February Update

Virginia’s General Assembly session is underway. Cross-over occurred on February 8, and the session ends on February 28. We will provide a summary of the session and enacted environmental legislation in our March update. 

DEQ recently issued its Notice of Intended Regulatory Action (NOIRA) to amend and reissue its General VPDES Permit for Concrete Products Facilities. The current general permit expires on September 30, 2018. During the reissuance process, the limitations and monitoring requirements for such facilities will be updated. DEQ is accepting nominations for participation in the reissuance process and comments on the proposed reissuance through March 8.   

DEQ has issued a few new guidance documents since the last update. 

MS4 Inspection Standard Operating Procedures. DEQ recently issued a new guidance document on Municipal Separate Stormwater Sewer System (MS4) Inspection Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). While targeted at MS4s, the guidance includes a section about how inspections should evaluate industrial/commercial programs within the MS4.  This may be of interest to VAA members with facilities within a Phase I MS4. The guidance is available here. 

Citizen Requests for Water Quality Monitoring. DEQ issued guidance regarding public requests for the monitoring of specific segments of a waterbody. This may be of interest to VAA members, as it enables citizens to request monitoring downstream of a given facility. Under the guidance, citizens must use DEQ-developed form to submit requests between January 1 and April 30 of each year. The request must include the geographical location of the water segment, the reason for requesting monitoring, and any water quality data the citizen may have already collected or compiled. The guidance is available here. 

Universal Waste Mercury-Containing Lamp Crushing. DEQ issued guidance on Universal Waste Mercury-Containing Lamp Crushing, along with a frequently asked questions document. The guidance elaborates on compliance obligations in light of newly enacted regulatory requirements. The new regulations focus on reducing the release of mercury into the environment and protecting the health of workers who crush the lamps for disposal. All handlers of mercury-containing lamps that have a crushing operation at their facility, regardless of size, must notify DEQ within 30 days of commencing the crushing operation or, for existing facilities; within 30 days of the effective date of the regulation (the regulation became effective January 1, 2017). New facilities must comply with the requirements once crushing operations begin. Facilities with existing crushing operations must demonstrate compliance with the new requirements by April 1, 2017. The compliance obligations are different for large and small quantity UW lamp handlers.  The requirements include training, and air emission monitoring requirements, as well as financial assurance and closure requirements for large quantity UW lamp handlers. The guidance is available here; the FAQ is available here.

Solid Waste "Appropriate Container." DEQ’s solid waste regulations exempt solid waste stored in "appropriate containers" at the site of generation.  9 VAC 20-81-95.D.10. The term "appropriate containers" is not defined in the regulations. DEQ has now issued a Solid Waste Interpretive Guidance Statement (SWIGS) providing guidance on how the term will be applied by DEQ. The guidance notes that a container can be considered appropriate for storage if it does not create a nuisance and goes on to lay out a number of factors to use in evaluating whether a container qualifies. The guidance is available here. Note that in addition to ensuring the material is stored in an "appropriate container," putrescible waste cannot be stored more than seven days between time of collection and time of removal for disposal and  Nonputrescible wastes cannot be stored more than 90 days between time of collection and time of removal for proper management.  

 

DEQ is hosting several Wastewater Permit Reporting Workshops focused on VPDES Permit Recordkeeping and Reporting and General Nutrient Permit Reporting.  More information regarding the dates, times, and locations of these workshops is available here. 

 

As previously reported, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) published its decision to list the Rusty Patched Bumble Bee as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The original effective date for the listing was February 10, 2017. Due to the Trump Administration’s memorandum on Inauguration Day requiring a 60-day postponement of regulations that had not yet taken effect, but had been published in the Federal Register, FWS has delayed the effective date of this listing until March 21.  

 

In addition to the staffing changes for the Piedmont Regional Office reported in our last update, we have learned that Jeffrey Hurst is the new Southwest Regional Director and 

Craig Nicol will be the new Regional Director for the Tidewater Region.  

7.  Citizen Boards.  

The Waste Management Board will meet on February 24. The agenda includes the final amendments to Regulations Governing the Transportation of Hazardous Materials (9VAC20-110). These amendments incorporate the U.S. Department of Transportation’s annual changes to the federal regulations regarding the transportation of hazardous materials in Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations (49 CFR).

The Board will also hear proposed final amendments to the Virginia Solid Waste Management Regulations (VSWMR) relating to inactive coal combustion residuals surface impoundments.  The amendments incorporate changes to the federal rule.  

The Board of Game and Inland Fisheries will meet on February 22. 

The State Water Control Board will meet on March 30.  

The Air Pollution Control Board will meet on March 16.    

1. Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA) Reporting.  Members subject to EPCRA Tier II are reminded that the reporting deadline is March 1. More information is available on DEQ’s EPCRA page. 

2. Clean Air Act Title V Compliance Certification Reporting.  VAA members subject to Clean Air Act (CAA) Title V Compliance Certification Reporting are reminded of the upcoming March 1 deadline to submit your facility’s Annual Compliance Certification. More information on this reporting requirement is available from DEQ here. 

3. Annual Air Emission Inventory.  Facilities must complete and submit their annual air emission inventory to DEQ by April 15.