ORSANCO Accepting Comments on Pollution Control Standards

The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (ORSANCO), is an interstate commission representing eight states and the federal government. Member states include: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia. Its pollution control standards apply on the Ohio River in lieu of West Virginia's water quality standards when the ORSANCO standards are more stringent. Any discharger into the Ohio River should follow ORSANCO's development of standards.

ORSANCO is initiating a review of its Pollution Control Standards for Wastewater Discharges to the Ohio River. The Commission Standards include designated uses of the Ohio River, numerical water quality criteria established to protect the uses, and effluent limits necessary to meet those criteria. It is the policy of the Commission to conduct a formal review of its Standards every three years; the last such review was completed in October 2006. You can find the issues that ORSANCO expects to be raised for the review of its pollution Control standards at http://www.orsanco.org/review/PCSIssues.doc


Comments on any portion of the Standards will be accepted until May 16, 2008. All comments received by that date will be considered by the Commission’s Pollution Control Standards Committee; their consideration may result in proposed revisions to the Standards. Any proposed revisions will be presented at a public hearing and will be subject to an additional public comment period before they are acted upon by the Commission.

In order to facilitate review of the current Standards, five public workshops will be held. Each workshop will include brief descriptions of the authority and purpose of the Commission Standards, their relationship to state and federal standards, the content of the current Standards, and issues that are expected to be addressed in the current review. The major portion of each workshop will be devoted to questions and discussions on the Standards and related issues. The workshops will not be recorded and no formal statements will be taken; they are being held to facilitate discussion of Standards- related issues and to assist persons who may be considering the submittal of comments. Information on the public workshops will be posted on the Commission web site http://www.orsanco.org/.

Comments on the Standards should be submitted to the following address:
ORSANCO
5735 Kellogg Avenue
Cincinnati, Ohio 45228
Att: PCS Comments

Comments may also be submitted by email to ptennant@orsanco.org by fax to 513/231-7761. Comments should arrive by the close of business on Friday, May 16, 2008. Any and all comments received will be considered by the Commission’s Pollution Control Standards Committee. A summary of all comments received and their disposition will accompany the proposed revisions when they are presented for public review. If you have any questions in this matter, please contact the Commission staff.