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Treatment of Indian Tribes in a Similar Manner as States for Purposes of Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act

water-quality · Rule · Published 2016-09-26 · Effective 2016-10-26 · 81 FR 65901

Document

Document number
2016-22882
Federal Register citation
81 FR 65901
CFR reference
40 CFR 130
Type
Rule
Action
Final rule.
Category
water-quality
Publication date
2016-09-26
Effective date
2016-10-26
EPA docket
EPA-HQ-OW-2014-0622

Abstract

In section 518(e) of the Clean Water Act (CWA), Congress authorized the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to treat eligible federally recognized Indian tribes in a similar manner as a state for purposes of administering section 303 and certain other provisions of the CWA, and directed the agency to promulgate regulations effectuating this authorization. EPA has issued regulations establishing a process for federally recognized tribes to obtain treatment in a similar manner as states (TAS) for several provisions of the CWA; for example, 53 tribes have obtained TAS authority to issue water quality standards under CWA section 303(c). EPA has not yet promulgated regulations expressly establishing a process for tribes to obtain TAS authority to administer the water quality restoration provisions of CWA section 303(d), including issuing lists of impaired waters and developing total maximum daily loads (TMDLs), as states routinely do. EPA is now remedying this gap. By establishing regulatory procedures for eligible tribes to obtain TAS for the CWA Section 303(d) Impaired Water Listing and TMDL Program, this final rule enables eligible tribes to obtain authority to identify impaired waters on their reservations and to establish TMDLs, which serve as plans for attaining and maintaining applicable water quality standards (WQS). The rule is comparable to similar regulations that EPA issued in the 1990s for the CWA Section 303(c) WQS and CWA Section 402 and Section 404 Permitting Programs, and includes features designed to minimize paperwork and unnecessary reviews.

Source

Authoritative
Federal Register document
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