NATIONAL
ESTUARY
PROGRAM
TOTAL MAXIMUM DAILY LOAD
The Hillsborough River, a highly urbanized waterway located within the City of Tampa, is a significant tributary to Tampa Bay. Bacterial contamination (fecal
coliform) from human impacts such as sanitary sewer overflows, malfunctioning septic systems, the homeless population, pet waste, and agricultural drain-
age has impaired the river and threatened coastal swimming, fishing, and shellfish harvesting. As required by Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act, the
Tampa Bay Estuary Program (TBEP) and its many partners are working to improve the water quality on the lower Hillsborough River by developing an imple-
mentation plan to address state and Federal Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) requirements. TMDLs are measures that specify the maximum amount of pollutant a waterbody
can receive and still meet water quality standards.
THE NATIONAL ESTUARY PROGRAM IN ACTION
Tampa Bay Estuary Program
To implement the TMDL, the
TBEP collaborated with stake-
holders to develop a Basin Man-
agement Action Plan (BMAP)—
a watershed-based approach
to identify and address water
quality impairments in a major
drainage basin in Hillsborough
County.
The team reviewed existing wa-
ter quality information, devel-
oped an inventory of existing or
planned pollution reduction proj-
ects, identified new issues and
information gaps, and developed
comprehensive plans to address
sources of pollution. A microbial
source tracking program was
also developed to help assess
the causes of bacterial contami-
nation in different portions of the
river. The BMAP draft identified
three key management steps for
their potential to remove Hills-
borough River from the 303(d)
list of impaired waters for bacte-
rial contamination.
The three key actions in the draft
BMAP are:
• Installation of auxiliary battery-
powered generators at sanitary
sewer pump stations throughout
the City of Tampa to prevent
sewer overflows during power
outages
EFFECTIVE
EFFICIENT
ADAPTIVE
COLLABORATIVE
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CLEAN WATER ACT - TOTAL MAXIMUM DAILY LOAD (TMDL)
The goal of the Clean Water Act (CWA) is to restore and maintain the chemical,
physical, and biological integrity of our nation's waters. Under Section 303(d) of the
CWA, states, territories, and authorized tribes are required to develop lists of water-
body segments impaired by a pollutant and needing a Total Maximum Daily Load
(TMDL).
A TMDL specifies the maximum amount of a pollutant a waterbody can receive and
still meet water quality standards. A TMDL is made up of the sum of all point source
loads ("wasteload allocation") and load associated with non-point sources ("load al-
location"). National Estuary Programs develop strategies to help attain or maintain
water quality standards through mechanisms such as TMDLs.
• Comprehensive, integrated
stormwater treatment planning
and implementation
• Enhanced educational pro-
gramming to increase public
awareness of the proper dispos-
al of pet waste
TBEP has already made signifi-
cant gains in awareness efforts
to educate the community about
improperly disposed-of pet
waste and its effect on water
quality. During a single pilot
project, they were able to effect
a 46 percent decrease in waste
piles in one neighborhood—and
efforts are now under way
throughout the watershed.
The team—including the Envi-
ronmental Protection Commis-
sion of Hillsborough County, city
and county public works, plan-
ning and water departments,
health departments, the South-
west Florida Water Management
District, private industries, sci-
entists, and citizens—will sub-
mit its draft BMAP to the Florida
Department of Environmental
Protection in summer 2009.
Visit www.tbep.org to learn
more about this and other TBEP
efforts.
EPA's National Estuary Program
(NEP) is a unique and successful
coastal watershed-based program
established in 1987 under the
Clean Water Act Amendments.
The NEP involves the public and
collaborates with partners to pro-
tect, restore, and maintain the wa-
ter quality and ecological integrity
of 28 estuaries of national signifi-
cance located in 18 coastal states
and Puerto Rico.
For more information about the
NEP go to www.epa.gov/owow/
estuaries.
The NEP: Implementing the Clean Water Act in ways that are Effective, Efficient, Adaptive, and Collaborative.
EPA-842F09001
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