NR 105.03(22) (22) “Lowest observable adverse effect level” or “LOAEL” means the lowest tested concentration that caused an adverse effect in comparison with a control when all higher test concentrations caused the same effect.

NR 105.03(23) (23) “No observable adverse effect level” or “NOAEL” means the highest tested concentration that did not cause an adverse effect in comparison with a control when no lower test concentration caused an adverse effect.

NR 105.03(24) (24) “Octanol/water partition coefficient” or “KOW” means the ratio of the concentration of a substance in the octanol phase to its concentration in the aqueous phase in an equilibrated 2-phase octanol-water system. For log KOW, the log of the octanol-water partition coefficient is a base 10 logarithm.

NR 105.03(25) (25) “Secondary value” means a temporary value that represents the concentration of a substance which ensures adequate protection of sensitive species of aquatic life, wildlife or human health from the toxicity of that substance and will adequately protect the designated use of the surface water until database requirements are fulfilled to calculate a water quality criterion.

NR 105.03(26) (26) “Steady state” means that an equilibrium condition in the body burden of a substance in an organism has been achieved and is assumed when the rate of depuration of a substance matches its rate of uptake.

NR 105.03(27) (27) “Toxic substance” means a substance or mixture of substances which through sufficient exposure, or ingestion, inhalation or assimilation by an organism, either directly from the environment or indirectly by ingestion through the food chain, will cause death, disease, behavioral or immunological abnormalities, cancer, genetic mutations, or developmental or physiological malfunctions, including malfunctions in reproduction or physical deformations, in such organisms or their offspring.

NR 105.03(28) (28) “Trophic level” means a functional classification of taxa within a community that is based on feeding relationships (e.g., aquatic plants comprise the first trophic level, herbivores comprise the second, small fish comprise the third, predatory fish the fourth, etc.).

NR 105.03(29) (29) “Uptake” means the acquisition of a substance from the environment by an organism as a result of any active or passive process.

NR 105.03(30) (30) “Water quality parameter” means one of the indicators available for describing the distinctive quality of water including, but not limited to, hardness, pH, or temperature.

NR 105.03 History History: Cr. Register, February, 1989, No. 398, eff. 3-1-89; renum. (5) to (19) to be (11), (13) to (15), (17), (19) to (24), (26), (27) and (30), cr. (5) to (7), (9), (10), (12), (16), (18), (25), (28) and (29) and am. (8), (11) and (24), Register, August, 1997, No. 500, eff. 9-1-97.

NR 105.04 NR 105.04 Determination of adverse effects.

NR 105.04(1) (1) Substances may not be present in surface waters at concentrations which adversely affect public health or welfare, present or prospective uses of surface waters for public or private water supplies, or the protection or propagation of fish or other aquatic life or wild or domestic animal life.

NR 105.04(2) (2) A substance shall be deemed to have adverse effects on fish or other aquatic life if it exceeds any of the following more than once every 3 years:

NR 105.04(2)(a) (a) The acute toxicity criterion as specified in s. NR 105.05, or

NR 105.04(2)(b) (b) The chronic toxicity criterion as specified in s. NR 105.06.

NR 105.04(2)(c) (c) The acute and chronic toxicity criteria for ammonia nitrogen shall be determined on a case-by-case basis by the department for the appropriate aquatic life use category.

NR 105.04(3) (3) A substance shall be deemed to have adverse effects on wildlife if it exceeds the wildlife criterion as specified in s. NR 105.07.

NR 105.04(4) (4) A substance shall be deemed to have adverse effects on public health and welfare if it exceeds any of the following:

NR 105.04(4)(a) (a) The human threshold criterion as specified in s. NR 105.08; or

NR 105.04(4)(b) (b) The human cancer criterion as specified in s. NR 105.09; or

NR 105.04(4)(c) (c) The taste and odor criterion as specified in s. NR 102.14.

NR 105.04(4m) (4m) The presence of PFOA as defined in s. NR 102.03 (4e), as well as the presence of PFOS as defined in s. NR 102.03 (4m), shall be deemed to have adverse effects on public health and welfare if these substances exceed the public health significance levels in s. NR 102.04 (8) (d) 1.

NR 105.04(5) (5) A substance shall be deemed to have adverse effects or the reasonable potential to have adverse effects on aquatic life, wildlife or human health, if it exceeds a secondary value determined according to the procedures in ss. NR 105.05 to 105.08.

NR 105.04(6) (6) The determination of the criteria or secondary values for substances as calculated under ss. NR 105.05 to 105.09 shall be based upon the available scientific data base. References to be used in obtaining scientific data may include, but are not limited to:

NR 105.04(6)(a) (a) “Water Quality Criteria 1972”, EPA-R3-73-033, National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, United States Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1974.

NR 105.04(6)(b) (b) “Quality Criteria for Water”, EPA-440/9-76-003, United States Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., 1976.

NR 105.04(6)(c) (c) October 1980 and January 1985 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ambient water quality criteria documents.

NR 105.04(6)(d) (d) “Public Health Related Groundwater Standards: Summary of Scientific Support Documentation for NR 140.10”, Wisconsin Department of Health and Social Services, Division of Health, September 1985.

NR 105.04(6)(e) (e) “Public Health Related Groundwater Standards - 1986: Summary of Scientific Support Documentation for NR 140.10”, Wisconsin Department of Health and Social Services, Division of Health, June 1986.