[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 40, Volume 21]

[Revised as of July 1, 2006]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 40CFR125.86]



[Page 339-343]

 

                   TITLE 40--PROTECTION OF ENVIRONMENT

 

         CHAPTER I--ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED)

 

PART 125_CRITERIA AND STANDARDS FOR THE NATIONAL POLLUTANT DISCHARGE 

ELIMINATION SYSTEM--Table of Contents

 

Subpart I_Requirements Applicable to Cooling Water Intake Structures for 

             New Facilities Under Section 316(b) of the Act

 

Sec.  125.86  As an owner or operator of a new facility, what must I 

collect and submit when I apply for my new or reissued NPDES permit?



    (a)(1) As an owner or operator of a new facility, you must submit to 

the Director a statement that you intend to comply with either:

    (i) The Track I requirements for new facilities that withdraw equal 

to or greater than 10 MGD in Sec.  125.84(b);

    (ii) The Track I requirements for new facilities that withdraw equal 

to or greater than 2 MGD and less than 10 MGD in Sec.  125.84(c);

    (iii) The requirements for Track II in Sec.  125.84 (d).

    (2) You must also submit the application information required by 40 

CFR 122.21(r) and the information required in either paragraph (b) of 

this section for Track I or paragraph (c) of this section for Track II 

when you apply for a new or reissued NPDES permit in accordance with 40 

CFR 122.21.

    (b) Track I application requirements. To demonstrate compliance with 

Track I requirements in Sec.  125.84(b) or (c), you must collect and 

submit to the Director the information in paragraphs (b)(1) through (4) 

of this section.

    (1) Flow reduction information. If you must comply with the flow 

reduction requirements in Sec.  125.84(b)(1), you must submit the 

following information to the Director to demonstrate that you have 

reduced your flow to a level commensurate with that which can be 

attained by a closed-cycle recirculating cooling water system:



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    (i) A narrative description of your system that has been designed to 

reduce your intake flow to a level commensurate with that which can be 

attained by a closed-cycle recirculating cooling water system and any 

engineering calculations, including documentation demonstrating that 

your make-up and blowdown flows have been minimized; and

    (ii) If the flow reduction requirement is met entirely, or in part, 

by reusing or recycling water withdrawn for cooling purposes in 

subsequent industrial processes, you must provide documentation that the 

amount of cooling water that is not reused or recycled has been 

minimized.

    (2) Velocity information. You must submit the following information 

to the Director to demonstrate that you are complying with the 

requirement to meet a maximum through-screen design intake velocity of 

no more than 0.5 ft/s at each cooling water intake structure as required 

in Sec.  125.84(b)(2) and (c)(1):

    (i) A narrative description of the design, structure, equipment, and 

operation used to meet the velocity requirement; and

    (ii) Design calculations showing that the velocity requirement will 

be met at minimum ambient source water surface elevations (based on best 

professional judgement using available hydrological data) and maximum 

head loss across the screens or other device.

    (3) Source waterbody flow information. You must submit to the 

Director the following information to demonstrate that your cooling 

water intake structure meets the flow requirements in Sec.  125.84(b)(3) 

and (c)(2):

    (i) If your cooling water intake structure is located in a 

freshwater river or stream, you must provide the annual mean flow and 

any supporting documentation and engineering calculations to show that 

your cooling water intake structure meets the flow requirements;

    (ii) If your cooling water intake structure is located in an estuary 

or tidal river, you must provide the mean low water tidal excursion 

distance and any supporting documentation and engineering calculations 

to show that your cooling water intake structure facility meets the flow 

requirements; and

    (iii) If your cooling water intake structure is located in a lake or 

reservoir, you must provide a narrative description of the water body 

thermal stratification, and any supporting documentation and engineering 

calculations to show that the natural thermal stratification and 

turnover pattern will not be disrupted by the total design intake flow. 

In cases where the disruption is determined to be beneficial to the 

management of fisheries for fish and shellfish you must provide 

supporting documentation and include a written concurrence from any 

fisheries management agency(ies) with responsibility for fisheries 

potentially affected by your cooling water intake structure(s).

    (4) Design and Construction Technology Plan. To comply with Sec.  

125.84(b)(4) and (5), or (c)(3) and (c)(4), you must submit to the 

Director the following information in a Design and Construction 

Technology Plan:

    (i) Information to demonstrate whether or not you meet the criteria 

in Sec.  125.84(b)(4) and (b)(5), or (c)(3) and (c)(4);

    (ii) Delineation of the hydraulic zone of influence for your cooling 

water intake structure;

    (iii) New facilities required to install design and construction 

technologies and/or operational measures must develop a plan explaining 

the technologies and measures you have selected based on information 

collected for the Source Water Biological Baseline Characterization 

required by 40 CFR 122.21(r)(3). (Examples of appropriate technologies 

include, but are not limited to, wedgewire screens, fine mesh screens, 

fish handling and return systems, barrier nets, aquatic filter barrier 

systems, etc. Examples of appropriate operational measures include, but 

are not limited to, seasonal shutdowns or reductions in flow, continuous 

operations of screens, etc.) The plan must contain the following 

information:

    (A) A narrative description of the design and operation of the 

design and construction technologies, including fish-handling and return 

systems, that you will use to maximize the survival



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of those species expected to be most susceptible to impingement. Provide 

species-specific information that demonstrates the efficacy of the 

technology;

    (B) A narrative description of the design and operation of the 

design and construction technologies that you will use to minimize 

entrainment of those species expected to be the most susceptible to 

entrainment. Provide species-specific information that demonstrates the 

efficacy of the technology; and

    (C) Design calculations, drawings, and estimates to support the 

descriptions provided in paragraphs (b)(4)(iii)(A) and (B) of this 

section.

    (c) Application requirements for Track II. If you have chosen to 

comply with the requirements of Track II in Sec.  125.84(d) you must 

collect and submit the following information:

    (1) Source waterbody flow information. You must submit to the 

Director the following information to demonstrate that your cooling 

water intake structure meets the source water body requirements in Sec.  

125.84(d)(2):

    (i) If your cooling water intake structure is located in a 

freshwater river or stream, you must provide the annual mean flow and 

any supporting documentation and engineering calculations to show that 

your cooling water intake structure meets the flow requirements;

    (ii) If your cooling water intake structure is located in an estuary 

or tidal river, you must provide the mean low water tidal excursion 

distance and any supporting documentation and engineering calculations 

to show that your cooling water intake structure facility meets the flow 

requirements; and

    (iii) If your cooling water intake structure is located in a lake or 

reservoir, you must provide a narrative description of the water body 

thermal stratification, and any supporting documentation and engineering 

calculations to show that the natural thermal stratification and thermal 

or turnover pattern will not be disrupted by the total design intake 

flow. In cases where the disruption is determined to be beneficial to 

the management of fisheries for fish and shellfish you must provide 

supporting documentation and include a written concurrence from any 

fisheries management agency(ies) with responsibility for fisheries 

potentially affected by your cooling water intake structure(s).

    (2) Track II Comprehensive Demonstration Study. You must perform and 

submit the results of a Comprehensive Demonstration Study (Study). This 

information is required to characterize the source water baseline in the 

vicinity of the cooling water intake structure(s), characterize 

operation of the cooling water intake(s), and to confirm that the 

technology(ies) proposed and/or implemented at your cooling water intake 

structure reduce the impacts to fish and shellfish to levels comparable 

to those you would achieve were you to implement the requirements in 

Sec.  125.84(b)(1)and (2) of Track I. To meet the ``comparable level'' 

requirement, you must demonstrate that:

    (i) You have reduced both impingement mortality and entrainment of 

all life stages of fish and shellfish to 90 percent or greater of the 

reduction that would be achieved through Sec.  125.84(b)(1) and (2); or

    (ii) If your demonstration includes consideration of impacts other 

than impingement mortality and entrainment, that the measures taken will 

maintain the fish and shellfish in the waterbody at a substantially 

similar level to that which would be achieved through Sec.  125.84(b)(1) 

and (2); and

    (iii) You must develop and submit a plan to the Director containing 

a proposal for how information will be collected to support the study. 

The plan must include:

    (A) A description of the proposed and/or implemented technology(ies) 

to be evaluated in the Study;

    (B) A list and description of any historical studies characterizing 

the physical and biological conditions in the vicinity of the proposed 

or actual intakes and their relevancy to the proposed Study. If you 

propose to rely on existing source water body data, it must be no more 

than 5 years old, you must demonstrate that the existing data are 

sufficient to develop a scientifically valid estimate of potential 

impingement and entrainment impacts, and provide documentation showing 

that



[[Page 342]]



the data were collected using appropriate quality assurance/quality 

control procedures;

    (C) Any public participation or consultation with Federal or State 

agencies undertaken in developing the plan; and

    (D) A sampling plan for data that will be collected using actual 

field studies in the source water body. The sampling plan must document 

all methods and quality assurance procedures for sampling, and data 

analysis. The sampling and data analysis methods you propose must be 

appropriate for a quantitative survey and based on consideration of 

methods used in other studies performed in the source water body. The 

sampling plan must include a description of the study area (including 

the area of influence of the cooling water intake structure and at least 

100 meters beyond); taxonomic identification of the sampled or evaluated 

biological assemblages (including all life stages of fish and 

shellfish); and sampling and data analysis methods; and

    (iv) You must submit documentation of the results of the Study to 

the Director. Documentation of the results of the Study must include:

    (A) Source Water Biological Study. The Source Water Biological Study 

must include:

    (1) A taxonomic identification and characterization of aquatic 

biological resources including: a summary of historical and contemporary 

aquatic biological resources; determination and description of the 

target populations of concern (those species of fish and shellfish and 

all life stages that are most susceptible to impingement and 

entrainment); and a description of the abundance and temporal/spatial 

characterization of the target populations based on the collection of 

multiple years of data to capture the seasonal and daily activities 

(e.g., spawning, feeding and water column migration) of all life stages 

of fish and shellfish found in the vicinity of the cooling water intake 

structure;

    (2) An identification of all threatened or endangered species that 

might be susceptible to impingement and entrainment by the proposed 

cooling water intake structure(s); and

    (3) A description of additional chemical, water quality, and other 

anthropogenic stresses on the source waterbody.

    (B) Evaluation of potential cooling water intake structure effects. 

This evaluation will include:

    (1) Calculations of the reduction in impingement mortality and 

entrainment of all life stages of fish and shellfish that would need to 

be achieved by the technologies you have selected to implement to meet 

requirements under Track II. To do this, you must determine the 

reduction in impingement mortality and entrainment that would be 

achieved by implementing the requirements of Sec.  125.84(b)(1) and (2) 

of Track I at your site.

    (2) An engineering estimate of efficacy for the proposed and/or 

implemented technologies used to minimize impingement mortality and 

entrainment of all life stages of fish and shellfish and maximize 

survival of impinged life stages of fish and shellfish. You must 

demonstrate that the technologies reduce impingement mortality and 

entrainment of all life stages of fish and shellfish to a comparable 

level to that which you would achieve were you to implement the 

requirements in Sec.  125.84(b)(1) and (2) of Track I. The efficacy 

projection must include a site-specific evaluation of technology(ies) 

suitability for reducing impingement mortality and entrainment based on 

the results of the Source Water Biological Study in paragraph 

(c)(2)(iv)(A) of this section. Efficacy estimates may be determined 

based on case studies that have been conducted in the vicinity of the 

cooling water intake structure and/or site-specific technology prototype 

studies.

    (C) Evaluation of proposed restoration measures. If you propose to 

use restoration measures to maintain the fish and shellfish as allowed 

in Sec.  125.84(d)(1)(i), you must provide the following information to 

the Director:

    (1) Information and data to show that you have coordinated with the 

appropriate fishery management agency(ies); and

    (2) A plan that provides a list of the measures you plan to 

implement and how you will demonstrate and continue



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to ensure that your restoration measures will maintain the fish and 

shellfish in the waterbody to a substantially similar level to that 

which would be achieved through Sec.  125.84(b)(1) and (2).

    (D) Verification monitoring plan. You must include in the Study the 

following:

    (1) A plan to conduct, at a minimum, two years of monitoring to 

verify the full-scale performance of the proposed or implemented 

technologies, operational measures. The verification study must begin at 

the start of operations of the cooling water intake structure and 

continue for a sufficient period of time to demonstrate that the 

facility is reducing the level of impingement and entrainment to the 

level documented in paragraph (c)(2)(iv)(B) of this section. The plan 

must describe the frequency of monitoring and the parameters to be 

monitored. The Director will use the verification monitoring to confirm 

that you are meeting the level of impingement mortality and entrainment 

reduction required in Sec.  125.84(d), and that the operation of the 

technology has been optimized.

    (2) A plan to conduct monitoring to verify that the restoration 

measures will maintain the fish and shellfish in the waterbody to a 

substantially similar level as that which would be achieved through 

Sec.  125.84(b)(1) and (2).