E.P.A. Holds Additional Public Hearings on Suggested Water Quality Requirements

WASHINGTON - The E.P.A. (EPA) is holding 3 additional public hearings in April to gain more input from Floridians on the agency's suggested Florida water quality standards. The agency held 3 public hearings in Florida in February on the suggested standards. The requirements will protect people's health, aquatic life and the long-term recreational uses of Florida's waters, which are a critical part of the state's economy.

E.P.A. is accepting public comments on the suggested requirements through April 28, and is holding public hearings on the suggested rule in 3 additional Florida cities to obtain input and comments on the direction of EPA's rulemaking. The additional hearings are scheduled for:

April 13, 2010: Fort Myers
Harborside Event Center
1375 Monroe Street, Fort Myers, Fla. 33901

twelve p.m. to four p.m.

six p.m. to nine p.m.

April 14, 2010: Tampa
Hilton Tampa Airport
2225 North Lois Avenue, Tampa, Fla. 33607

twelve p.m. to four p.m.

six p.m. to nine p.m.

April 15, 2010: Jacksonville
Clarion Hotel Airport Conference Center
2101 Dixie Clipper Drive, Jacksonville, Fla. 32218

one p.m. to five p.m.

seven p.m. to ten p.m.

In 2009, E.P.A. entered into a consent decree with the Florida Wildlife Federation to propose limits to this pollution. The suggested action, released for public review and developed in collaboration with the state, would set a series of numeric limits on the amount of phosphorus and nitrogen, also known as "nutrients," that would be allowed in Florida's lakes, rivers, streams, springs and canals.

Nutrient pollution can damage drinking water sources; increase exposure to harmful algal blooms, which are made of toxic microbes that can cause damage to the nervous system or even death; and form byproducts in drinking water from disinfection chemicals, some of which have been linked with serious human illnesses like bladder cancer. Phosphorus and nitrogen pollution come from stormwater runoff, municipal wastewater treatment, fertilization of crops and livestock manure. Nutrient problems can happen locally or much further downstream, leading to degraded lakes, reservoirs, and estuaries, and to hypoxic "dead" zones where aquatic life can no longer survive. High amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus in surface water result in harmful algal blooms, dead fish, reduced spawning grounds and nursery habitats for fish.

The suggested action also introduces and looks for review on a new adaptive management process for setting requirements in a manner that drives water quality enhancements in already impaired waters. The suggested new regulatory provision, called restoration standards, would be specific to nutrients in the state of Florida.

More on the suggested rule and public hearings:
http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/standards/rules/florida/

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