Register August 2016 No. 728
Chapter NR 212
WASTE LOAD ALLOCATED WATER QUALITY RELATED EFFLUENT LIMITATIONS
Subchapter I — General
Subchapter II — Effluent Limitations for Biochemical Oxygen Demand Developed Through Wasteload Allocations for Specific Stream Segments
NR 212.06 Determination of the total maximum load.
NR 212.065 Modification of baseline loads.
NR 212.07 Allocation for reserve capacity.
NR 212.08 Allocation for margin of safety.
NR 212.09 Nonpoint source allocation.
NR 212.10 Point source allocations.
NR 212.11 Modifications and temporary reallocation of point source allocations.
NR 212.115 Transferable wasteload allocation.
NR 212.12 Instream aeration.
NR 212.13 Flow reregulation.
NR 212.40 Determination of lower Fox river water quality related effluent limitations.
NR 212.60 Determination of upper Wisconsin river water quality related effluent limitations.
NR 212.70 Determination of Peshtigo river water quality related effluent limitations.
Subchapter III — Development of Total Maximum Daily Loads and Effluent Limitations Developed Through Wasteload Allocations
NR 212.73 TMDL development requirements for impaired waters.
NR 212.74 Developing TMDLs for nearshore and open waters of the Great Lakes.
NR 212.75 Developing TMDLs for Great Lakes systems tributaries and connecting channels.
NR 212.76 Establishing WQBELs for publicly and privately owned wastewater facilities or treatment works.
NR 212.77 Public Participation.
NR 212.01
NR 212.01 Purpose. The purpose of this chapter is to establish the procedures, methodologies, and requirements to be used by the department for determining total maximum pollutant loadings and corresponding water quality related effluent limitations in accordance with ss.
283.13 (5),
283.31 (3) (d) 3., and
283.83 (1) (c), Stats. Such restrictions are established to attain and maintain the designated uses specified in the water quality standards appearing in
chs. NR 102,
103, and
104.
subch. II of ch. NR 212
Subchapter II — Effluent Limitations for Biochemical Oxygen Demand Developed Through Wasteload Allocations for Specific Stream Segments
NR 212.02(1)
(1) The provisions of this subchapter are applicable to water quality related effluent limitations for biochemical oxygen demand developed through wasteload allocations for the Lower Fox River from milepoints 0-40.0, Upper Wisconsin River from milepoints 171.9-341.4, and Peshtigo River from milepoints 0-12, and established under s.
283.13 (5), Stats.
NR 212.02(2)
(2) Nothing in this subchapter shall in any way inhibit, override, preclude, or prevent the department from issuing any permit with toxic effluent limits even if such permit limitations would result in more stringent limitations than provided in this subchapter.
NR 212.02 History
History: Cr.
Register, September, 1981, No. 309, eff. 10-1-81;
CR 15-085: r. and recr. (1), am. (2) Register August 2016 No. 728, eff. 9-1-16. NR 212.03
NR 212.03 Definitions. In addition to the definitions and abbreviations in
ss. NR 205.03 and
205.04, the following definitions are applicable to terms used in this subchapter:
NR 212.03(1)
(1) “Baseline load" means the reference load used in distributing all or part of the total maximum load among multiple point source dischargers to a water quality limited segment.
NR 212.03(2)
(2) “Categorical effluent limitation" means a point source effluent limitation for categories and classes of point sources other than publicly-owned treatment works achieved by application of the best practicable control technology currently available, the best conventional pollutant control technology, or the best available technology economically achievable as required by s.
283.13 (2), Stats.; or means a point source effluent limitation for a publicly-owned treatment works achieved by application of secondary treatment as required by s.
283.13 (4), Stats.
NR 212.03(3)
(3) “Conventional pollutant" means those pollutants identified in section 304 (a) (4) of the federal clean water act amendments of 1977. These pollutants are: biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), total suspended solids (TSS), pH, fecal coliform, and oil and grease.
NR 212.03(4)
(4) “Cost-effective analysis" means a systematic comparison of alternative means of meeting state water quality standards, effluent limitations or other treatment standards in order to identify the alternative which will minimize the total resources costs over the appropriate planning period. These resources costs include monetary costs and environmental as well as other nonmonetary costs.
NR 212.03(5)
(5) “Critical water quality conditions" means those water conditions upon which are based the most stringent water quality effluent limitations.
NR 212.03(5m)
(5m) “Designated management agency" means any agency designated in an areawide water quality management plan having responsibility for implementing specific plan recommendations.
NR 212.03(6)
(6) “Effluent limitation" whenever used without qualification means any restriction including schedules of compliance, established by the department, on quantities, rates and concentrations of chemical, physical, biological, and other constituents which are discharged from point sources into waters of this state.
NR 212.03(7)
(7) “Flow reregulation" means any practice with respect to the available surface waters in a basin that would alter the stream flows from those which would occur under existing regimes.
NR 212.03(8)
(8) “Infiltration" means water other than waste water that enters a sewerage system, including sewer service connections, from the ground through such sources as defective pipes, pipe joints, connections, or manholes. Infiltration does not include, and is distinguished from, inflow.
NR 212.03(9)
(9) “Inflow" means water other than waste water that enters a sewerage system, including sewer service connections, from sources such as roof leaders, cellar drains, yard drains, area drains, foundation drains, drains from springs and swampy areas, manhole covers, cross connections between storm sewers and sanitary sewers, catch basins, cooling towers, storm waters, surface runoff, street wash waters, or drainage. Inflow does not include, and is distinguished from, infiltration.
NR 212.03(10)
(10) “Instream aeration" means techniques which increase the dissolved oxygen content of a receiving water. Those techniques include, but are not limited to, mechanical aeration devices, diffuser systems, and turbine venting.
NR 212.03(11)
(11) “Margin of safety" means a portion of the total maximum load which accounts for the uncertainties concerning the relationship between effluent limitations and water quality or provide a greater assurance that the water quality standards will be met. This portion of the total maximum load is not available for allocation to point sources.
NR 212.03(12)
(12) “New point source", for the purposes of this subchapter, means a point source which commenced operation after January 1, 1980.
NR 212.03(13)
(13) “Nonpoint source" means a source of pollution resulting from a land management activity which contributes to runoff, seepage or percolation; and which is not defined as a point source.
NR 212.03(14)
(14) “Nonpoint source allocation" means that portion of the total maximum load distributed or apportioned to nonpoint sources and unavailable for allocation to point sources.
NR 212.03(14e)
(14e) “Off-machine production" means that quantity of paper or paperboard taken from a paper machine for further processing, conversion or sale exclusive of coating material applied after the paper machine.
NR 212.03(14q)
(14q) “Projected population change" means an increment of projected population change for a sewer service area pursuant to the appropriate areawide water quality management plan.
NR 212.03(15)
(15) “Point source allocation" means that portion of the total maximum load distributed or apportioned to point sources.
NR 212.03(16)
(16) “Publicly-owned point source" means any point source which is owned by a municipality.
NR 212.03(17)
(17) “Public sector growth" means an increase in waste water discharge from any person except industrial establishments, whose waste water is treated by a publicly-owned point source.
NR 212.03(18)
(18) “Reserve capacity" means that portion of the total maximum load reserved for allocation to new or expanding point sources.
NR 212.03(19)
(19) “Residential growth" means an increase in population.
NR 212.03(20)
(20) “Stream segment" means a portion of a stream including natural and artificial flowages.
NR 212.03(21)
(21) “Total maximum load" means the maximum quantity of a pollutant or pollutants that can be discharged into a water quality limited segment over a specified period of time to maintain the applicable water quality standards. The total maximum load is the sum of the point source allocation, the nonpoint source allocation, the reserve capacity and the margin of safety.
NR 212.03(22)
(22) “Wasteload allocation" means the allocation resulting from the process of distributing or apportioning the total maximum load to each individual point source discharge.
NR 212.03(23)
(23) “Water quality limited segment" means any area or portion of a stream which will not meet the established water quality standard with application of only categorical effluent limitations to all point sources.
NR 212.03(24)
(24) “Water quality related effluent limitation" means a point source effluent limitation designed to meet applicable water quality standards and which is more restrictive than the categorical effluent limitations. For the purposes of this subchapter, water quality related effluent limitations refer to those determined as a result of a wasteload allocation.
NR 212.03(26)
(26) “WPDES permit" means a Wisconsin pollutant discharge elimination system permit for the discharge of pollutants issued by the department under
ch. 283, Stats.
NR 212.03 History
History: Cr.
Register, September, 1981, No. 309, eff. 10-1-81; cr. (5m), (14e) and (14q),
Register, May, 1986, No. 365, eff. 6-1-86;
CR 15-085: am. (intro.), (3), (12), (22), (24) Register August 2016 No. 728, eff. 9-1-16. NR 212.05(1)
(1) Water quality related effluent limitations and total maximum loads shall be established whenever categorical effluent limits required under s.
283.13, Stats., are less stringent than necessary to achieve the designated water quality standard. Water quality related effluent limitations for point sources shall be specified in a WPDES permit.
NR 212.05(2)
(2) For the purposes of this chapter compliance with water quality related effluent limitations is recognized as compliance with s.
283.31 (4) (d), Stats.
NR 212.05(3)
(3) In no case shall the water quality related effluent limitations be less stringent than applicable categorical effluent limitations.
NR 212.05(4)
(4) Analysis of the samples shall be performed in accordance with
ch. NR 219. Laboratory test results for 5-day biochemical oxygen demand and nutrients submitted to the department under this chapter shall be performed by a laboratory certified or registered under
ch. NR 149.
NR 212.05 Note
Note:
The requirement in this section to submit data from a certified or registered laboratory is effective on August 28, 1986.
NR 212.05 History
History: Cr.
Register, September, 1981, No. 309, eff. 10-1-81; cr. (4),
Register, April, 1986, No. 364, eff. 8-28-86.
NR 212.06
NR 212.06 Determination of the total maximum load. NR 212.06(1)(1) When required by
s. NR 212.05, total maximum loads for stream segments shall be established based upon relevant water quality and quantity considerations including, but not limited to, streamflow, water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, suspended solids and hardness or other natural background conditions. The stream conditions to be used for calculating the total maximum load are specified in
s. NR 102.03 (3). Variable loadings may be established for a given stream segment to reflect the varying capacity of a stream to assimilate wastes under differing conditions when necessary supporting data is available.
NR 212.06(2)
(2) Total maximum loads established in
ss. NR 212.40 to
212.70 shall be reviewed at least once every 5 years and if necessary, recalculated by the department prior to permit reissuance, based on factors which shall include but not be limited to changes in stream conditions and advancements in stream modeling techniques, discharge characteristics, readjustment of modeling coefficients, utilization of new data, or baseline load revisions under
s. NR 212.065.
NR 212.06 History
History: Cr.
Register, September, 1981, No. 309, eff. 10-1-81; am. (2),
Register, May, 1986, No. 365, eff. 6-1-86.
