On May 5, 2015, the Wisconsin Department of Administration (WDOA) released its Preliminary Determination that compliance with the Wisconsin water quality-based effluent limitations (WQBEL) for phosphorus will cause “substantial and widespread adverse social and economic impacts on a statewide basis”, thus providing the foundation for availability of a statewide multi-discharger variance (MDV).
What brought this on?
In posts in 2011 and 2013, I described Wisconsin’s phosphorus reduction rule, including its compliance options of water quality trading and adaptive management.Recognizing that these innovative compliance alternatives to traditional construction are not viable for all dischargers, in 2014 Wisconsin enacted legislation to authorize a statewide MDV for those dischargers that cannot meet the WQBEL for phosphorus without a major facility upgrade. Under the MDV, a point source will have more time to meet its phosphorus limitations. However, during the extended period, they will be obligated to either implement nonpoint source reductions or to provide funding to counties to implement existing, but seriously underfunded, nonpoint source reduction programs. The expectation is that most permittees will choose to fund their local county. At $50/pound for the difference between the actual pounds of phosphorus discharged and the target value of 0.2 mg/L, we are talking about real money.
The MDV legislation required the WDOA, in consultation with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR), to conduct a study to:
“determine whether attaining the water quality standard for phosphorus . . . through compliance with water quality based effluent limitations by point sources that cannot achieve compliance without major facility upgrades is not feasible because it would cause substantial and widespread adverse social and economic impacts on a statewide basis.”
Based on work conducted by ARCADIS, The University of Massachusetts Donohue Institute, and Sycamore Advisors, consultants to WDOA and WDNR, the Preliminary Determination concludes that, without this variance:
· “almost 600 Wisconsin businesses will be impacted as they continue to work their way out of the recession”
· Wisconsin communities will experience a minimum cost of “$3.4 billion in capital expenditures which will rise to nearly $7 billion when accounting for interest” to meet increased capital costs
· Annual operations and maintenance (O&M) cost of $405 million along with debt service will “equate to $708 million annually”
· In 2025 when the full impact of the costs will be felt, statewide impacts will result in:
o 4,517 fewer jobs
o $283.3 million in foregone wages
o $616.6 million reduction in gross state product
o 11,000 fewer Wisconsin residents
A hearing on the Preliminary Determination was held on May 12, and written comments are due by June 11. The next step is for WDNR to submit a request to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) to approve the MDV for phosphorus for Wisconsin. Once implementation of the MDV begins, much-needed nonpoint source funding can begin to flow.
Additional relevant documents are accessible via the WDNR website.