Document ID: EPA-HQ-OW-2021-0547-0500
Agency: epa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Effluent Guidelines Program Plan 15
Posted Date: 2023-01-31T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 20 (Tuesday, January 31, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6258-6259]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-01413]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OW-2021-0547; FRL-5601.5-02-OW]

Effluent Guidelines Program Plan 15

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Effluent Guidelines Program 
Plan 15 (Plan 15). The Clean Water Act (CWA) requires EPA to biennially 
publish a plan for new and revised effluent limitations guidelines, 
after public review and comment. Plan 15 provides updates on activities 
discussed in Preliminary Effluent Guidelines Program Plan 15 
(Preliminary Plan 15) and discusses comments that were received during 
the public comment period. Plan 15 discusses EPA's 2021 annual review 
of effluent limitations guidelines and pretreatment standards, presents 
the agency's preliminary review of certain specific point source 
categories, provides an update on the analyses and tools that EPA is 
developing related to effluent limitations guidelines and pretreatment 
standards, and discusses several new and ongoing rulemaking actions.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Doruntin[euml] Rexhepi, Engineering 
and Analysis Division, Office of Water, 4303T, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20460; 
telephone number: (202) 566-2532; fax number: (202) 566-1053; email 
address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. General Information

A. Supporting Documents

    Supporting documents that provide further details on the 
information presented in Plan 15 are also available for review.

B. How can I get copies of these documents and other related 
information?

    Docket. The EPA has established an official public docket for these 
actions under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2021-0547. Publicly available 
docket materials are available either electronically through 
www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West 
Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. The 
Docket Center's hours of operations are 8:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m., 
Monday through Friday (except Federal Holidays). For further 
information on the EPA Docket Center services and the current status, 
see: https://www.epa.gov/dockets.
    Electronic Access. You may access this Federal Register document 
electronically from https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/current.
    Internet access. Copies of the supporting documents are available 
at https://www.epa.gov/eg/effluent-guidelines-plan.

II. How is this document organized?

    The outline of this document follows.
    A. Legal Authority.
    B. Summary of Effluent Guidelines Program Plan 15.

A. Legal Authority

    This notice is published under the authority of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. 
1251, et seq., and in particular sections 301(d), 304(b), 304(g), 
304(m), 306, 307(b) and 308 of the Act, 33 U.S.C. 1311(d), 1314(b), 
1314(g), 1314(m), 1316, 1317(b), and 1318.

B. Summary of Effluent Guidelines Program Plan 15.

    EPA prepared Plan 15 pursuant to CWA section 304(m). Effluent 
guidelines plans provide a summary of EPA's annual review of effluent 
limitations guidelines and pretreatment standards, consistent with CWA 
sections 301(d), 304(b), 304(g), 304(m), and 307(b). From these 
reviews, the plans identify any new or existing industrial categories 
EPA selected for effluent limitations guidelines or pretreatment 
standards rulemakings and provide a schedule for such rulemakings. Once 
EPA develops the schedules for a specific rulemaking, the schedule is 
published in EPA's Regulatory Agenda. In addition, the plans present 
any new or existing categories of industry selected for further review 
and analysis.
    Plan 15 provides updates on activities discussed in Preliminary 
Plan 15 and a summary of the comments that EPA

[[Page 6259]]

received from the public. EPA received 32 unique letters on Preliminary 
Plan 15 that generally provided suggestions for improving certain 
analyses as well as comments for EPA to consider as it continues work 
on the detailed studies and ongoing rulemakings discussed in the 
Preliminary Plan. EPA considered public comments and made appropriate 
revisions. EPA did not change course on any substantive areas of ELG 
work as a result.
    Plan 15 provides updates on EPA's reviews of industrial wastewater 
discharges and treatment technologies discussed in Preliminary Plan 15 
and presents EPA's 2021 annual review of effluent guidelines and 
pretreatment standards. With this Plan, EPA continued to focus on and 
evaluate the extent and nature of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances 
(PFAS) discharges and assess opportunities for limiting those 
discharges from multiple industrial categories, as outlined in EPA's 
2021 PFAS Strategic Roadmap, found here: https://www.epa.gov/pfas/pfas-strategic-roadmap-epas-commitments-action-2021-2024.
    Plan 15 announces that EPA, pending resource availability, intends 
to initiate one new rulemaking and several new studies. After 
collecting and analyzing data, EPA has determined that revisions to the 
effluent limitations guidelines and pretreatment standards for the 
Landfills Category (40 CFR part 445) are warranted, considering PFAS 
found in landfill leachate. Plan 15 also announces EPA's intent to 
expand the detailed study of the Textile Mills Category (40 CFR part 
410) to gather information on the use, treatment, and discharge of PFAS 
from the industry. Plan 15 also announces EPA's intent to initiate a 
Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW) Influent Study focusing on 
collecting nationwide data pertaining to industrial discharges of PFAS 
to POTWs, including categories recently reviewed. Finally, Plan 15 
announces EPA's intent to undertake a detailed study of the 
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO) Category (40 CFR part 
412), which will focus on collecting further information to enable the 
agency to make an informed, reasoned decision whether to undertake 
rulemaking to revise the ELGs for CAFOs.
    Plan 15 also announces that EPA is not pursuing further regulatory 
action for the Electrical and Electronic Components (E&EC) Category (40 
CFR part 469) at this time but will continue monitoring this category 
for PFAS discharge data through the POTW Influent Study. Plan 15 
announces that EPA will also continue to monitor PFAS applications and 
discharges from the Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Category (40 CFR part 
430) and airports. The agency intends to undertake the actions outlined 
in this Plan and summarized above. The commencement and pace of these 
activities depend on the agency's Fiscal Year 2023 appropriations and 
operating plan.
    Finally, Plan 15 provides updates related to several actions that 
are included in EPA's Regulatory Agenda, including the Steam Electric 
Power Generating Category rulemaking to strengthen certain wastewater 
pollution discharge limitations for coal fired power plants that use 
steam to generate electricity; Meat and Poultry Products Category to 
address nutrient discharges; Organic Chemicals, Plastics & Synthetic 
Fibers Category to address PFAS discharges; and Metal Finishing and 
Electroplating Categories to address PFAS discharges.
    Plan 15 can be found at https://www.epa.gov/eg/effluent-guidelines-plan.

Radhika Fox,
Assistant Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2023-01413 Filed 1-30-23; 8:45 am]
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