June 7, 2002

Inside This Issue!
1. Save the Date - TCWN's 5th Annual Clean Water Conference, September 20-21, 2002
2. Watershed Assistance Grants (WAG) information is now available
3. Governor signs Tennessee Water Resources Act
4. Permit Applications Affected Tennessee waters: Aquatic Resource Alteration Permits, U.S. Army Corps of Engineer Section 404 permits, and National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permits
5. Watershed Initiative - Grant Program for Watersheds
6. EPA Releases 200 Toxic Release Inventory Data
7. Searching for Sprawl Stories
8. Study - Showering Boosts Concentrations of Potentially Hazardous Trihalomethanes
9. Online Resource - Water Quality Standards Toolkit
10. USGS Maps- Arsenic in Groundwater
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1. Save the Date! September 20-21, 2002 TCWN Annual Clean Water Conference:
Tennessee Clean Water Network's 5th Annual Clean Water Conference, highlighting drinking water issues, will take place September 20-21 at the historic Factory in Franklin, TN. More info. to come.....

2. The Watershed Assistance Grants (WAG) information is now available
River Network's 2002 Watershed Assistance Grants Available-- Apply by July 19!
River Network is once again teaming up with EPA to disperse Watershed Assistance Grants to watershed groups across the country working on creating and implementing partnerships to improve their watershed. The grant process is highly competitive, but Network members are encouraged to apply for these grants which range from $1500 to $30,000 per project.

Go to: http://www.rivernetwork.org/howwecanhelp/howwag_2002cri.cfm for more information and for an application form. Please be sure to read all of the information completely before taking time to prepare a proposal and application. See especially the self-evaluation section, the background information, selection criteria, the suggested outline, the request for brevity, and River Network's especially encourages you to include an electronic version of your proposal.

Also, be sure to "surf backwards" in River Network's Web site to see about projects that were funded in 1999, 2000, and 2001. Then you will have a better idea about the types of projects funded, amounts typically requested, and perhaps even recognize an organization or watershed you know about to contact for more suggestions about ideas you have for your watershed. Be sure to note that the due date without exception is for a July 19, 2002 postmark.

3. Governor Signs Tennessee Water Resource Act
Gov. Don Sundquist recently signed the Tennessee Water Resources Information Act and the Well Driller's Licensing Act into law. The Water Resources Information Act requires registration of recurring water withdrawals greater than 10,000 gallons of water per day, allowing for two exemptions (emergencies and agriculture.)

The Well Driller's Licensing Act makes changes to the Well Driller's Act, now requiring a new license to drill and close geothermal wells and implements new construction standards. It also requires a new license to drill or close monitoring wells and well drillers must notify the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) before drilling geothermal wells or water wells.

4. Permit Applications Affected Tennessee waters: Aquatic Resource Alteration Permits, U.S. Army Corps of Engineer Section 404 permits, and National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permits

ARAP: The following applications described below have been submitted for Aquatic Resource Alteration Permits (ARAP) pursuant to The Tennessee Water Quality Control Act of 1977.
02-121 TDOT; The applicant proposes to widen I-65 from Old Hickory Boulevard to Vietnam Boulevard, The affected watershed consists of named and
unnamed streams along I-65 alignment, Davidson County.
02-139 TDOT; The applicant proposes to fill 4.644 acres of wetlands for proposed replacement of Garland Road bridges over the South Fork of the
Forked Deer River and overflows. Chester County. (Corps of Engineers Public Notice)
02-118 Mr. Mike Jones; The applicant proposes to impound approximately five acres on an unnamed tributary of Little Creek to form a pond for
recreational purposes. McNairy County.
If you wish to view any of the above notices, please review them on the following website:
http://www.state.tn.us/environment/new.htm or call Tennessee Clean Water Network at 865-522-7007.
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The following proposals have been posted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers regarding CLEAN WATER ACT, SECTION 404 PERMITS:
02-45 - Expires 07/05/2002, Roane County, Proposed Channel Fill and Adjacent Wetland Fill, Unnamed Tributaries to Pawpaw Creek, Roane County, TN
02-42 - Expires 06/21/2002, Ms. Rhonda Gage and Ms. Lorie Nelan, Proposed Recessed Boat Well, Access Channel, and Riprap, Tennessee River Mile
453.1R, Hamilton County, TN
02-40 - Tennessee Wildlife Resources Foundation Proposed In-Lieu-Fee Stream Mitigation Program within the State of Tennessee.
02-38 - Expires 06/12/2002, Tennessee Emmons, LLC, Proposed Community Dock, Boat Ramp, and Road Crossing, Between Miles 0.1L and 6.0L Lost
Creek, Union County, TN
02-32 - Expires 05/22/2002, Mr. Luther Johnson, Proposed Access Dredging for Navigation, Tennessee River Mile 630.4L, Fort Loudoun Lake, Blount
County, TN
02-12 - Expires 05/19/2002, Laurel Marina and Yacht Club, Proposed Commercial Marina Expansion and Road Construction, South Fork Holston River
Mile 56.5R, South Holston Lake, Sullivan County, TN
The notices can be viewed at http://www.orn.usace.army.mil/cof/Pnlist.htm or by contacting Tennessee Clean Water Network at 865-522-7007.
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The following notices are available for review by the public regarding National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits:
The Tennessee Division of Water Pollution Control proposes to issue, reissue, deny or terminate National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits as listed below. These permits authorize and regulate discharges of treated wastewater and storm water from mining and processing facilities, including access roads and haul roads located within the affected areas.
Coal Proposed Issuance: U. S. Coal, Inc., 130 Coal Street, Huntsville, TN 37756, Deep Mine 10, NPDES Permit TN0076180, SMCRA Permit TN-013. This proposed coal
underground mine, located at latitude 36o18'40", longitude 84o15'40", discharges treated wastewater and storm water into an unnamed tributary to Cove Creek in Campbell County.
Persons wishing to comment upon or object to the proposed action (permit issuance, modification, denial or termination), or to the proposed permit conditions, are invited to submit comments in writing to the Division at the letterhead address, Attention: Public Notice Coordinator. The Division must receive comments by July 15, 2002.
Interested persons may also request in writing during the comment period that the Director of the Division hold a public hearing on any application. The request must indicate the party's interest and the reasons for a hearing. When there is significant public interest in having a hearing, it will be held pursuant to Chapter 1200-4-1-.05(3)(g) of the Department's rules. Persons wishing to address the Water Quality Control Board concerning the economic or social justifiability of an increased discharge to a Tier 2 stream by a facility should contact the Division of Water Pollution Control at the letterhead address, Attention: WQ Control Board Secretary, prior to July 15, 2002.
After consideration of comments submitted during the comment period, the hearing record, if any, and the requirements of the federal and state Acts and appropriate regulations, the Director of the Division will make determinations regarding final permit action. Permit applications, draft permits, supporting rationales, and comments relating to proposed issuance or approval are available for review and/or copying, by appointment, at the letterhead address
between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. EST weekdays, except holidays. There is a nominal charge for copying, except single copies of permit applications, draft permits, and supporting rationales.

5. Watershed Initiative- Grant Program for Watersheds:
On Thursday, May 23, EPA published a notice in the Federal Register soliciting public comment on the design of its proposed Watershed Initiative. The comment period closes on July 8, at which point EPA will begin preparing the call for nominations for this competitive grant program.

As previously announced in Watershed News, President Bush included $20 million in his 2003 budget request for a new EPA initiative to protect,preserve, and restore waterways across the country. The Initiative was announced on January 25th by EPA Administrator Christie Whitman during a visit to the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area.

As part of this community-based initiative, EPA will select up to 20 watersheds for grants. This program will also support local communities in their efforts to expand and improve existing protection measures with tools, training and technical assistance. For more information on the Watershed Initiative, please visit: http://www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/initiativefs.html. The Federal Register notice can be found at www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-WATER/2002/May/Day-23/w12968.htm.
from EPA watershed news

6. EPA Releases 2000 Toxic Release Inventory Data:
On May 23, U.S. EPA released the 2000 Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) data, an annual compendium of toxic chemicals released by industries in the United States. This data is searchable by facility, chemical or industry; and at the county, state or national level. For the third consecutive year, the hardrock mining industry is the nation's largest toxic polluter: it released 3.34 billion pounds or 47% of all toxics released by U.S. industry.

Stronger mining rules written by the Clinton Administration in 2000 would have better protected water resources from the toxics released by the mining industry. However, Interior Secretary Gale Norton rescinded most of the rules in 2001, so mine waste dumping continues essentially unchecked. Mercury pollution is also particularly striking in the new pollution data: industries released 4.3 million pounds of mercury and mercury compounds to the environment and generated 4.9 million pounds of mercury compounds in toxic waste. By comparison, a teaspoon of mercury deposited every year can contaminate a 20-acre lake to the point that fish are unsafe to eat. A 2001 report by U.S. PIRG and the Environmental Working Group found that fish contamination is already so high that eating fish exposes 1 in 4 pregnant women to levels of mercury that could threaten a developing fetus. The Bush administration's "Clear Skies Initiative" would allow three times more mercury pollution than full enforcement of the current Clean Air Act.
The TRI program was created in 1986 under the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA) in response to the toxic gas leaks in Bhopal, India and West Virginia. The purpose of the program is to provide citizens with vital information about the existence and the characteristics of pollutants produced or released into the environment in their communities.

The 2000 Toxic Release Inventory data and background information (and a search tool called the TRI EXPLORER) on the TRI program are available at: http://www.epa.gov/tri/.

More detailed information is available at http://www.epa.gov/tri/tridata/tri00/index.htm. For less intensive data analysis, state by state fact sheets are also available here.

For more information on the data, visit http://www.rtk.net/ -- the Right-to-Know Network's website. RTK Net is a project of OMB Watch and The Center for Public Data Access.

7. PLEASE HELP- In search of sprawl stories!:
NRDC is looking for anecdotes in which poor drinking water/wastewater infrastructure planning induced suburban sprawl. Specifics are helpful. If you have a story, please tell how much infrastructure was involved and what type or types? How much sprawl and what type or types?

For example, a sewer line was built to overcapacity outside of the area planned for the next stage of growth in the relevant land-use plan, spurring a new proposal to use the new capacity by developing the land to the tune of 500 housing units (150 single-family detached, 250 single-family attached).

Also, if more coordinated and/or better state and/or local planning would have prevented the situation, and you can describe why, that would be most helpful. In the example above, clearly the location of the wastewater infrastructure should have "fit" the land-use plan better. This could have been done by establishing a more comprehensive planning process, that includes categories of infrastructure like water/wastewater.

IMPORTANT: Stories are needed by the end of this week, so please send yours
in now!!! Please send all stories to Deron Lovaas, NRDC at
[email protected]

8. Study: showering boosts concentrations of potentially hazardous trihalomethanes:
By David Williamson, UNC News Services
CHAPEL HILL -- Trihalomethanes -- byproducts of interaction between chlorine used to disinfect water and organic matter found in raw water -- increase significantly in the bloodstream after showering, a new study shows. Public health experts suspect the chemicals may boost the risk of cancer and contribute to reproductive problems such as miscarriage.

The study, conducted by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Public Health, involved 50 women living in Georgia and Texas. It showed that showering shifted the distribution of trihalomethanes (THMs) in blood toward that found in the tap water in volunteersâ?™ houses.
Another finding was that the distribution of trihalomethane species -- there are four chlorinated and brominated forms -- detected in the womenâ?™s blood reflected differences of type and concentration in their respective local tap water.

A report on the research appeared in April in the journal Environmental Science & Technology. Primary authors are Amy M. Miles, a former public health graduate student at UNC and now an environmental engineer at Research Triangle Institute, and Dr. Philip C. Singer, professor of environmental sciences and engineering at UNC.

"Concentrations of THMs were about 1,000 times lower in blood than in tap water, but after the showers, median levels in blood increased by a factor of four," Miles said. "This showed THMs were getting into the blood as a result of water use. It could not address, however, whether the concentrations were harmful or were linked to any particular health problem."

Despite its obvious benefits, if chlorination creates its own lesser but significant risks, as many scientists believe, it needs to be studied further, Miles said. Many water treatment plants are switching to alternative disinfectants to reduce trihalomethane concentrations in drinking water. The new study aimed to evaluate whether health workers could use drinking water concentrations of THM to predict concentrations in peopleâ?™s blood, Miles said.

Report co-authors are Drs. David L. Ashley and Michele C. Lynberg of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Pauline Mendola of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Peter H. Langlois of the Texas Department of Health and J.R. Nuckols of Colorado State University. Support for the research came from the American Water Works Association Research Foundation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the EPA.

Note: Miles can be reached at (919) 990-8693 or [email protected]
School of Public Health Contact: Lisa Katz, (919) 966-7467
Contact: David Williamson, (919) 962-8596

9. ONLINE Resource - Water Quality Standards Toolkit:
The Clean Water Network announces a new water quality standards toolkit on their web site under their standards section! The toolkit features:
1.) A list of state and federal WQS contacts
2.) Four fact sheets on WQS in general as well as 3 areas of concern for Network members (the difference between designated uses and existing uses, use attainability analysis, and site specific criteria)
3.) Other on-line reports, tools, resources
You can access the toolkit at http://www.cwn.org/docs/programs/wqs/wqs.htm

10. USGS Maps- Arsenic in Groundwater of the U.S.:
The USGS has developed maps that show where and to what extent arsenic occurs in ground water across the country. The current maps are based on samples from 31,350 wells. Widespread high concentrations were found in the West, the Midwest, and the Northeast.
For the complete story and to view maps visit: http://co.water.usgs.gov/trace/arsenic/
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Tennessee Clean Water Network E-News
This newsletter is intended to provide a quick look at current clean water issues in Tennessee, in addition to resources available to the concerned citizen.
Visit our website (www.tcwn.org) to find more detailed information.
Comments and submissions for the newsletter are welcome. Send to [email protected] or to [email protected] or call us at 865/522-7007. Thanks for your participation!