View Rule

Section 425 of the 2016 Consolidated Appropriations Act (Section 425) requires EPA to work with the Great Lakes states (Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York) to create public notice requirements for combined sewer overflow (CSO) discharges to the Great Lakes. This rule would implement that requirement for CSO permittees. Section 425 requires (1) initial notification of CSO events, (2) follow-up notice, and (3) annual publication of a list of entities providing follow-up notice. At a minimum, the contents of the initial notice are to include the dates and times of the applicable discharge; the volume of the discharge; and a description of any public access areas impacted by the discharge. Follow-up notice requirements must include a description of each applicable discharge; the cause of the discharge; and plans to prevent a reoccurrence of a CSO discharge to the Great Lakes Basin. The minimum content requirements are to be consistent for all affected states. Section 425 provides that the notice and publication requirements are to be implemented within two years. However, EPA may extend the implementation deadline for individual communities if the community needs additional time to comply in order to avoid undo economic hardship. EPA worked with Great Lakes states' state environmental agencies to identify and evaluate options for implementing section 425. EPA also met with various stakeholder groups that represent municipalities, industry practitioners, and environmental organizations to hear their perspectives on implementing section 425 at a public listening session on September 14, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. On January 13, 2017, EPA published a proposed rule that would establish public notification requirements for CSOs to the Great Lakes Basin. The proposed rule reflected input from Great Lakes states and the proposed requirements were modeled after various existing requirements for public notification in the different states' programs. The public comment period on the proposed rule closed March 14, 2017. EPA is currently conducting outreach to the states and reviewing public comments to develop the final rule.