SUSAN VOYLES, RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
Posted: 1/16/2008
A comprehensive approach to manage watersheds to improve water quality in the Truckee River was endorsed Tuesday by the Washoe County Commission.
The county would join Reno, Sparks and other agencies to reduce pollutants, sediments and salts from entering storm drains, creeks and other waterways before entering the river. It's one way to improve the river aquatics, Pyramid Lake and avoid more than $100 million in upgrades for additional nitrogen removal at the Reno-Sparks sewer plant.
A model and regulations to oversee the watershed cleanup are being researched by California State University in a "white paper" for Reno, said Rosemary Menard, county water resources director.
The purpose of this study is to provide the technical analysis and review necessary to begin developing a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for sediment for the California portions of the Truckee River watershed.
Rights:
Unknown
Progress:
Ongoing
Written By
David McGraw, Alan McKay, Guohong Duan, Thomas Bullard, Tim Minor, Jason Kuchnicki
Prepared By
Division of Hydrologic Sciences, Desert Research Institute,
University and Community College System of Nevada, Las Vegas
Prepared For
Town of Truckee
Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board
JULY 2001
The purpose of this study is to provide the technical analysis and review necessary to begin developing a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for sediment for the California portions of the Truckee River watershed. The general goal of a sediment TMDL analysis is to protect designated uses by characterizing existing and desired watershed conditions, evaluate the degree of impairment to the existing (and future) conditions, and identify land management and restoration actions needed to attain desired conditions (USEPA, 1999a). More specifically, the goals of this study are: 1) establish recommended reductions in sediment loads for designated reaches and sub-basins in the upper basin of the Truckee River; 2) develop a GIS-based watershed model capable of simulating erosional and sediment transport processes over multiple physiographic settings; 3) use the calibrated model to estimate sediment conditions under various land-use scenarios; and 4) interact with technical advisory groups to ensure stakeholder input from project inception through completion.
For entire Executive Summary and Final Report, please visit link.
Editor's note: The 3rd Party review of the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) process on the Truckee River is an important proposal at a crucial juncture in time. Portions of the Truckee River in Nevada have been listed historically on the Clean Water Act 303(d) list of impaired water bodies for problems with Total Nitrogen, Total Phosphorus Total Dissolved Solids, dissolved oxygen,and water temperature. These contaminants and conditions, and the potential watershed-based causes of such conditions are believed by the Cities of Reno and Sparks (Cities) to warrant more close attention. The Cities have proposed to the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection and the US Environmental Protection Agency that a review and potential revision of the current nutrient TMDL be considered. The Cities' role on this effort places them into the statutory category of “Third Parties”. The Third Parties hope to advance the understanding of the Truckee River watershed by incorporating more advanced scientific study than was previously available in 1994, involving more stakeholders in an improved evaluative, information sharing, and decision-making collaborative process in the watershed.
The Assessment Report is the result of close to 50 interviews, conducted confidentially as a means to assess stakeholder sentiments about river issues; particularly regarding water quality and the proposed TMDL. The Assessment was conducted by the Caliifornia State University Sacramento’s Center for Collaborative Policy (CCP), a regional leader in neutral mediation and strategic facilitation services. CCP recommends cautious optimism that a multi-party stakeholder negotiation be convened in support of the proposed nutrient TDML review.
Stakeholder Process Feasibility Assessment and Recomendations
The Center for Collaborative Policy (CCP), a neutral program of California State University Sacramento presents the following options and conclusions for a public process related to the proposed 3rd Party review and revision of the current Truckee River Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL).
As required by the Federal Clean Water Act (CWA), TMDLs are established for “impaired water bodies” (water bodies that cannot meet their intended or assigned beneficial use) in the United. States (U.S.). Constituents of impairment (i.e., nutrients, temperature, trash, sediment, etc) are regularly presented and updated in national and state-level lists of impaired waterbodies. These lists are called “303(d) lists”. The title refers to the citation in the CWA mandating the list. A TMDL identifies a specific limit for a pollutant, which is calculated as the sum of all loads of the pollutant necessary to meet water quality standards. The sum includes wasteload allocations, loads from non-point sources, background or naturally occurring loads, future loads and a factor of safety. TMDLs are normally developed and authorized by a state environmental protection agency such as the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP), and are approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Interested other parties may develop a TMDL under strict oversight of the state agency and final approval by EPA. These are referred to as “3rd Party TMDLs.” The state agency may adopt or reject a 3rd Party TMDL based on a variety of factors. For the Truckee River in Nevada, the 3rd Parties consist of the Cities of Reno and Sparks (3rd Party).
There is a vast difference between what is legally required, and what is philosophically appropriate for a TMDL public process. Federal and State statutes require a minimum of 30 days to review and comment on all aspects of a TMDL listing. EPA Region 9 guidance encourages but does not mandate States to “communicate with the public earlier in the process of developing a particular TMDL to discuss the TMDL approach and stakeholder involvement opportunities”. Section 303 of the CWA and subsequent policies and guidelines of EPA and NDEP do not suggest a minimum number of public meetings. State of Nevada guidance commits that “NDEP consults with interested parties to allow input to decisions regarding necessary monitoring, modeling, analysis and methods. NDEP solicits comment on the draft TMDL, at a minimum, through public notice. In cases where the TMDL is complicated and/or controversial, NDEP will hold stakeholder outreach meetings”. In the context of these citations, CCP has prepared three alternatives. Each alternative presumes that the TMDL will focus on at least, nutrient loads in the Truckee River. While this does not address other constituents of concern that exist in the River and that are on the 303(d) list, CWA as statute, and NDEP and EPA as CWA regulatory trustees can not obligate a 3rd Party to address a specific impairment constituent. That decision is at the voluntary discretion of the 3rd Party proposing to conduct the TMDL.
Please see attached file for complete evaluation. Thank you!
The Truckee River’s natural flow pattern has been severely modified, with negative repercussions for native fish and plant communities in the floodplain. Water quality problems were exacerbated in the 1980s as high nutrient loading and low flow during an extended drought resulted in the proliferation of aquatic macrophytes and benthic algae.
Rights:
Creative Commons - Commercial Use OK
Progress:
Ongoing
Prepared for
Truckee Meadows Water Reclamation Facility
City of Reno and City of Sparks, Nevada
Prepared by
Alan Jassby PhD, Ted Daum MS, and Charles Goldman PhD
Ecological Research Associates
Davis, Calif.
September 10, 2007
Summary
The Truckee River’s natural flow pattern has been severely modified, with negative repercussions for native fish and plant communities in the floodplain. Water quality problems were exacerbated in the 1980s as high nutrient loading and low flow during an extended drought resulted in the proliferation of aquatic macrophytes and benthic algae. In response, the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) developed the Truckee River Strategy. Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for total nitrogen (TN) total phosphorus (TP) and total dissolved solids (TDS), and Waste Load Allocations (WLAs) for the Truckee Meadows Water Reclamation Facility (TMWRF), were adopted in 1994. The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for TMWRF was reissued in 2003. The permit allows potential TMDL and WLA adjustments if supported by appropriate scientific evidence. This report is an analysis of historical monitoring data for both the Truckee River and TMWRF effluent in order to help determine what adjustments, if any, can be made in the discharge levels of the facility. The report is based mainly on the TMWRF river monitoring and treatment plant databases combined with U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) gage data. The water quality monitoring record started in 1985. The most important period considered here, though, is 1998–2006 because major modification of treatment plant processes and/or operating strategies continued through 1997.
Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act requires states to identify waters that do not or are not expected to meet applicable water quality standards with technology-based controls alone. Once these waters are identified, states are to develop total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) at a level necessary to achieve the applicable water quality standards. The Truckee River at Lockwood is listed on Nevada's 303(d) List for total nitrogen, total phosphorus and total dissolved solids. NDEP has chosen to use the chemical specific approach for the establishing TMDLs.
Rights:
Creative Commons - Commercial Use OK
Progress:
Ongoing
Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act requires states to identify waters that do not or are not expected to meet applicable water quality standards with technology-based controls alone. Once these waters are identified, states are to develop total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) at a level necessary to achieve the applicable water quality standards. The Truckee River at Lockwood is listed on Nevada's 303(d) List for total nitrogen, total phosphorus and total dissolved solids. NDEP has chosen to use the chemical specific approach for the establishing TMDLs.
Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act requires states implement water quality-based controls where technology based limits and implemented Best Management Practices (BMPs) are not sufficient to achieve water quality standards. A TMDL is a tool for implementing State water quality standards and is based on the relationship between pollutant sources and in-stream water quality conditions. TMDLs integrate the management of both point and nonpoint sources of pollution to a waterbody. The TMDL establishes the allowable loadings or other quantifiable parameters for a waterbody and thereby provides the basis for establishing water quality-based controls. These controls should provide the pollution reduction necessary for a waterbody to meet water quality standards.
A TMDL quantifies pollutant sources and allocates allowable loads to the contributing point and nonpoint sources so that the water quality standards are attained. The greatest amount of loading that a water can receive without violating water quality standards is the loading capacity. The waste load allocation (WLA) is the portion of a receiving water's loading capacity that is allocated to existing or future point sources of pollution. EPA regulations (40 CFR 130.2(g)) provide that load allocations for nonpoint sources and/or natural background "are best estimates of the loading which may range from reasonably accurate estimates to gross allotments...."
This document first describes the methodology used for determining a TMDL for both conservative and nonconservative parameters. Then water quality attainment programs other than waste load allocations in the Truckee Meadows Water Reclamation Facility (formerly known as the Reno/Sparks Wastewater Treatment Facility) NPDES permit are discussed. Finally, TMDLs/WLAs for TDS, TN and TP are discussed including a discussion of the proposed NPDES permit and attainability.
The major streams in Nevada have had TMDLs (Total Maximum Daily Loads) established for several years. While these TMDLs seem to satisfy the requirements of the Clean Water Act, they have contributed little to any watershed/waterbody assessment and restoration plans.
Rights:
Creative Commons - Commercial Use OK
Progress:
Ongoing
The major streams in Nevada have had TMDLs (Total Maximum Daily Loads) established for several years. However for some of these streams, the TMDLs are expressed as an average daily load based upon average long term flow conditions. These TMDLs have been dubbed as "bare bones" TMDLs due to the simplicity of the calculation and their lack of usefulness. While these TMDLs seem to satisfy the requirements of the Clean Water Act, they have contributed little to any watershed/waterbody assessment and restoration plans. These types of TMDLs do little to characterize the problems the TMDLs are intended to address. Without adequate characterizations, appropriate solutions cannot be identified and implemented.
For TMDLs to be more beneficial in the assessment and implementation process, TMDLs should reflect adequate water quality across flow conditions rather than at a single flow event such as average daily flow. Many states have begun to use load duration curves as a more robust method for setting TMDL targets. It is also a useful tool for better characterizing the pollutant problems over the entire flow regime. This paper discusses the steps taken to develop load duration curves and how they can be used in the assessment and TMDL process.
A duration curve is a graph representing the percentage of time during which the value of a given parameter (e.g. flow, load) is equaled or exceeded. Such a graph can be easily generated using a spreadsheet computer program. The following attachment presents the steps involved in developing a load duration curve.
