Total Maximum Daily Loads

What is a TMDL?

• A TMDL is the maximum amount of a given pollutant that a water body can absorb and still maintain its designated uses (e.g., drinking, fishing, swimming, shellfish harvesting).
• Under Section 303(d) of the federal Clean Water Act and the Florida Watershed Restoration Act, TMDLs must be developed for all waters that are not meeting their designated uses and, consequently, are defined as "impaired waters."

What do we expect to accomplish through the TMDL Program?

• Cleaner Water through more collaborative restoration efforts, with increased public involvement.
• Better Use of Science to understand how human activities affect water resources in specific locations and cumulatively throughout our watersheds.
• Better Protection for water bodies, as people give more attention to preventing and reducing human impacts on water resources.

How will TMDLs be developed and implemented?

In carrying out the TMDL program, the Department will:

• Rely as much as possible on existing local, state, and federal data, programs, plans, and projects.
• Solicit a broad range of stakeholder involvement.
• Work to report water resource data as accurately as possible.

Who will be affected and how?

Pollutants can enter a water body through point source discharges (generally from a specific facility) or nonpoint discharges (e.g., stormwater runoff, septic tanks). Government agencies, businesses, organizations, and individuals who contribute to these discharges will be asked to share the responsibility of attaining TMDLs through load allocations (the amount of a specified pollutant allotted for discharge) that are based on an established TMDL. Those potentially affected, and the actions they may be asked to take to help achieve a TMDL, are summarized below.

What are some of the benefits of the TMDL program?

• Produce better monitoring and more effective use of existing and new water quality information.
• Provide restoration and prevention targets and define responsibility for management actions.
• Build on and enhance existing restoration efforts of local governments, water management districts, established coalitions, the Department, and others.
• Focus funding and other resources on priority water resource problems.
• Trigger improvements in stormwater management by local governments, industry, agriculture, private developments, businesses, and others.
• Stimulate new approaches to land use design and development that minimize associated water resource problems.

How do I get additional information?

For information on establishing and implementing TMDLs, contact Jan Mandrup-Poulsen at (850) 245-8448. Additional information is on the Department's web page at www.dep.state.fl.us/water/watersheds/index.htm.

12/1/02

PHASES IN THE TMDL PROCESS

Phase 1

• DEP conducts initial water quality assessment in the basin, working with stakeholders to determine information required, accepted methods of data collection and analysis, and quality control/quality assurance requirements; develops basin planning list of potentially impaired waters, develops strategic monitoring plan for further data collection.

Phase 2

• DEP, in cooperation with local monitoring entities and WMDs, conducts strategic monitoring to meet priority information needs; conducts integrated monitoring assessment using EPA guidance; derives revised planning list and a draft verified list of impaired waters for public comment; secretary adopts Group-specific verified list of impaired waters by rule for submittal to EPA as 303(d) waters for which TMDLs will be established.

Reasonable Assurance: During first two phases of the cycle, stakeholders may submit documentation for review by DEP that existing or proposed pollution control mechanisms are sufficient to attain water quality standards in a water segment without establishing a TMDL. If DEP anticipates the water body's designated uses will be restored in the future and the water body will make reasonable progress towards attainment by the time the next 303(d) list is to be submitted to EPA, the water is not placed on the verified list for TMDL adoption (DEP documents the basis for its decision, noting proposed pollution control mechanisms and expected improvements in water quality).

Phase 3

• For water bodies or segments on the adopted verified list of impaired waters, DEP develops and adopts TMDLs and "reasonable and equitable load allocations...among point and nonpoint sources".
  Allocations are to be based on consideration of:
• Existing treatment levels and management practices;
• Differing impacts pollutant sources may have on water quality;
• The availability of treatment technologies, management practices, or other pollutant reduction measures;
• Environmental, economic, and technological feasibility of achieving the allocation;
• The cost benefit associated with achieving the allocation;
• Reasonable timeframes for implementation;
• Potential applicability of any moderating provisions such as variances, exemptions, and mixing zones;
• The extent to which non-attainment of water quality standards is caused by pollution sources outside of Florida, discharges that have ceased, or alterations to water bodies prior to the date of the FWRA.

Pursuant to a 1998 Consent Decree between EPA and Earth Justice, some TMDLs will be established outside the DEP basin rotation schedule.

Phase 4

• DEP invites parties potentially affected by TMDLs to participate in discussions on allocations and implementation strategies, to be included in a Basin Management Action Plan. (This discussion should include DOT, DACS, DCA, WMDs, local governments, environmental groups, as well as private sector). Where possible, DEP identifies local entity best suited to bring affected parties to the table.
• DEP works with WMDs, DACS, and other agencies to provide technical resources and assistance to stakeholder group and identify potential funding mechanisms available to achieve load reductions.
• Affected stakeholders attempt to reach consensus on detailed pollutant load allocations and how load reductions can be accomplished, leading to development of a Basin Management Action Plan (B-MAP) that includes:
• Allocations among the affected parties.
• A description of the load reduction activities to be undertaken.
• Timetables for project implementation and completion.
• Funding mechanisms that may be utilized.
• Any applicable signed agreements.
• Local ordinances defining actions to be taken or prohibited.
• Local water quality standards, permits, or load limitation agreements.
• Monitoring and follow-up measures.
• The B-MAP is submitted to DEP. DEP makes the B-MAP available for public review and comment.

Where possible, DEP should work with EPA and neighboring states to address pollutant sources outside of Florida (including atmospheric deposition) that contribute to the impairment of interstate waters. DEP should also work with local sources to meet the atmospheric deposition allocation.

Phase 5

• DEP takes the lead in coordinating the implementation of TMDLs through water quality protection programs, which may include:
• Permitting and other existing regulatory programs (e.g., the NPDES permitting program, environmental resource permitting, etc.);
• Non-regulatory and incentive-based programs, including BMPs, cost sharing, waste minimization, pollution prevention, and public education;
• Other water quality management and restoration activities (SWIM, watershed plans, etc.);
• Pollutant trading or other equitable economically based agreements;
• Public works including capital facilities; or
• Land acquisition.
• Implementation of allocations shall include consideration of a cost-effective approach coordinated between contributing point and nonpoint sources.
• DACS takes the lead in ensuring that allocations to agricultural nonpoint sources are met, and will work with farmers in the basin to develop BMPs and facilitate their implementation, including providing assistance in obtaining funding. The DACS Division of Forestry takes the lead in ensuring that the allocation to silviculture is met.
• Other regional and state agencies assist in implementation as provided in the B-MAP.
• Local entities implement local government NPDES stormwater programs, local restoration projects, private sector partnerships, BMPs, etc., as provided in the B-MAP.

Tracking, Monitoring, Evaluation

• Continued efforts to strengthen coordination between federal, state, regional, local monitoring; revisions to B-MAP where needed.

1/20/03
Watershed Planning and Coordination Section

FDEP Bureau of Watershed Management
Key Contacts

1/10/03

USEFUL WEBSITES FOR
TMDL Implementation in Florida

Federal
US Environmental Protection Agency

Total Maximum Daily Load Program: http://www.epa.gov/owow/TMDL
Water Quality Storage and Retrieval (STORET) Database: http://www.epa.gov/storet
Watershed Training: http://www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/wacademy/wtopps.html

US Geological Survey

National Water Quality Assessment Data Warehouse:
http://infotrek.er.usgs.gov/pls/nawqa/nawqa.home

State
Florida Department of Agriculture

Division of Forestry: http://www.fl-dof.com/
Office of Agricultural Water Policy: www.doacs.state.fl.us/environment.html

Florida Department of Environmental Protection

Bureau of Watershed Management: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/water/watersheds
Total Maximum Daily Load Program: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/water/tmdl
The 2004 305(b) Report: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/water/monitoring/index.htm
Water Quality Storage and Retrieval (STORET) Database: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/water/storet
Stormwater/Nonpoint Source Pollution: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/water/stormwater/npdes/index.htm

Regional
Water Management Districts

Northwest Florida Water Management District: http://www.state.fl.us/nwfwmd/
St. Johns River Water Management District: http://www.sjrwmd.com
Suwannee River Water Management District: http://www.srwmd.state.fl.us
Southwest Florida Water Management District: http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us
South Florida Water Management District: http://www.sfwmd.gov

National Estuary Programs

Charlotte Harbor: http://www.charlotteharbornep.com/
Indian River Lagoon: http://www.epa.gov/owow/estuaries/programs/irl.htm
Sarasota Bay: http://www.epa.gov/owow/estuaries/programs/sb.htm
Tampa Bay: http://www.tbep.org

State University System

Florida Center for Environmental Studies: http://www.ces.fau.edu/
Florida Lakewatch: http://lakewatch.ifas.ufl.edu/
University of Florida, School of Natural Resources: http://cnr.ifas.ufl.edu/

Other

Low Impact Development Center: http://lowimpactdevelopment.org/
Florida Stormwater Association: http://fasu.org/

1/10/02
Watershed Planning and Coordination