Comment Period Extended on Monongahela River Watershed Draft TMDLs

WV-DEP Release
29 August 2013

By request, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is extending the comment period through Sept. 16, 2013, on the draft Total Maximum Daily Loads in the Monongahela River Watershed.

A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) is a plan of action used to clean up streams not meeting state water quality standards. The federal Clean Water Act requires TMDL development for these impaired streams. The pollutants addressed in the Mon River Watershed TMDLs are acidity (pH), total iron, total manganese, total selenium, dissolved aluminum, chlorides and fecal coliform.

After consideration of public comments, the DEP will submit final draft TMDLs to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for approval.

The DEP invites public comment on all aspects of the draft TMDLs. The comment period began Aug. 2, 2013. Written comments may be submitted by U.S. Mail, electronic mail, and fax. The preferred form for comment submissions is e-mail or disk in order to expedite the review and response process. Written comments should be postmarked no later than Sept. 16, 2013. Comments should be sent to:

Steve Young, ATTN: Monongahela River TMDL Comments
West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection
601 57th Street
Charleston, WV 25304

E-mail: stephen.a.young@wv.gov

The TMDLs are available for review on the DEP’s webpage: http://www.dep.wv.gov/tmdl

CDs may also be obtained by calling Steve Young at (304) 926-0495, TTY 711 (304) 558-2751.