[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 128 (Wednesday, July 5, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34991-34992]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: X95-10705]



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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-5250-3]


Final General NPDES Permit for Seafood Processors in the State 
Waters of Alaska and in Receiving Waters Adjacent to Alaska and 
Extending Out 200 Nautical Miles from the Coast and Baseline of Alaska: 
Alaskan Seafood Processors General NPDES Permit (No. AKG-52-0000)

Agency: Environmental Protection Agency, Region 10.

Action: Notice of Final General NPDES Permit.

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Summary: The Director, Water Division, EPA Region 10, is reissuing 
General National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit 
no. AK-G52-0000 for seafood processors in Alaska pursuant to the 
provisions of the Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq. The General 
NPDES permit authorizes discharges from offshore, nearshore and shore-
based vessels and onshore facilities engaged in the processing of 
fresh, frozen, canned, smoked, salted and pickled seafoods. The permit 
also authorizes discharges from offshore vessels (operating more than 
one nautical mile from shore at MLLW) that are engaged in the 
processing of seafood paste, mince or meal. The permit authorizes 
discharges of processing wastes, process disinfectants, sanitary 
wastewater and other wastewaters, including domestic wastewater, 
cooling water, boiler water, gray water, freshwater pressure relief 
water, refrigeration condense, water used to transfer seafood to a 
facility, and live tank water. The permit authorizes discharges to 
waters of the United States in and contiguous to the State of Alaska, 
except for receiving waters excluded from coverage as protected, 
special, at-risk, degraded or adjacent to a designated ``seafood 
processing center.''
    The general NPDES permit for seafood processors in Alaska does not 
authorize discharges from nearshore or shore-based seafood processors 
of mince, paste or meal (operating one nautical mile or less from shore 
at MLLW). The permit does not authorize discharges of petroleum 
hydrocarbons, toxic pollutants, or other pollutants not specified in 
the permit. The permit does not authorize discharges to waters excluded 
from coverage as protected, special, at-risk, degraded or adjacent to a 
designated ``seafood processing center.''
    Notice of the draft Alaskan seafood processors general NPDES permit 
was published July 28, 1994 in the Federal Register [59 FR 38473] and 
the Anchorage Daily News, the Juneau Empire and the Seattle Times.

[[Page 34992]]

    The final permit is printed below and establishes effluent 
limitations, standards, prohibitions, monitoring requirements and other 
conditions on discharges from seafood processors in the area of 
coverage. The conditions are based on material contained in the 
administrative record, including an ocean discharge criteria 
evaluation, an environmental assessment, a finding of no significant 
impact, and a biological evaluation of potential effects on threatened 
and endangered species. Changes made in response to public comments are 
addressed in full in a document entitled ``Response to Public Comments 
on the Proposed Reissuance of the Alaskan Seafood Processors General 
NPDES Permit.'' This document in being sent to all commenters, current 
permittees and applicants and is available to other parties from the 
address below upon request.

EFFECTIVE DATE: The general NPDES permit shall become effective August 
4, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Unless otherwise noted in the permit, correspondence 
regarding this permit should be sent to Environmental Protection 
Agency, Region 10, Attn: Wastewater Branch, WD-134, 1200 Sixth Avenue, 
Seattle, Washington, 98101.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Burney Hill or Florence Carroll, of 
EPA Region 10, at the address listed above or telephone (206) 553-1761 
or 553-1760 respectively. Copies of the final general NPDES permit, 
response to public comments and today's publication will be provided 
upon request by the EPA Region 10 Public Information Center at 1-800-
424-4372 or 206-553-1200.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA reissues this general NPDES permit 
pursuant to its authority under Sections 301(b), 304, 306, 307, 308, 
401, 402, 403 and 501 of the Clean Water Act. The fact sheet for the 
draft permit, the response to comments document, the ocean discharge 
criteria evaluation, the biological evaluation, the environmental 
assessment, the 401 certification issued by the State of Alaska, and 
the coastal zone management plan consistency determination issued by 
the State of Alaska set forth the principal facts and the significant 
factual, legal and policy questions considered in the development of 
the terms and conditions of the final permit presented below.
    The State of Alaska, Department of Environmental Conservation, has 
certified that the subject discharges comply with the applicable 
provisions of Sections 208(e), 301, 302, 303, 306 and 307 of the Clean 
Water Act.
    The State of Alaska, Office of Management and Budget, Division of 
Governmental Coordination, has certified that the general NPDES permit 
is consistent with the approved Alaska Coastal Management Program.
    Changes have been made from the draft permit to the final permit in 
response to public comments received on the draft permit, the final 
coastal management plan consistency determination from the State of 
Alaska, and the final 401 certification issued by the State of Alaska.
    The following identifies several specific areas of change, among 
others, which have been embodied in the final permit: the areas 
excluded from coverage do not include the proposed category ``special 
resource waters of Alaska'' and have been expanded to include national 
wilderness areas, seabird colonies larger than 1,000 individuals, 
Udagak Bay, Ward Cove and the coastal seas of the Pribilof Islands; 
offshore seafood processors (discharging more than one nautical mile 
from shore) are required to develop and operate in accordance with a 
best management practices plan; one acre zones of deposit are 
authorized by the State of Alaska; circular mixing zones with radii of 
100, 200 and 300 feet are authorized respectively for onshore, 
nearshore and offshore seafood processors by the State of Alaska; dive 
surveys are required for discharges of more than 7 days to receiving 
waters within one nautical mile of shore and in less than 20 fathoms of 
depth; requests for waivers from the monitoring of the seafloor, sea 
surface and shoreline are allowed; and an appendix describes the areas 
excluded from coverage under the permit in detail.
    Within 120 days following this service of notice of EPA's final 
permit decision under 40 CFR 124.15, any interested person may appeal 
the general NPDES permit in the Federal Court of Appeal in accordance 
with Section 509(b)(1) of the Clean Water Act. Persons affected by a 
general NPDES permit may not challenge the conditions of the permit as 
a right of further EPA proceedings. Instead, they may either challenge 
this permit in court or apply for an individual NPDES permit and then 
request a formal hearing on the issuance or denial of an individual 
permit.

    Dated: June 21, 1995.
Janis Hastings,
Acting Director, Water Division.
BILLING CODE 6560-50-M