United States
Environmental Protection
Office of the
Administrator
EPA-100-F-00-006
February 2002
Project XL: Louisville and
Jefferson County
Metropolitan f
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WHAT IS
PROJECT XL?
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SUMMARY OF
THE PROJECT
SUPERIOR
ENVIRONMENTAL
PERFORMANCE
FLEXIBILITY
Project XL, which stands for "excellence and Leadership," is a national
initiative that tests innovative ways of achieving better and more cost-
effective public health and environmental protection. The information and
lessons learned from Project XL are being used to assist EPA in
redesigning its current regulatory and policy-setting approaches through a
collaborative process. Project XL encourages local public sector and
community organizations to test new ideas that demonstrate community-
designed and directed strategies for achieving greater environmental
quality consistent with community economic goals. It also requires
substantial involvement by stakeholders, i.e. the people and organizations
affected by EPA's decisions. EPA hopes that these projects will provide
opportunities for everyone to think "outside the
box" of our current system and to find solutions to obstacles that limit
environmental performance.
Louisville and Jefferson County Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) have
signed Phase 1 of a two-phase agreement with the EPA. The Agreement
spells out MSD and EPA's intentions to achieve greater environmental
gains by redesigning MSD's waste water pre-treatment program,
developing performance measures, and collecting data to gauge
progress. Using the new information, MSD plans to move toward a more
holistic watershed protection strategy for the Chenoweth Run watershed,
whose current level of pollution is not meeting the State's water quality
standards for aquatic life. MSD will redesign the pretreatment program to
reduce key pollutant loadings and identify areas where resources can be
shifted to achieve greater environmental benefits. The Phase 1 Project
Agreement, EPA's 18th XL project, was signed on January 31, 2000.
MSD plans to reduce the amount of pollutants being released into the
watershed by using pollution prevention measures and changing
pretreatment program requirements. These changes will allow local
industry to save on operating costs and shift funds to nontraditional water
quality controls, such as reducing erosion and storm water runoff,
improving stream banks, and planting trees.
Under the current proposal, MSD is not requesting regulatory flexibility
from EPA. MSD's Phase I Agreement describes a process to collect
data, develop pretreatment performance measures, and to redesign and
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STAKEHOLDER
INVOLVEMENT
APPROACH TO
BE TESTED
CONTACTS
implement an improved pretreatment program . The proposal does outline
areas that may require regulatory flexibility once all data has been
collected. These areas include, but are not limited to: significant
noncompliance; monitoring and inspections; reporting; and the definition
of significant industrial user (SIU).
MSD held public meetings to request input on the project. These
meetings were publicized through local newspapers and/or personal
contacts. Comments on the project and EPA's response are on EPA's
website and will be attached to the Final Project Agreement.
Can MSD build a bridge between the pretreatment program and
watershed management programs and use new and existing mechanisms
to involve stakeholders and citizens in this project?
EPAHQ: Ted Cochin 202-566-2181
State Contacts: Allan Bryant 502-564-2225, x521
Project Sponsor: Sharon Worley 502-540-6464
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