UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 

REGION 10 

1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900 

Seattle, WA 98101-3140 

OFFICE OF 

WATER AND WATERSHEDS 

NOV 2 3 Z015 

Re: Consultation Offer on Proposed Federal Rulemaking to Revise Oregon's Freshwater Aquatic 

Life Criteria for Acute Cadmium and Acute and Chronic Copper. 

Dear Tribal Leader: 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is initiating consultation and coordination on a proposed 

federal rulemaking to revise the freshwater aquatic life aquatic life criteria for acute cadmium and acute 

and chronic copper. We would like to offer you the opportunity to engage in government-to-government 

consultation with the EPA about our upcoming proposal. 

As you may recall, in 2004 the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ) submitted 

revised freshwater aquatic life criteria for cadmium and copper to the EPA for review and action. On 

January 31, 2013, the EPA disapproved the revised freshwater criteria for acute cadmium and acute and 

chronic copper. To address the disapproval action and to ensure that aquatic life are protected, the EPA 

is proposing to update the freshwater aquatic life criteria for acute cadmium and acute and chronic 

copper as they apply to Oregon waters. If finalized, the new criteria would serve as the water quality 

targets for a number of CW A regulatory processes, including development of National Pollutant 

Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits and Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs). 

In the federal rulemaking, the EPA plans to use existing and new 304(a) national criteria 

recommendations for copper and cadmium to ensure that aquatic life are protected in Oregon waters. 

For example, the EPA plans to make the freshwater acute and chronic copper criteria consistent with the 

EPA's current 304(a) national recommendation for copper. Additionally, the EPA is currently updating 

its 304(a) national recommendation for freshwater acute cadmium. When completed the EPA plans to 

include the updated acute cadmium criterion in its rulemaking. 

The EPA is moving ahead with a federal rulemaking to fulfill its responsibility to promptly propose 

replacement criteria for Oregon after the January 2013 disapproval action. However, the EPA 

acknowledges that Oregon has initiated a rulemaking process to revise its copper criteria to address the 

EPA's January 2013 disapproval action (at this time, Oregon is focusing its efforts on developing copper 

criteria and is not planning to address cadmium in the near future). The EPA prefers that states revise 

water quality standards for state waters and we are optimistic that Oregon can complete a copper criteria 

revision that is consistent with CW A requirements. If Oregon submits final copper criteria for CWA 

approval before the EPA finalizes the federal copper criteria, the EPA intends to review and act upon the 

state's submission in a timely manner and prior to any final action on the federal criteria. If the EPA 

approves the criteria submitted by the state, the EPA will either not finalize or will withdraw the 

corresponding federal copper criteria. 
The EPA is hosting a conference call for tribal technical staff on December 15,2015, from 9:00AM to 

10:00 AM Pacific Time to provide staff with additional information on the federal rulemaking and to 

answer any questions your tribe may have at that time. The call-in-number is 866-299-3188 and the 

conference code is 206 553 1256#. 

If you would like to consult on the EPA's upcoming propo ed federal rule for acute cadmium and acute 

and chronic copper, please have your staff contact Kathleen Collins at 206-553-2108 or via email at 

collins.kathleen@epa.gov by Friday January 8, 2016. Also, please identify a point of contact for 

planning the consultation and any policy that the Tribe may have regarding consultation. Whether or not 

you participate in this consultation process, you will still have the opportunity to provide input on the 

proposed rulemaking during the federal proposed rule public comment period. The federal rule is 

expected to be published for public comment early in 2016. 

If you have any questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me at 206-

553-1855. We look forward to meeting with you. 

Sincerely, 

~~ Daniel D. Opalski, Director 

Office of Water and Watersheds 

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