EPA Issues Draft Technical Document on "Options for the Expression of Daily Loads in TMDLs" 

EPA issued a draft technical document for the development of total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) called "Options for the Expression of Daily Loads in TMDLs." 

In November 2006, EPA issued a memorandum entitled "Establishing TMDL Daily Loads in Light of the Decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in Friends of the Earth, Inc. v. EPA et. al., No. 05-5015 (April 25, 2006) and Implications for NPDES Permits" that clarified EPA's expectations concerning the appropriate time increment used to express TMDLs in light of the recent decision. (http://www.epa.gov/owow/tmdl/dailyloadsguidance.html.)

The new draft technical document expands on the earlier memorandum, and provides options for developing "daily load expressions" as a routine process in TMDLs calculated using allocation timeframes greater than daily (e.g., annual, monthly, seasonally). The document is written for TMDL practitioners who are familiar with the relevant technical approaches and regulatory requirements pertaining to TMDLs. http://www.epa.gov/owow/tmdl/draft_daily_loads_tech.pdf 

EPA Water Headlines, July 9, 2007