Chapter 173-201A WAC (variances)

The Department of Ecology is starting the rulemaking process to amend Chapter 173-201A WAC Water Quality Standards for Surface Waters of the State of Washington.

The rulemaking would adopt one or more variances to the water quality standards for organic compounds known as polychlorinated biphenyls or PCBs. We are considering the variances in response to five applications received from point source dischargers to the Spokane River.

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View additional languages: Español | 中文 | Tiếng Việt | 한국어 | русский

Rulemaking timeline

Timeline

Date (subject to change)	Activity
June 12, 2019	Announce rulemaking (file the CR-101 form)
June 12 - July 11, 2019	Comment period on the scope of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
Fall/Winter 2019	Develop initial rule language, stakeholder meetings
Nov. 14, 2019	Workshop on PCB variances for the Spokane River
April 8 and 23, 2020	Open house on PCB Variances - morning and evening webinar
June 10 - July 25, 2020	Informal formal public comment period with preliminary draft rule language
Unable to continue until resolved in court	Propose rule (file the CR-102 form) Start formal public comment period with draft rule language
TBD	Review public comments and prepare adoption packet
TBD	Adopt rule (file the CR-103 form)
31 days after filing	State rule effective
After effective date	Submit state-adopted rule to EPA for approval

Announcement phase (CR-101)

Filing date:
June 12, 2019

Announcement documents

Announcement Notice – CR-101 form

Rule development phase

June 2019 - Winter 2019/2020

Public input & involvement

Informal comment period on preliminary draft rule June 10 - July 25, 2020

Because of the uncertainty created by EPA's rollback of the criteria, we are unable to move forward and cannot officially release the formal draft rule language until the court case is resolved.

We held an informal comment period on the following preliminary draft rule documents from June 10 to July 25, 2020:

View public comments

While your feedback will help us develop rule language and supporting documents, we will not formally respond to comments received.

April 8 and 23, 2020: Open house webinar on PCB Variances for the Spokane River

We held two online webinars to provide general information about PCBs and variances, and preliminary information on how we evaluated the variance applications. We also discussed what to expect during the formal public comment period.

Our goal of these webinars was to provide the public with information that will assist with the upcoming review of the draft rule.

Nov. 14, 2019: Workshop on PCB Variances for the Spokane River

We held a one day public workshop to share information on the potential use of PCB variances for five Spokane River dischargers. This workshop was held in-person in Spokane Valley, WA, and online via webinar.

June 12 to July 11, 2019:

We held a public comment period on the scope of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

As part of the formal EIS process, a 21-day scoping notice is held to announce that we are starting to develop a draft EIS and to invite any suggestions on what the scope of the draft EIS should include. On June 28, 2019 we extended the comment period to 30 days. The comment period ended on July 11, 2019.

We asked for comments about alternatives, mitigation measures, adverse impacts, and any other considerations we should include as we develop the EIS. We do not yet have a draft rule; once it is complete we will release it for public comment during the rule proposal phase before it is finalized.
See our blog for more information

This rulemaking is on hold until resolution of EPA action.

Additional languages

Español (Spanish)

El Departamento de Ecología está comenzando el proceso reglamentario para modificar el Capítulo 173-201A WAC Estándares para la Calidad del Agua para Aguas Superficiales del Estado de Washington (Water Quality Standards for Surface Waters of the State of Washington).

El proceso reglamentario adoptaría una o más variantes a los estándares de la calidad del agua para compuestos orgánicos conocidos como policlorobifenilos o PCBs. Ecología está considerando las variantes en respuesta a cinco aplicaciones recibidas de descargadores con fuentes puntuales en el Río Spokane.

Para obtener más información, por favor llame a Marla Koberstein al 360-628-6376 y solicite un intérprete

中文 (Chinese)

華盛頓州生態管理署正開始進行華盛頓州行政法令173-201A章華盛頓州地面水水質標準(Water Quality Standards for Surface Waters of the State of Washington)修訂作業。

本法令修訂作業將為一種名為多氯聯苯有機化合物制定一種或數種特定水質標準。生態管理署是為了本署所收到Spokane河五個定點排放源排放許可申請而考慮制定特定水質標準。

若需更多訊息或翻譯員服務, 請聯絡 Marla Koberstein 電話: 360-628-6376。

Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)

Bộ Môi Sinh đang bắt đầu quy trình làm luật để bổ sung Chương 173-201A WAC: Tiêu Chuẩn Chất Lượng Nước Bề Mặt Của Bang Washington (Water Quality Standards for Surface Waters of the State of Washington).

Quy trình này sẽ phê chuẩn một hoặc nhiều yếu tố đối với tiêu chuẩn chất lượng nước cho các hợp chất hữu cơ gọi là biphenyls polychlorin hoặc PCBs. Bộ Môi Sinh đang xem xét các yếu tố để xét duyệt cho năm đơn xin xả thải xuống sông Spokane.

Để biết thêm thông tin hoặc cần thông dịch viên, xin liên hệ Marla Koberstein tại số 360-628-6376.

한국어 (Korean)

와싱턴주 환경부는 Chapter 173-201A WAC지표수 수질환경 규준법 개정을 시작했다. (Water Quality Standards for Surface Waters of the State of Washington).

PCBs 혹은 polychlorinated biphenyls 이라는 유기 유해물질의 수질환경 규준법을 개정중이다. 이개정은 Spokane 강으로 흘러 들어가는 5개의 점오염원 방류 허가신청서에 기인한것이다.
자세한 사항은Marla Koberstein 360-628-6376 에게 연락하거나 통역신청할것.

Contact information

Marla Koberstein
Rulemaking Lead
marla.koberstein@ecy.wa.gov
(360) 407-6413

Stay informed

Accessibility

To request ADA accommodation for disabilities, or printed materials in a format for the visually impaired, contact Ecology's ADA Coordinator by email at ecyadacoordinator@ecy.wa.gov, or call 360-407-6831. People with impaired hearing may call Washington Relay Service at 711. People with speech disability may call TTY at 877-833-6341.

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