New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 7 - ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Chapter 9B - SURFACE WATER QUALITY STANDARDS › Subchapter 1 - SURFACE WATER QUALITY STANDARDS › Section 7:9B-1.5 - Statements of policy

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) General
				policies are as follows:
1. These Surface
				Water Quality Standards apply to all surface waters of the State.
2. Water is vital to life and comprises an
				invaluable natural resource which is not to be abused by any segment of the
				State's population or economy. It is the policy of the State to restore,
				maintain and enhance the chemical, physical and biological integrity of its
				waters, to protect the public health, to safeguard the aquatic biota, protect
				scenic and ecological values, and to enhance the domestic, municipal,
				recreational, industrial, agricultural and other reasonable uses of the State's
				waters.
3. The restoration,
				maintenance and preservation of the quality of the waters of the State for the
				protection and preservation of public water supplies is a paramount interest of
				the citizens of New Jersey. In order to provide adequate, clean supplies of
				potable water, it is the policy of the State that all fresh waters be protected
				as potential sources of public water supply. Therefore, point and nonpoint
				sources of pollutants shall be regulated to attain compliance with the Surface
				Water Quality Standards human health criteria outside of regulatory mixing
				zones.
4. Toxic substances in
				waters of the State shall not be at levels that are toxic to humans or the
				aquatic biota, or that bioaccumulate in the aquatic biota so as to render them
				unfit for human consumption.
5. The
				introduction of carcinogenic, mutagenic, or teratogenic substances into the
				environment is of particular concern to the Department. Human health-based
				ambient criteria have been established in freshwaters due to consumption of
				fish and water, and in saline water due to consumption of fish. For
				carcinogens, the criteria have been established at levels which would result in
				no greater than a one-in-one-million lifetime excess cancer risk. For
				non-carcinogens, the criteria have been established which would result in no
				appreciable risk of deleterious effect.
6. Existing uses shall be maintained and
				protected. Designated uses shall, as soon as technically and economically
				feasible, be attained wherever these uses are not precluded by natural
				conditions. Where existing criteria are inadequate to support the existing or
				designated uses, the criteria shall be changed to support the existing
				uses.
7. The restoration of saline
				waters to levels which permit unrestricted shellfish harvesting is an objective
				of the Department.
8. The
				Department encourages the use of reclaimed water for beneficial reuse to help
				preserve the highest quality water and reduce the export of freshwater out of
				basins in support of meeting water supply needs and natural resource
				protection.
9. The Department uses
				the Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Methods developed
				pursuant to
				N.J.A.C.
				7:15-5.2 to evaluate water quality data and
				identify waters where water quality does not meet the Surface Water Quality
				Standards in this chapter as required by Section 303(d) and 305(b) of the
				Federal Clean Water Act.