r I l o norabl c Lead e r , T he 

### U. S. E nvironmental Protection Agenc y (EP/\) is initi at in g co n s ultation and coo rdination with f e d e rally-recogni zed tribe s on the renewal of th e Na ti o nal Pollut a nt Di sc h a rge Elimination ys tem (N PDES) Pe s ticid e Ge ner a l Permit ( PGP ) und e r th e C lean Water 1\ ct (CW/\ ). The 

### EPA r e n e w s thi s permit every fi ve yea r s. T he EPA · s PGP reg ul a tes di sc harg e s of biological p es ti c id es and chemical pe s ticides that le ave a res idue into wate r s of th e U nited States
. The PGP cove rs pesticide di sc harges from the fo ll owing pe s ticide use pattern s: ( I ) mo squ ito a nd othe r fl y in g in sec t pest contro l : (2) we e d a nd algae co ntro l ; (3) animal pe s t co ntro l ; and (4) forest canopy pe s t co ntrol. With limited exce pti o n s. the EPA directly impl eme nt s the PDES program in Indian Count ry where tri bes a r c no t approved to administer th e I PD ES program. Add iti o nal inf o rm a ti on abo ut the 

### PGP can be f ound at http :/ / ww,, · . cpa . gm -/npu e slpes ti cidcs .Thi s consu lt ation and coordination process w ill b e conduc ted in acco rd ance with the EPA Polic y on Consultation and Coord ina/ion (htlp :// \\'ww'

. cpa. !!Ov/ tri ba 1/ l' orm s!t:o n s u lt a ti o n - :md

coo rdin a ti o n -tribes !/ po l icv ). The E PA in v ites yo u and yo ur designate d co n s ultation reprc sc ntativ c(s) t o participate in thi s process. Th e EPA s p ec i (ically see k s yo ur parti cipa tio n in a tele co nfe r ence o n rucsday. November 19
. 20 1 5 at 2:30p m (eas te rn day li g ht time). T he EP/\' s a nti c ip a te d tim e line for th e co n s ultation and coord inati on period i s from October 27. 2 015 to Dec e mb e r I 0 , 20 1 5. E n c lo sed is a cons ult ation and coordination plan for thi s action that furth e r de sc ribes the PGP r encvva l action und e r co n s u l tati on . The p lan also lays o ut th e EPA ·s proc ess, in c ludin g a timelinc for the co n s ult at ion a nd coordinat i on period a nd informati o n on how yo u can provid e input on this action. This il?furma ti on is also ai'C tiluhle online within t he EPA's Tribal Consultation Opponunities Tracking Sys t em ( TC07 S) (htto: !/ tc:uts.epu. go1'). T h e o ffici a l E PA co ntact p e rs on for this consultation and coo rdination pro cess is Mr. Prasad Chumble (202) 564-002 1. Office of W as tewa ter Manag e m e nt ,

In t ernet Address (UAL) • hllp ://www .epa.gov OFFICE OF WATER

Re cycled/Recyclable • Pnnted with Vegetable Oil Based Ink s on 1 00 % Postconsumer. Process Ch l onne Free Recycled Paperc humble.prasad @ epa.gov. Please do not h es itate to contact Mr. C humbl e if yo u h ave a n y que s ti o n s o r wo uld like to reque s t a lt e rn ate arrange m e nt s to th e p rocess o ut l in e d in the co nsultation plan. I f yo u decide not to participate in thi s co n s u ltation process , yo u wi ll s till have th e oppo rtunity to p r ov id e input on thi s ac ti on during the public co mm e nt ' p e riod following publi ca tion of the draft 20 16 P O P in the Federal R eg i s te r. T h e proposed p e rmit r e n ewa l w ill b e publis h e d in the Federal R egiste r a nd access ibl e at http: //ww\\'
.rcgulations.gov. 

## r loo k forward to he a rin g fi ·om yo u o n thi s imp o rtant matter.

cc: Triba l Envi r o nm e nt a l Directo rs Re g i ona l Indian Coo rdinators E n closure Sincerely yo urs,



# J(}~J~ Debora h G
. Nagle , Director Water Permits Di v is i o n . Offi ce o r Wate r \

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### Consu ltat i o n Pl a n - - Cons ulta ti on and Coord inati on on P ropose d Renewal ofth e EPA's Nat i o n a l P o llu tan t Di sc h a r ge E limin at i o n System (NPD ES) P est i c ide Ge n e r a l P e r m i t C P G P ) Ba ckg round informatio n o n tlz e initiati ve Section 402 of the C lean Water Act (CWA) prohib its the discharge of pollutants by po int sources into surface waters without an NPDES permit iss ued by the EPA or an authorized state or tribe. An NPDES permit can apply to an indiv idual discharger, or cover multiple dischargers via a genera l permit (40 C
.F
.R. 122
. 28) for specific categories of discharges. As a result of a U
. S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Na tional Co tton Council, eta/. v. EPA, point source discharges of biological pesticide s, and chemical pesticides that leave a residue, into waters of the U.S
. are required to comply with NPDES requirements
. The E PA iss ued its Pesticide General Permit (PGP) to offer coverage for pesticide operators on October 3 1 , 201 l. The EPA is the permitting authority for four states (Idaho, New Mexico , New Hampshire and Massachusetts), the District or Co lumbia , Puerto Rico and most other territor i es, certain discharge s in some states, and Indian Country . The action for which the EPA is initiating tribal consultation is for the renewa l of the NPDES PGP. The current PGP, issued in 2011, is expiring in October 20 16 , at the end of its five

- year term , which is the standard duration of al l NPDES permits. With very li mited exceptions provided by a spec if ic federal statute, the EPA directly implements the NPDES program in Indian Country where tribes do not have the EPA approval to administer the NPDES program. This inc ludes developing and issuing individual permits and general permits for triba l and nontribal dischargers located on tribal lands. Operators in fndian Country have taken advantage of coverage under th e 201 1 PGP to apply pesticides. A lthough most Operators are covered au t omatically, larger Operators must submit a Not ice of Intent (NO!) to obtain coverage. from the effective date of the current permit through Septe mber 20 IS , the EPA has received over 38 NO Is for coverage in Indian Country
. The 2011 PGP requ ires all operators to minim ize pesticide discharges by usi ng the lowest effective amount of pesticide; perform regu lar equipment maintenance; ca li brate, clean, and repair equipment; and mon itor for and report any adverse incide n ts. Operators who exceed an annual treatment area threshold established ih the permit are required to imp l ement add itional measures such as to submit a NOI for coverage, implement integrated pest management practices, develop a Pesticide D i scharge Management Plan, subm it annual repo rt s, and maintain records of pest control practices. The 20 II PGP also includes additional water quality-based requirements the EPA received from some tribes and states under the CWA 40 1 certi tication process.

1At thi s time. we plan to propose the permit with condit io ns and requirement s that are s imilar t o the current 20 I I PGP and request comme nt s on all a s pect s o r th e draft 20 16 PGP: ho , v.c ver. \\'e will a l so spec ifi cally reque s t comment s o n:

• I low be s t to collect information in the NO I to better determine the location of pest ic ide discharges, including proximity to drinking water supply source s ; • Whether le ss or .more information would provide a more accu rate accounting of the amount t ype and location of pes ti c id e discharges in the annua l reports ; • Whether to r equi r e the s ubmi ss io n of all NOJs and annu a l r epo rt s electronically , un less a wa iver is g rant ed ; a nd • Whether th ere are appropriate be st manage ment prac ti ces th a t wo uld protec t f ede ra ll y end a nge red a nd threa t ened species, ancl/or c riti ca l habitat fr o m ad ve r se effects. For more inf o rm ation v is it http : //w\\'w
.c pa . }!.ov/npdc s lpc s tic i d cs . 

### Potential impa cts to tribes A ll tribe s , espec i a ll y those that could potentially be affected by th e re newa l of the PG P are in v ited to participate. This permit m ay be of hi gh interest to tribes. and the E PA app rec i ates any and all tribal view s on the exis tin g perm it or requests fo r comments o n the proposal. A s with the 20 11 PGP. the 2016 PGP wi ll cover In dian C ountry in the EPA Regi o n s I , 2 , 4. 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , and 1 0
. We are working ' ith Region 3 to determine if it is app rop ri ate to include the V irginia tribe within cove ra ge. 

### Opportu niti es for tri bes to partic ipate The E PA is seeki n g discussion with trib es regarding the re newal of the PGP
. The age ncy w ill ho ld a trib es -only consultation tele co n fe re nce for trib a l leade r s a nd s t aff. T he te leco nf e re nce will consist of tw o parts. Durin g th e fir s t part , trib es will have an opportunit y to ask que s tion s a nd le arn more abo ut th e c urr e nt PGP and the EPA's plan for re i ss u a nce of th e 20 1 6 PGP. The la s t part of th e te leco n fe re nce is reserved for consultation co mm e nt s f rom tribal leaders o r th e ir co n s ultati o n designees. T ri be s may a ls o s ubmi t wr itte n consultation com ments to: Mr. Prasad Chumble U S EPA 1 200 Pennsy lvania Ave , NW ( MC 420 3 M) Washington , D C 20460 chum ble. prasad @ epa.gov The EPA wi ll post co nsu ltat ion inform at ion in th e Tr ibal Con s ultation Opportunities Tracking System ( TCOTS) loca ted o n the E PA 's trib a l p011al ( htl p: //t w ts.c pa.!.!nY )
.

2In addition t o th e tribal consultation proc ess. tribe s may parti c ip a te in the publi c revi ew a nd comment process \ V

hen the proposed 2016 P G P i s publ i s h ed in the Federa l Register, wh ic h is cu rrentl y scheduled fo r late 20 1 5. The E PA will p rovide information about the proposed permit on the EP/\ "s PGP webs it e at http: "''"

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**, npdcs**  **p~sticidc~**

**.** The combined goa l for a ll the se efforts i s to e n s ure th e re i s s ufficient information fo r triba l lea d ers to make a n inf o rm e d decision a b o ut the des ire to con tinu e wit h cons ult a ti o n a nd to understand how to provide informed input. Tribal Co n s ultation and Coo rdination Process ami Timelin e
Date/ Time Event Contract Inf ormation October 26 , Initiation of Mai lin g to tribal leade rs; e -mail to staff 20 15 consul t at ion

ov. 19. Trib al Leader EPA Contact: 2015 Information and Prasad Chumble Consultation 202-564-0021 2:30pm T eleconference: chumb le.prasad @epa.gov (EDT) Propo se d Renewal of the Pesticide T e leconferenc e No
. 1-866-299-3188 General Permit Code: 202

- 564

- 0021
Dec. 10, End date of 20 1 5 consul t ation

Dec. 2015 Publi cation of the htt p: //vvww . e p a.gov/ npd es/ pest ic icl es propo se d renewal of the PGP in the Fed era l Register and beginn ing of public comment period.

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