Document ID: EPA-HQ-OECA-2009-0274-0416
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2014-12-12T05:00Z

MEMORANDUM

TO:		Public Record for the NPDES Electronic Reporting Rule
		EPA Docket Number EPA-HQ-OECA-2009-0274 (www.regulations.gov)	

FROM:		Carey A. Johnston, P.E.
            USEPA/OECA/OC
            ph: (202) 566 1014
            johnston.carey@epa.gov

DATE:		21 May 2014

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SUBJECT:	Notes from State Technical Workgroup Meeting (15 May 2014) [DCN 0136]
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Overview 

      This was the ninth meeting for the EPA-state technical workgroup, which is discussing key issues related to the proposed NPDES Electronic Reporting Rule (eRule). These discussions are informing the forthcoming supplemental Federal Register notice and they will continue beyond the publication of the supplemental notice to help EPA address state comments. EPA participants will include the OECA eRule Team as well as representatives from EPA's Office of Water and Office of Environmental Information. Technical workgroup members are listed below in Tables 1 and 2. The agenda for this meeting is also provided below. EPA is summarizing the notes from these discussions for the docket in order to provide transparency on EPA's outreach during the rulemaking process. The OECA eRule team will also be available for any other stakeholder group that would like to discuss the eRule. 
      
Meeting Notes
      
     EPA (Mr. Carey Johnston) started the meeting by reminding state participants that in addition to raising questions during the technical workgroup meetings, states can email their questions on the proposed rule (including the data elements) to EPA. Questions on all aspects of the proposed rule can be sent to Mr. Johnston. Mr. Johnston then asked teleconference participants to focus on the Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO) data elements in Appendix A. The source of these CAFO-specific data elements includes NPDES permit applications and Notices of Intent (NOI) (see 30 July 2013; 78 FR 46091), state and EPA inspections of animal feeding operations and CAFOs (Page 46101), and the CAFO Annual Report (Page 46106).  Mr. Johnston started the technical discussion by reading the name of each data element along with the corresponding data description and regulatory or policy citation. After reading about five to ten elements at a time, Mr. Johnston asked for input from the technical workgroup. Below are some questions and comments from the technical workgroup.
     
* Texas suggested that the Facility Annual Average Total Number and Facility Annual Average Total Number (Unhoused Confinement) data elements be changed from annual average to maximum number allowed by the permit. This would provide regulators a measure of the maximum number of animals that can be maintained under the permit, which can be checked during an inspection. These data elements are from the permit application or NOI.
   
* Texas suggested that the Permit/NOI 12-Month Amount of CAFO Waste data element be changed from a total amount in the previous 12 months to the maximum amount allowed under the permit and that the data element description should be modified to reflect this fact. Texas also suggested that the data element Facility Manure Annual Average Total Capacity also be changed, in the title and the description, to remove the words annual average.

* Texas suggested that the phrase `in the previous 12 months' be eliminated from the Total Number of Acres for Land Application Covered by the Nutrient Management Plan data element.

Mr. Johnston then asked teleconference participants to focus on the CAFO-specific inspection data elements (see 30 July 2013; 78 FR 46101).  Mr. Johnston started the technical discussion by reading the name of each data elements along with the corresponding data description and regulatory or policy citation. After reading about five to ten elements at a time, Mr. Johnston asked for input from the technical workgroup. Below are some questions and comments from the technical workgroup.

* Texas made clear that the date of inspection needs to be included. Mr. Johnston replied that the date of inspection is applicable to all data elements and is listed on Page 46100 (Compliance Monitoring Activity Actual End Date).
   
* Texas suggested that the containment and storage capacity data element should be based on the design capacity (i.e., maximum allowed under the permit). Mr. Kent Woodmansey (South Dakota) disagreed and noted that it may be difficult for an inspector to calculate the total capacity. Mr. Woodmansey suggested that the data element be changed such that the inspector only needs to identify whether or not the CAFO is operating within the design capacity for each type of containment and storage used by the facility for CAFO material.

* Texas also suggested that the Animal Type, Total Number of Animals, and Total Number of Animals in Open Confinement all be clearly linked to what was there on the date of the inspection.

* Ms. Tamara Dahl (Minnesota) asked if the CAFO Designation Date can be carried forward from the state files or permit application forms. Ms. Dahl also asked for more clarification on the Designation Reason data element. [Answer: The Designation Reason is a text field for the reason used by the State Director or the Regional Administrator that designates an animal feeding operation as a small CAFO. Large and medium CAFO definitions are in 40 CFR 122.23(b). This text field can include the following factors: (1) the size of the AFO and the amount of wastes reaching waters of the United States; (2) the location of the AFO relative to waters of the United States; (3) the means of conveyance of animal wastes and process waste waters into waters of the United States; (4) the slope, vegetation, rainfall, and other factors affecting the likelihood or frequency of discharge of animal wastes manure and process waste waters into waters of the United States; and (5) other relevant factors,]

* South Dakota suggested that the following data elements be eliminated (starting on Page 46101):

      o Did Facility Make a No Discharge Certification?
      o Is an NMP Being Implemented?
      o Is an NMP Being Implemented Annually?
      o Land Application BMP Type
      o Mortality Disposal Method
      o Monitoring Well Data Availability
      o Storage Type
      o Storage Total Capacity

* South Dakota also noted that they work with small AFOs so that they don't require designation as a CAFO. See the five factors above. Large and medium CAFO definitions are in 40 CFR 122.23(b). 
   
Mr. Johnston then asked teleconference participants to focus on the CAFO Annual Report data elements (see 30 July 2013; 78 FR 46106).  Mr. Johnston started the technical discussion by reading the name of each data elements along with the corresponding data description and regulatory or policy citation. After reading about five to ten elements at a time, Mr. Johnston asked for input from the technical workgroup. Below are some questions and comments from the technical workgroup.
   
* On the inspection data, one state indicated that the data element "Did Facility Make a No Discharge Certification?" was outdated and perhaps should be deleted.
   
* South Dakota suggested that the metric for animal counts be changed to maximum (instead of total number) to facility comparison against the permitted maximum counts that are captured in the permitting process. Mr. Kent Woodmansey (South Dakota) noted that EPA and states will need to have good instructions on the electronic reporting forms to improve data quality as they have seem problems with animal count numbers in previous reporting.
   
* New Jersey also asked whether days of confinement should be tracked as a key factor in whether the facility constitutes a CAFO.
   
* Mr. Woodmansey (South Dakota) suggested that a units data element may be necessary as not all CAFO manure, litter, and process wastewater is measured in gallons. He also suggested that EPA remove the word `waste' from the description of CAFO manure, litter, and process wastewater.

* A number of states had questions on the discharge data. South Dakota noted that knowing where the discharge came from was important. New Jersey suggested that EPA also clarify if the data element applies to discharges that don't enter waters of the United States. [Note: Mr. Kent Woodmansey made the following suggestion in a May 15th email to Mr. Johnston: "Thinking some more about the discharge questions in the annual report, maybe rather than where the discharge was from, it would be worthwhile to know if the discharge was allowed as a result of a 25-year, 24-hour storm event.  This is allowed for open lot systems as long as they are properly, designed, constructed, operated, and maintained."]

* Mr. Woodmansey (South Dakota) suggested that EPA provide examples of a certified nutrient management planner as that term is not clear to many CAFOs in his state. He also suggested the EPA work with some agricultural producers to review and refine the data in Appendix A as well as the electronic reporting forms.

* Appendix A asks for operators to identify whether they are using the Linear Approach [40 CFR 122.42(e)(5)(i)] or the Narrative Rate Approach [40 CFR 122.42(e)(5)(ii)] to manage their CAFO manure, litter, and process wastewater. Mr. Woodmansey (South Dakota) noted that many operators won't know what approach they are using to control their CAFO manure, litter, and process wastewater. Commenters also mentioned that the method might be standard for the entire state and could be built into the form, eliminating the need for certain questions to be listed for a particular state.  One commenter also asked whether a "deviation amount" should be identified because the measurements and estimates may not be exact. On the inspection data, one state indicated that the data element Did Facility Make a No Discharge Certification? was outdated and perhaps should be deleted.

* Several states asked if the Field Identification Number will be system generated or if states and CAFOs will have flexibility in creating unique numbers. Mr. Johnston noted that EPA will work with states to create flexibility when this data element is created in ICIS-NPDES. The intention behind this data element is to create a number that will uniquely identify an area that has applications of CAFO manure, litter, and process wastewater. 

* Mr. Woodmansey (South Dakota) asked how ICIS-NPDES handles multiple facilities under one NPDES permit. [Answer: ICIS-NPDES does allow multiple facilities to be covered under a master general permit. In such cases, each general permit covered facility has its own unique permit number (e.g., MSG180005) that is related to the master general permit (MSG18). However, ICIS-NDPES does not allow one unique NDPES permit number to be applied to multiple facilities.]

* Texas commented that there are privacy issues related to the animal feeding sector as some private residences are co-located with the animal feeding operations. 

* Mr. Sean Rolland (ACWA) asked about the information that states and EPA collect on unpermitted CAFOs during inspections. He questioned whether these data would be required to be submitted to EPA and whether they would be made publicly available. [Answer: As noted in the proposed rule (Page 46022), "The NPDES information described in the proposed rule would generally not be required for facilities without NPDES permits, with the following exceptions: Unpermitted facilities that have action, an administrative penalty order, or an informal enforcement action (if such informal action addressed significant noncompliance); Unpermitted facilities that have been inspected; and Industrial users located in cities without approved local pretreatment programs. For the first two types of exceptions identified above, EPA, authorized states, tribes, and territories would be expected to electronically provide the following information: basic facility information; inspection-related information; and, if applicable, violations, and information regarding enforcement actions. For the first two exceptions, there would not be any expectation for data to be submitted to EPA regarding narrative permit conditions, permitted features, permit limit sets, permit limits, DMRs, or program reports."] 
      

Next Steps
      
      The next technical workgroup meeting is May 22nd. 
     State Technical Workgroup Meeting  -  NPDES Electronic Reporting Rule
                                  15 May 2014

      1pm		Introduction/Roll Call 

      1:10		Discussion of CAFO Data

      2:30		End of Call
      
      
Quick Reminder
   *    The technical workgroup is not a formal decision-making body. The workgroup is expected to develop, research, and evaluate options for consideration by EPA and state senior management.
   
   *    There are no formal quorum rules for the workgroup. Scheduled teleconferences will proceed with whichever workgroup members call in to participate.

   *    There will be no formal voting or consensus of the workgroup. Instead, the workgroup is expected to try to develop recommendations reflecting their various perspectives, not achieve consensus.

   *    Summaries of the workgroup's discussions will be prepared for and reviewed by the workgroup, for presentation to EPA senior management and other states and the rulemaking record. The discussions summaries will outline the major elements of the discussions, areas of agreement and any dissenting views.

Table 1: State Technical Workgroup Members

                                 Main Contact
                             State or Organization
                              Main Contact Email
                         State/Org. Present? (Yes/No)
                                 Sean  Rolland
                                     ACWA
                             srolland@acwa-us.org
                                      Yes
                                 Karen Lechner
                                      AK
                           karen.lechner@alaska.gov
                                      Yes
                                 Christy Monk
                                      AL
                             cvm@adem.state.al.us
                                      Yes
                                  Glenda Dean
                                       
                             gld@adem.state.al.us
                                       
                                 Teresa Marks
                                      AR
                            marks@adeq.state.ar.us
                                      Yes
                                   Pat Goff
                                       
                             goff@adeq.state.ar.us
                                       
                                   Mo Shafii
                                       
                            shafii@adeq.state.ar.us
                                       
                                 Karen Bassett
                                       
                           bassett@adeq.state.ar.us
                                       
                                 David Ramsey
                                       
                            ramsey@adeq.state.ar.us
                                       
                                Ellen Carpenter
                                       
                          carpenter@adeq.state.ar.us
                                       
                                Wendy LeStarge
                                      AZ
                           lestarge.wendy@azdeq.gov
                                      Yes
                                 Robin Belley
                                       
                            belley.robin@azdeq.gov
                                       
                                  David Lelsz
                                       
                            lelsz.david@azdeq.gov;
                                       
                                  Andy Putnam
                                      CO
                           andrew.putnam@state.co.us
                             goff@adeq.state.ar.us
                                      Yes
                                 Elisa Willard
                                       
                           elisa.willard@state.co.us
                                       
                                 Bob Zimmerman
                                      DE
                         robert.zimmerman@state.de.us
                          stephanie.bower@state.de.us
                                      No
                                  Beth Graves
                                     ECOS
                               bgraves@ecos.org
                                      Yes
                                  Chris Klena
                                      FL
                         chris.m.klena@dep.state.fl.us
                                      Yes
                              Jessica Kleinfelter
                                       
                      jessica.kleinfelter@dep.state.fl.us
                                       
                                 Edward Smith
                                       
                        edward.c.smith@dep.state.fl.us
                                       
                               Frances Carpenter
                                       
                       frances.carpenter@dnr.state.ga.us
                                       
                                 Tom Easterly
                                      IN
                             teasterl@idem.in.gov
                              ckoontz@idem.in.gov
                                      No
                               Jeremy Chenevert
                                       
                             jcheneve@idem.in.gov
                                       
                                 Ed Dillingham
                                      KS
                            edillingham@kdheks.gov
                                      No
                             Shelly Shores-Miller
                                       
                              sshoresm@kdheks.gov
                                       
                                Shawn Hokanson
                                      KY
                             shawn.hokanson@ky.gov
                                      No
                                  Tamara Dahl
                                      MN
                            tamara.dahl@state.mn.us
                                      Yes
                                 Greg Jackson
                                      MS
                         greg_jackson@deq.state.ms.us
                                      No
                                  John Murphy
                                    NEIWPCC
                              jmurphy@neiwpcc.org
                                      No
                                 Jason Lonardo
                                      NJ
                         jason.lonardo@dep.state.nj.us
                                      Yes
                                 Julio Collazo
                                       
                         julio.collazo@dep.state.nj.us
                                       
                                 Robert Wither
                                      NY
                          rewither@gw.dec.state.ny.us
                                      Yes
                                 Joseph DiMura
                                       
                          jxdimura@gw.dec.state.ny.us
                                       
                             Shellie Chard-McClary
                                      OK
                       shellie.chard-mcclary@deq.ok.gov
                                      Yes
                                  Roy Walker
                                       
                             roy.walker@deq.ok.gov
                                       
                                 David Pruitt
                                       
                            david.pruitt@deq.ok.gov
                                       
                                 Jim Billings
                                      OR
                         billings.jim@deq.state.or.us
                                      Yes
                                 Sean Furjanic
                                      PA
                               sefurjanic@pa.gov
                                      No
                                Kent Woodmansey
                                      SD
                          kent.woodmansey@state.sd.us
                                      Yes
                                   Tim Flor
                                       
                             tim.flor@state.sd.us
                                       
                                Albert Spangler
                                       
                          albert.spangler@state.sd.us
                                       
                                  Kim Wilson
                                      TX
                           kim.wilson@tceq.texas.gov
                                      Yes
                                 Lynley Doyen
                                       
                          lynley.doyen@tceq.texas.gov
                                       
                               Kimberly Shepard
                                       
                        kimberly.shepard@tceq.texas.gov
                                       
                                 Jeff Studenka
                                      UT
                              jstudenka@utah.gov
                                      No
                                 Jerome Brooks
                                      VA
                        jerome.brooks@deq.virginia.gov
                                      Yes
                                  Phani Eturu
                                       
                         phani.eturu@deq.virginia.gov
                                       
                                Stephen Bernath
                                      WA
                              sber461@ecy.wa.gov
                                      Yes
                                  Nancy Kmet
                                       
                              nkme461@ecy.wa.gov
                                       
      
Table 2: EPA Technical Workgroup Members

                                     Name
                                  EPA Office 
                                     Email
                               Present? (Yes/No)
                                   Lisa Lund
                                  OECA/OC/IO
                               lund.lisa@epa.gov
                                      No
                                John Dombrowski
                                 OECA/OC/ETDD
                            dombrowski.john@epa.gov
                                      Yes
                                  Andy Hudock
                                 OECA/OC/ETDD
                             hudock.andrew@epa.gov
                                      Yes
                                Rochele Kadish
                                 OECA/OC/ETDD
                            kadish.rochele@epa.gov
                                      Yes
                                Carey Johnston
                                 OECA/OC/ETDD
                            johnston.carey@epa.gov
                                      Yes
                                 Jackie Clark
                                  OW/OWM/WPD
                             clark.jackie@epa.gov
                                      Yes
                                  Roy Chaudet
                                 OEI/OIC/IESD
                              chaudet.roy@epa.gov
                                      No
                                 Chuck Freeman
                                 OEI/OIC/IESD
                            freeman.charles@epa.gov
                                      No
                                 Aditi Prabhu
                                    OGC/WLO
                             prabhu.aditi@epa.gov
                                      Yes
                                 Simma Kupchan
                                    OGC/WLO
                             kupchan.simma@epa.gov
                                      Yes
                                 David Apanian
                                   Region 4
                             apanian.david@epa.gov
                                      Yes
                                Becky Mitschele
                                  OW/OWM/WPD
                            mitschele.becky@epa.gov
                                      Yes
                                  Glynis Hill
                                 OP/ORPM/PRAD
                              hill.glynis@epa.gov
                                      Yes