Environmental Management Systems

Lecture-8_10.09.2023
Environmental Management Systems –
EEZG515/SSTM ZG 527

Smita Raghuvanshi
BITS Pilani
Pilani Campus Professor, Chemical Engineering
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Contents

• Question Papers
• Water Quality Laws
• TMDL Study

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

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Environmental Legislation
Prevention of water pollution in USA
• Summary of clean water regulation
– The principal law governing pollution of the nation’s surface
waters is Clean Water Act

– Originally enacted in 1948, it was totally revised by amendments

in 1972 that gave the Act its current shape

– The 1972 legislation spelled out ambitious programs for water

quality improvement
• which has been expanded and are still being
implemented by industries and municipalities

– Purpose of Clean Water Act (CWA) is to “restore and maintain

the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the nation’s
waters”
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Environmental Legislation
Prevention of water pollution in USA
• The Act requires states to develop

– water quality standards for each body of water

– conduct assessments to determine whether standards are being
met
– identify sources of water pollution
– implement programs to control pollution
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Surface Water Runoff

• This type of pollution is usually called “nonpoint source”
pollution
– because it comes from a variety of sources rather than from a
single source of discharge

• Indeed, many everyday activities and traditional land use

practices contribute to nonpoint source pollution
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Storm Water Discharge

• Section 402 of the Clean Water Act directs the EPA
to establish a storm water discharge permit program
– to govern municipal and industrial storm water discharges
into waters
• Facilities subjects to the storm water requirements may
apply for an individual group, or general permit,
– depending on a facility’s specific circumstances
• Publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) collect
wastewater from homes, commercial buildings, and
industrial facilities
– transport it via a series of pipes, known as a collection system, to
the treatment plant
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Storm Water Discharge

• The POTW removes harmful organisms and other
contaminants from the sewage
– so it can be discharged safely into the receiving stream
• Generally, POTWs are designed to treat domestic
sewage only
• However, POTWs also receive wastewater from
industrial (non-domestic) users
• POTWs are required to implement an industrial
pretreatment program (IPP)
– if they receive wastewater from an identified industry and/or in
volumes that exceed regulatory thresholds
– Over the last twenty five years IPPs have been largely
responsible for the significant decrease in potentially toxic and
hazardous materials being discharged by POTWs
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Storm Water Discharge

• Thus, EPA and the states aggressively monitor and
enforce the industrial pretreatment requirements
– Violations are subject to the same CWA penalties

• The General Pretreatment Regulations establish

responsibilities of Federal, State, and local government
– industry and the public to implement Pretreatment Standards to
control pollutants from the industrial users
– which may pass through or interfere with POTW treatment
processes or which may contaminate sewage sludge
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Spill Prevention and Notification

• Section 311 of the CWA establishes notification
requirements relating to the discharge or spilling of oil or
hazardous substances into the waters of the United
States
• Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC)
Plans are
– a cornerstone of EPA's strategy to prevent oil spills from
reaching nation's waters
– Unlike oil spill contingency plans that typically address spill
cleanup measures after a spill has occurred.
• SPCC Plans ensure that facilities put in place
containment and other countermeasures that would
prevent oil spills that could reach navigable waters
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Ground Water Protection and Control

• Importance of ground water as a source of drinking
water

• Cost and difficulty of cleaning it up

• Best way to guarantee continued supplies of clean

ground water is to prevent contamination

• Underground Injection Control (UIC) program of the Safe

Drinking Water Act (SDWA) takes charge of the under
ground water quality
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Water quality regulations

• The Clean Water Act (CWA) allows states to set their
own water quality standards
– requires that all beneficial uses and their protective criteria meet
the goals of the Act
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Establishment of Water Quality Standards

• State water quality standards are established through a
three-step process

– First, the state must designate the beneficial use for

each body of water within the state
• Fishing, recreation, and public water supply are
typical beneficial uses
– Once the designated are set, the state must then
specify water quality criteria that will protect those
designated uses
– After a state develops its water quality protection
program, it is sent to EPA for approval
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Water Quality Standards

• Water Quality Standards are the foundation of the water
quality-based pollution control program mandated by the
Clean Water Act

• Water Quality Standards define the goals for a water

body by
– designating its uses
– setting criteria to protect those uses
– establishing provisions to protect water bodies from
pollutants
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• A point source of pollution is a single identifiable source

of water pollution

• Water pollution from factories, power plants, municipal

sewage treatment plants and some farms are examples
of point sources pollution

• US EPA defines point source pollution as any

contaminant that enters the environment from an easily
identified and confined place
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• While Nonpoint-source pollution is the opposite

of point-source pollution, with pollutants released in a
wide area

• Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution, unlike pollution from

industrial and sewage treatment plants, comes from
many diffuse sources

• NPS pollution is caused by rainfall or snowmelt moving

over and through the ground. As the runoff moves, it
picks up and carries away natural and human - made
pollutants, finally depositing them into lakes, rivers,
wetlands, coastal waters and ground waters.
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Water Quality Standards

• Water quality standards may serve as the basis not only
for imposing effluent limitations on point source
dischargers
– but also for establishing controls for nonpoint sources
under water quality management plans

– The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines point

source pollution as “any single identifiable source of pollution
from which pollutants are discharged, such as a pipe, ditch, ship
or factory smokestack” (Hill, 1997)

– Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is pollution resulting from

many diffuse sources, in direct contrast to point source
pollution which results from a single source
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Control of Non-Point Sources

• If water quality standards are to be met, non-point source
pollution must be controlled

• CWA amended the Act and include:

– which directs states to develop management programs to control non
point sources of pollution

• Section 319 requires states to prepare assessment reports

to identify
– non point source pollution problem areas
– categories of non point source pollution
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Control of Non-Point Sources

• Section 319 also directs states to identify Best
Management Practices (BMPs)

– It can be used to control non point source pollution

– Develop management programs to document how and when the

states will address their non point management concerns
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Best Management Practices (BMPs)

• BMPs are method and practices for preventing or reducing
nonpoint source pollution to the level required to achieve
water quality standards

• BMPs are identified in Section 319 of the Clean Water Act

as the primary mechanism to enable nonpoint sources to
achieve water quality standards
• BMPs as:
– “Methods, measures, or practices selected by an agency
to meet its nonpoint source control need”

• BMPs can be applied before, during, and other pollution-

producing activities to reduce the introduction of pollutants
into receiving waters
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Anti degradation
• Anti degradation refers to policies and procedures
– designed to prevent or minimize the deterioration of water
quality below existing levels

• EPA created the anti degradation policy in response to

the CWA directive to
– “restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and
biological integrity of the nation’s water”
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Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) Processes

• TMDL process is an important part of the water-quality
based approach to pollution control designed by EPA

• TMDL is the total amount of particular pollutants or

parameters such as temperature
– that sources can discharge into a receiving stream without
violating water quality standards

• Process of calculating TMDL is essentially that of determining

the capacity of each stream segment to assimilate pollutant
discharges

• TMDL process establishes allowable loadings from the

contributing point and non point sources to given water body
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Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) Processes

• It defines how much pollution reduction is necessary to
achieve water quality standards

• TMDL =
– non point source pollution and background +
– point source waste load allocation +
– margin of safety
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Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) Processes

• TMDL process is designed to provide the following
information

– Inventory of all sources of a designated pollutant

– An analysis of why pollution control are ineffective
– A plan to monitor and evaluate progress toward achieving the
water quality standards
– A list of pollution control strategies for reducing sources of the
pollutant
– A prediction of the amount of time needed to restore and protect
water quality
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Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) Processes

• What kind of data is collected ?
• What kind of calculations are made ?
– Data collected is from sampling sites of rivers, lakes (receiving
water bodies)
– It collects all kind of data related to water analysis which include:
• pH
• DO
• BOD
• COD
• Alkalinity
• Turbidity
• Total hardness
– Include data from site depth, etc
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Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) Processes

• What should be the units of TMDL?
– Should it be tonnes or kgs….
– Or in terms of concentration

– Was found that ultimately it is related to what contributes to toxicity in

water…

– It says that waters shall be free from substances attributable to

municipal, industrial, agricultural, or other discharges in
concentrations, which are toxic or harmful to humans, animals, or
aquatic life.
– In some cases it is also expressed as mass loadings/per day

• Then found that acc to US EPA, 40 CFR regulations; TMDLs

can be expressed in terms of ... mass per time, toxicity, or
other appropriate measure.
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The eight minimum regulatory requirements for

TMDLs are as follows:
• TMDLs must be designed to meet applicable water quality
standards.

• TMDLs must include load allocations (LA) and waste load

allocations (WLA). A load allocation is an allowable pollutant
load from non-point sources. A WLA is an allowable
pollutant load from point sources. The combined LA and
WLA must not result in violations of the applicable water
quality standards.

• TMDLs must consider the impacts of background (natural)

pollutant contributions.

• TMDLs must consider critical environmental conditions.

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• TMDLs must consider seasonal environmental

variations.

• TMDLs must include a margin of safety.

• TMDLs must include public participation.

• TMDLs must include reasonable assurance that the

reduction goals set forth in the TMDL can be achieved
and the applicable water quality standard can be met.
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TMDL Mercury Case Study

• Both volcanoes and forest fires send mercury into the
atmosphere.

• Human activities, however, are responsible for much of

the mercury that is released into the environment

• Burning of coal, oil and wood as fuel can cause mercury

to become airborne, as can burning wastes that contain
mercury
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TMDL Study
• Why the particular states have been chosen for TMDL
calculations?

• What are the pollutant of concern?

• How is mercury transported to soil and affect ground

water?

• What are the assumptions in the TMDL development?

• How is TMDL methodology developed in the given

study?
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• What is the final TMDL target values ?

• How are load allocations and waste load allocations

estimated?

• How is MoS defined ?

• What are the implementation aspect covered?

• How do we consider the public participation ?

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The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)

• The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) was initially
enacted by congress in 1974

• Major amendments were made in 1986, and the Act was

reauthorized and amended again in 1996

• Under SDWA, EPA sets standards for drinking water

quality and oversees
– the states, localities, and water suppliers who implement those
standards
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The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)

• SDWA
– Authorizes EPA to set standards for maximum levels
of contaminants in drinking water

– Regulate the underground disposal of wastes in wells

– Designate areas that rely on a single aquifer for their

water supply

– Establish a nationwide program to encourage the

states to develop programs to protect public water
supply wells (i.e., well head protection programs)
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Applicability of SDWA
• Public Water Systems
– According to its terms, the requirements of the SDWA
apply to public water systems
– Act defines a “public water systems” as a system
providing piped water to the public for “human
consumption”
– if such system has at least “15 service connections or
regularly serves at least 25 individuals”
• One court decision has concluded that water for human
consumption includes not only water that is used for
drinking
– but also water that is used for bathing and showering, cooking
and dish-washing, and maintaining oral hygiene
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Applicability of SDWA
• Public Water Systems
• Any industrial facility that provides water for human
consumption should ensure that they comply with the
detailed requirements of the Act
– because failure comply can subject the facility to both regulatory
penalties and civil liability

• Public Water System Supervision (PWSS) program

– EPA implements and enforces drinking water standards to
protect public health
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Primary Drinking Water Standards

• National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWRs or
primary standards)
– are legally enforceable standards that apply to public water
systems

• Primary standards protect public health

– by limiting the levels of contaminants in drinking water

• Maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) are established for

– a variety or organic and inorganic chemicals, turbidity,
coliform bacteria, and various measures of radioactivity
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Primary Drinking Water Standards

• These regulations also

– Specify monitoring and analytical requirements

– Reporting
– Public notification
– and Record-keeping
– Special rules relating to filtration, disinfection, and the control of
lead and copper
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Secondary Drinking Water Standards

• A National Secondary Drinking Water Regulation
(NSDWR or secondary standard)
– a non-enforceable guideline regarding contaminants that may
cause cosmetic effects or aesthetic effects (such as taste, odor,
or color) in drinking water

• EPA recommends secondary standards to water

systems but does not require systems to comply

• However, states may choose to adopt them as

enforceable standards
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Case study-TMDL
• Objectives: To to highlight some of the major findings on
water quality of lakes and streams chosen for the Total
Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) project. Sampling began in
late May and ended in early December

• Refer the study & see excel files for data sources:
parameters, units

• Then see certain reports

• That means if the parameters are exceeding the prescribed

values, then certainly TMDL is on higher side