Transcript www.tceq.state.tx.us

Recreational Uses & Criteria
Chapter 307.7
2000 TSWQS
• Changed the indicator bacteria from
fecal coliform to E. coli in freshwater
and Enterococci in saltwater.
• Fecal coliform
• Alternative instream indicator
• Oyster waters
• Uses & criteria
• Swimming advisory programs
Contact Recreation
(2000 TSWQS)
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Recreational activities involving a significant risk of ingestion of water
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wading by children
swimming
water skiing
diving
surfing
Risk levels
• Freshwater: 8 illnesses per 1000 swimmers
• Saltwater: 19 illnesses per 1000 swimmers
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Geometric means
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Single sample number
• Freshwater (E. coli): 126 per 100 ml
• Saltwater (Enterococci): 35 per 100 ml
• Freshwater: 394 per 100 ml (moderate use)
• Saltwater: 89 per 100 ml (designated bathing beach)
Noncontact Recreation
(2000 TSWQS)
• Aquatic recreational pursuits not involving a
significant risk of water ingestion
• fishing
• commercial and recreational boating
• limited body contact incidental to shoreline activity.
• Risk levels
• Freshwater: 14 illnesses per 1000 swimmers
• Saltwater: 27 illnesses per 1000 swimmers
• Geometric means
• Freshwater (E. coli): 605 per 100 ml
• Saltwater (Enterococci): 168 per 100 ml
2000 TSWQS Uses & Criteria
• Unclassified water bodies
• Presumed contact recreation use
• Shift in EPA regulation to require UAAs for uses less than primary
contact recreation
• Public concern to protect for primary contact recreation
• 1986 lawsuit against EPA on 1984 TSWQS
• Complaint: Some of the water bodies with relatively low standards for
recreational use were not addressed by an appropriate UAA.
• 1988 TSWQS revisions
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• Applied fecal coliform criteria for contact recreation to unclassified
waters.
Classified water bodies (Appendix A)
• 8 segments – noncontact recreation use
• 7 of the 8 segments – contact recreation criteria
• 2 segments (1006 & 1007)
• No designated recreation use
• Noncontact recreation criteria
Topics Discussed during 2000 revisions
• Subcategories of uses
• General recreation
• streams & rivers
• Assess when conditions are suitable
• High-use recreation
• Freshwater lakes, reservoirs, saltwater bays, Gulf of Mexico &
other kinds of water bodies may be individually designated in
Appendix A
• Assess at all conditions
• Numerous comments and concerns received
• Deleted subcategories of contact recreation & the
proposal to assess contact recreation only when
conditions are suitable
Background Information
• Ambient Water Quality Criteria for Bacteria 1986
• Draft Implementation Guidance-Nov. 2003
• Beach Act
• Final Rule: WQS for Coastal & Great Lakes
Recreational Waters
• EPA Coastal Recreation Waters Fact Sheets
• Draft Frequently Asked Questions - inland
waters
EPA Region 6 Options for
Establishing Bacteria Criteria
• Revise single sample (SS) criteria for saltwater
• Update the standard deviation used in deriving SS
criteria
• Consider the adoption of SS criteria based on the
level of use
• Consider other risk levels for the criteria to protect
recreation uses
• Conduct use attainability analyses
• Use of the SS criteria for specific purposes rather
than use attainment decisions
• Limit application of bacteriological criteria in waters
affected solely by non-human sources
Options under Evaluation for
TCEQ WQS Revisions
Options to Consider for
Recreational Uses and Criteria
• Enterococci freshwater criteria: elevated non-tidal
salinity in West Texas streams.
• Revise saltwater single sample criteria for enterococci
• Leave fecal coliform as alternative indicator in
effluent limits
• Single sample numbers: remove “should not exceed”
and replace with “is”
• Clarification- enterococci in oyster waters is the
recreational indicator
• Recreational UAA guidance in Implementation
Procedures
Options under Evaluation
• Broader range of recreational uses
• Freshwater and saltwater risk levels
• Non-human sources of bacteria
• Options for Presumptions (Freshwater)
• Update the freshwater single sample number