United States Office of Water EPA-823-F-O1-O18
Environmental Protection 4305 May 2O01
Agency
Fact Sheet
State and Tribal Water Quality Standards:
Notice of EPA Approvals and Announcement of EPA
Internet Repository
Summary
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is publishing a Federal Register notice
listing state and tribal water quality standards EPA approved during the period beginning on
April 1, 1998 and ending on May 30, 2000. Additionally, this notice lists Indian Tribes that
obtained EPA approval to administer a "water quality standards program, as well as EPA actions
to promulgate or remove federal water quality standards during the same period. This is the last
such notice published in the Federal Register. EPA 's notice of approvals is being replaced by
an Internet repository of federal, state and tribal Clean Water Act-effective water quality
standards which can be found at EPA 's web site at http://www. epa.gov/ost/wqs. In addition,
each of EPA 's Regional offices will be maintaining hard copy repositories of effective state and
tribal water quality standards.
Background
In accordance with a requirement formerly contained at 40 CFR 131.21(d), EPA has
periodically published Federal Register notices listing Agency approvals of state and tribal
water quality standards to inform the public of recent Agency actions on water quality standards.
The most recent list was published October 7, 1998, reflecting EPA state and tribal submissions
of new or revised water quality standards approved by EPA from September 1, 1995 to March
31, 1998. Due to recent changes in EPA's water quality standards regulations (commonly
referred to as the Alaska Rule), this will be the last list of water quality standard approvals
published as a Federal Register notice.
The Alaska Rule (published in the Federal Register on April 27, 2000 and effective as of
May 30, 2000) requires that new and revised state and tribal water quality standards be approved
by EPA before they become effective for Clean Water Act purposes. Before the Alaska Rule,
water quality standards were Clean Water Act-effective once they were adopted by states and
authorized tribes, regardless of EPA approval. The new regulations also replace the requirement
for an annual publication of EPA standards approvals with the establishment of a repository of all
Clean Water Act-effective water quality standards (referred to as the Clean Water Act Water
Quality Standards Docket in the Alaska Rule preamble). Because this repository will contain the
complete and actual text of effective state and tribal water quality standards, EPA believes it will
be more informative than the periodic notices of EPA approvals.
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Today’s Action
In accordance with the previous water quality standards regulation provision contained at
40 CFR 13 1.21(d), EPA is publishing in the Federal Register a final notice listing new or
revised state and tribal water quality standards that EPA approved from April 1, 1998 to May 30,
2000.
For each EPA approval action, the notice provides a reference to the state or tribal
regulation containing the complete water quality standards; the date of state or tribal adoption
and/or effectiveness; the date of EPA approval; and a brief description of EPA’ s approval.
Additionally, this notice contains a list of tribes that have obtained EPA approval to administer a
water quality standards program. It also contains a iistmg of federal water quality standards
rulemakings.
The Federal Register notice does not include the following information:
• the actual text of the water quality standards;
• any exceptions or conditions that apply to EPA’s approval, such as portions of the state
and tribal standards submissions on which EPA did not take action or EPA disapproved;
• whether approvals were made subject to the results of consultation under the Endangered
Species Act;
• tribal application materials submitted to EPA for authorization to administer the water
quality standards program; or
• the text of the federal water quality standards rulemakings.
As part of today’s action, EPA is announcing the availability of an Internet repository for
all water quality standards effective under the Clean Water Act. The public may view the
effective federal, state and tribal water quality standards at httr://www.epa.gov/ostlwas . This
Internet repository will be updated periodically to include new and revised water quality
standards approved by EPA in the future. EPA Regional offices will continue to maintain hard
copies of the effective water quality standards of the states and authorized tribes within their
region. You may view the hard copy water quality standards documents by contacting the water
quality standards coordinator in the appropriate EPA Regional office (See “EPA Regional Water
Quality Standards Contacts” table in the Federal Register notice).
Additional Information
For additional information concerning this notice, contact Cara Lalley at EPA
Headquarters (1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, Mail Code 4305, Washington, DC 20460; (202) 260-
03 14; 1alley.cara( ei,a.gov) , or the water quality standards coordinator in the appropriate EPA
Regional office. You may also view this Federal Register notice on the Internet at:
http//www.epa.gov/OST/standards. The notice gives complete information on how to obtain
additional information.
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