NR 111.03 Note Note: Examples of “operational measures” include more frequent rotation of traveling screens, use of a low pressure wash to remove fish prior to any high pressure spray to remove debris, maintaining adequate volume of water in a fish return, and debris minimization measures such as air sparging of intake screens or other measures taken to maintain the design intake velocity.

NR 111.03(37) (37) “River or stream” means a lotic, or free-flowing, system. “River or stream” includes a flow-through reservoir with a retention time of 7 days or less.

NR 111.03(38) (38) “Q7,10 flow” means the average minimum 7-day low streamflow which occurs once in 10 years.

NR 111.03(39) (39) “Social benefits” means the increase in social welfare, including physical and biological effects on the environment, that results from taking an action. “Social benefits” includes private benefits and those benefits not taken into consideration by private decision makers in the actions they choose to take, including effects occurring in the future. Benefits are generally treated one or more of 3 ways: A narrative containing a qualitative discussion of environmental effects, a quantified analysis expressed in physical or biological units, and a monetized benefits analysis in which dollar values are applied to quantified physical or biological units. The dollar values in a social benefits analysis are based on the principle of willingness-to-pay, which captures monetary benefits by measuring what individuals are willing to forgo in order to enjoy a particular benefit. Willingness-to-pay for nonuse values can be measured using benefits transfer or a stated preference survey.

NR 111.03(40) (40) “Social costs” means costs estimated from the viewpoint of society, rather than individual stakeholders, representing the total burden imposed on the economy and consisting of the sum of all opportunity costs incurred associated with taking actions. “Opportunity costs” means the value lost to society of all the goods and services that will not be produced and consumed as a facility complies with permit requirements, and society reallocates resources away from other production activities and toward minimizing adverse environmental impacts.

NR 111.03(41) (41) “Source water” means the water of the state from which the cooling water is withdrawn.

NR 111.03(42) (42) “Thermocline” means the middle layer of a thermally stratified lake or reservoir where there is a rapid decrease in temperatures.

NR 111.03(43) (43) “Threatened and endangered species” or “threatened or endangered species” means all species listed in s. NR 27.03.

NR 111.03(44) (44) “WPDES” means the Wisconsin pollutant discharge elimination system.

NR 111.03 History History: CR 19-105: cr. Register May 2020 No. 773, eff. 6-1-20; correction in (5) (b) (intro.), (16) made under s. 35.17, Stats., Register May 2020 No. 773.

subch. II of ch. NR 111 Subchapter II — Existing Facilities

NR 111.10 NR 111.10 Requirement to comply with BTA standards.

NR 111.10(1) (1) The owner or operator of an existing facility that meets the applicability criteria specified in s. NR 111.02 shall at a minimum do all of the following:

NR 111.10(1)(a) (a) Comply with the BTA standards for impingement mortality under s. NR 111.12 and entrainment under s. NR 111.13, including any measures to protect threatened and endangered species and federally designated critical habitat established under ss. NR 111.11 (2) (a) and 111.16.

NR 111.10(1)(b) (b) Submit and retain a permit application and supporting information as specified in s. NR 111.40 (2).

NR 111.10(1)(c) (c) Conduct compliance monitoring as specified in s. NR 111.14.

NR 111.10(1)(d) (d) Report information and data and keep records as specified in s. NR 111.15.

NR 111.10(2) (2) The requirements specified in sub. (1) shall be implemented through a WPDES permit for each facility subject to this subchapter. Based on the information submitted in the permit application, the department shall determine the requirements and conditions to include in the permit.

NR 111.10 History History: CR 19-105: cr. Register May 2020 No. 773, eff. 6-1-20.

NR 111.11 NR 111.11 Timing of BTA determinations.

NR 111.11(1) (1) Permit application submittal timeframes.

NR 111.11(1)(a) (a) Permits expiring after July 14, 2018. The owner or operator of an existing facility whose currently effective permit expires after July 14, 2018 shall submit to the department the information required in the applicable provisions of subch. V when applying for a subsequent permit.

NR 111.11(1)(b) (b) Permits expiring on or after October 14, 2014 and prior to or on July 14, 2018. The owner or operator of a facility whose currently effective permit expires on or after October 14, 2014, and prior to or on July 14, 2018, may request that the department establish an alternate schedule for the submission of the information required under subch. V when applying for a subsequent permit. If the owner or operator of the facility demonstrates that it cannot develop the required information by the applicable date for submission, the department shall establish an alternate schedule for submission of the required information.

NR 111.11(2) (2) Timeline for permit requirements.

NR 111.11(2)(a) (a) Reissuance of permits that expired after July 14, 2018 and permits that expired on or prior to July 14, 2018 that did not receive an alternate schedule. In the case of reissuance of any permit that expired after July 14, 2018 and in the case of reissuance of any permits expiring on or prior to July 14, 2018, that did not receive an alternate schedule under sub. (1) (b), the department shall include in the reissued permit, at a minimum, conditions to implement and ensure compliance with the impingement mortality standard specified in s. NR 111.12 and the entrainment standard specified in s. NR 111.13, including any measures to protect threatened and endangered species and federally designated critical habitat required by the department. In addition, the department shall include in the permit conditions, management practices, and operational measures necessary to ensure proper operation of any technology used to comply with these standards.

NR 111.11(2)(b) (b) Permits receiving an alternate schedule. In the case of any permit for which the department, under sub. (1) (b), has established an alternate schedule for submission of the information required under subch. V, the department may include permit conditions to ensure that, for any subsequent permit, the department has all the information required under subch. V necessary to establish impingement mortality and entrainment BTA requirements under ss. NR 111.12 and 111.13. In addition, the department shall establish interim BTA requirements in the permit based on the department’s best professional judgment on a site-specific basis.

NR 111.11(2)(c) (c) Permits issued after October 14, 2014 and applied for before October 14, 2014.

NR 111.11(2)(c)1. 1. In the case of any permit issued after October 14, 2014, and applied for before October 14, 2014, the department may include permit conditions to ensure that the department has all the information under subch. V necessary to establish impingement mortality and entrainment BTA requirements under ss. NR 111.12 and 111.13 for the subsequent permit. The department shall establish interim BTA requirements in the permit on a site-specific basis based on the department’s best professional judgment.

NR 111.11(2)(c)2. 2. In the case of permit proceedings that have begun prior to October 14, 2014, whenever the department has determined that the information already submitted by the owner or operator of the facility is sufficient, the department may proceed with a determination of BTA standards for impingement mortality and entrainment without requiring the owner or operator of the facility to submit the information required under subch. V. The department’s BTA determination may be based on some or all of the factors specified in s. NR 111.13 (2) and (3) and the BTA standards for impingement mortality specified in s. NR 111.12. In making the decision on whether to require additional information from the applicant, and what BTA requirements to include in the applicant’s permit for impingement mortality and site-specific entrainment, the department shall consider whether any of the information under subch. V is necessary.