Volume 43 - Issue 30 - July 25, 2024
State of Kansas
Department of Health and Environment
Notice of Hearing on Proposed Administrative Regulations
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Division of Environment, Bureau of Water, will conduct a public hearing at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, October 2, 2024, in the Azure Conference Room, 4th Floor, Curtis State Office Building, 1000 SW Jackson, Topeka, Kansas, to consider the adoption of proposed KDHE Article 16 permanent amended surface water quality standards regulations K.A.R. 28-16-28e and K.A.R. 28-16-28h.
A summary of the proposed regulations, estimated economic impact, and environmental benefit follows:
K.A.R. 28-16-28e. Surface water quality criteria. Adopts the July 1, 2023, “Kansas Surface Water Quality Standards: Tables of Numeric Criteria.” This updated document revises 89 pollutant parameters under Public Health Use Categories to align with updated EPA criteria.
K.A.R. 28-16-28h. Surface water variance register. Adopts the October 1, 2023, “Kansas Surface Water Quality Standards Variance Register.” This revised document lists municipalities that qualify for a variance to numeric ammonia criteria according to an updated eligibility determination policy.
Economic Impact
Cost to the agency: The proposed regulations will not result in increased costs to the agency. No new monitoring is required under the proposed changes to the “Kansas Surface Water Quality Standards: Tables of Numeric Criteria.”
Cost to the public and regulated community: Two facilities have been flagged for compliance issues due to the new pollution parameters and will need to upgrade treatment processes to achieve compliance. The capital costs for one facility are estimated at $400,000.00 and the capital costs for the other facility are estimated at $430,000.00, with additional annual operation and maintenance costs listed as $30,000.00 and $20,000.00 respectively. The updated “Kansas Surface Water Quality Standards Variance Register” in K.A.R. 28-16-28h is not expected to result in additional capital costs to the regulated communities. Additionally, no immediate or long-range economic impact is expected for any individual and the general public with the implementation of the proposed regulations.
Costs to other governmental agencies or units: The proposed regulations will not increase costs to local government units.
A detailed economic impact is provided in the Economic Impact Statement that is available from the designated KDHE contact staff person or at the KDHE Policy Planning & Standards Unit website, as listed below.
Environmental Benefit
The proposed regulations meet the mandate of the federal government under the Clean Water Act at 40 CFR §131.20 requiring states to update their surface water quality standards in a triennial review. These regulations are used by the KDHE Division of Environment for a number of functions, including informing and directing permitting decisions, determining impairment of state surface waters, and granting variances in relation to the mandated standards.
The time period between the publication of this notice and the scheduled hearing constitutes a 60-day public comment period for the purpose of receiving written public comments on the proposed regulations. All interested parties may submit written comments prior to 5:00 p.m. on the day of the hearing to Bruna Rossi Dos Santos, Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Bureau of Water, Curtis State Office Bldg., 1000 SW Jackson, Suite 420, Topeka, KS 66612 or by email to Bruna.Rossi@ks.gov. Interested parties are encouraged to participate in the public hearing by submitting written comments.
During the hearing, all interested parties will be given a reasonable opportunity to present their views orally on the proposed regulations as well as an opportunity to submit their written comments. It is requested that each individual giving oral comments also provide a written copy of the comments for the record. In order to give each individual an opportunity to present their views, it may be necessary for the hearing officer to request that each presenter limit an oral presentation to an appropriate time frame.
Complete copies of the proposed regulations and the corresponding Economic Impact Statement and Environmental Benefit Statement may be obtained from the KDHE Policy Planning & Standards Unit website at https://www.kdhe.ks.gov/1379/Policy-Planning-Standards-Unit or by contacting Bruna Rossi Dos Santos at Bruna.Rossi@ks.gov or 785-296-8229. Questions pertaining to the proposed regulations should be directed to Bruna Rossi Dos Santos at the contact information above.
Any individual with a disability may request accommodation in order to participate in the public hearing and may request the proposed regulations and the economic impact statement and environmental benefit statement in an accessible format. Requests for accommodation to participate in the hearing should be made at least five working days in advance of the hearing by contacting Bruna Rossi Dos Santos.
Janet Stanek
Secretary
Department of Health and Environment
Doc. No. 052331
