Division of Surface Water October 2020 Total Maximum Daily Loads for Bacteria

Impaired Waters in Ohio The requires Ohio EPA to prepare a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for watersheds that do not meet goals. A TMDL report, specifies how much pollution must be reduced from various sources and recommends specific actions to achieve these reductions.

TMDL Overview Under Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act, states are required to list water bodies that do not meet water quality standards (as defined in Ohio Administrative Code Chapter 3745-1) and to develop total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) to address the impairment. A TMDL is a plan to restore good health to streams or other water bodies that are not meeting water quality goals. It serves as a roadmap for measures that can be taken to improve water quality. It defines how much pollution exists and identifies sources; specifies the amount of pollution reduction needed to meet water quality goals; and recommends actions that will improve water quality in the streams. Recreation Ohio is a water-rich state, providing many opportunities for recreation in and on its waters. The overall outcome of this TMDL project is to further the Clean Water Act’s “fishable/swimmable” goal. Water quality standards that pertain to recreation use are intended to protect the health of those using surface waters for swimming, boating, wading and other types of water-related activities. Ohio EPA uses the bacterium Escherichia coli (E. coli) as an indicator for the presence of pathogenic bacteria and viruses in a water body as a result of fecal contamination. Ohio EPA collects E. coli samples around the State every year during water quality surveys. Common sources of E. coli include wastewater treatment plants, failing home sewage treatment systems/unsewered communities, combined sewer overflows/sanitary sewer overflows, illicit discharges, livestock waste, and improper application of biosolids. Multi-Watershed Approach Ohio EPA has learned from previous recreation TMDLs that the same few sources of indicator bacteria are present in nearly every project area. Being able to see these patterns of sources on a broader scale will allow us to put them into perspective and recommend reduction strategies. Covering multiple watersheds across the state will allow us to take a more wholistic approach to TMDL development and implementation as opposed to addressing just one watershed basin at a time in a piecemeal fashion. Project Scope There are 1,538 12-digit hydrologic unit code (HUC) watersheds in Ohio. Ohio EPA uses HUC- 12s as our units for assessing and reporting on water quality in the biennial Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment report (IR). As reported in the 2020 IR, and shown in Figure 1, only 10 percent of Ohio’s WAUs attain water quality standards for recreation use. Thirteen percent of WAUs have either not been assessed or there is not enough data to make an attainment determination. That leaves the remaining 77 percent that have been determined to be impaired or not in attainment Figure 1. Recreation Use attainment status of Ohio HUC12 WAUs (Ohio EPA, 2020). of water quality standards (Ohio EPA, 2020). A

epa.ohio.gov • 50 W. Town St., Ste. 700 • P.O. Box 1049 • Columbus, OH 43216-1049 • (614) 644-3020 • (614) 644-2737 (fax) Total Maximum Daily Loads for Bacteria Impaired Waters in Ohio determination of impairment means that waters may contain pathogens, or disease-causing agents, associated with contamination from human and/or animal waste at a level of increased risk of illness. Ohio EPA has already completed TMDLs for 25% of the impaired WAUs. This project will develop TMDLs for another 31% of the impaired WAUs. The remaining impaired WAUs will be addressed with TMDLs either through individual watershed TMDL reports or through an update to this project. Watersheds included in the multi-watershed bacteria TMDL Watersheds included in this TMDL project meet the following criteria: • the watershed is impaired for bacteria; • a recreation use TMDL has not been approved by U.S. EPA; and • the watershed is included in an approved biological and water quality report. Figure 2 provides a visual representation of the watersheds that are a part of this initial group of multi- watershed bacteria TMDLs. A complete list of watersheds that are a part of this round of TMDLs is in the appendix to the loading analysis plan (LAP). Additional information about each watershed and its attainment status may be found in Ohio EPA’s 2020 IR Figure 2. Map showing scope of the multi-watershed bacteria TMDL interactive map. A link to the interactive map is available project. The dark grey areas indicate the WAUs for which a recreation at the end of this document. use TMDL will be developed.

Ohio already has a process for developing bacteria TMDLs. Why is the process changing? Ohio EPA is using the same method to establish TMDLs for recreation use impairment as in the past. The only thing changing is the packaging. There are 776 WAUs that are impaired for recreation use and for which a TMDL has not been completed. Taking this multi-watershed approach to address bacteria impairment will allow for more efficient use of staff time and streamlines the TMDL development for these watersheds. As stated above, the grouping of the multiple watersheds together in one report will lend itself to a more wholistic, statewide implementation. How will the multi-watershed bacteria TMDL impact point sources? In general, point sources regulated under the National Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program that treat sanitary sewage (wastewater treatment plants) are regulated to meet recreation water quality standards for bacteria at the end of pipe; therefore, the dischargers will not be impacted by the bacteria TMDL. Other point sources, such as municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s), may be required under the NPDES permit to tailor selected best management practices (BMPs) to practices that reduce or minimize bacteria contamination. Communities with CSOs will be required to implement controls through their permits and Long- Term Control Plans (LTCPs).

Page|2 Total Maximum Daily Loads for Bacteria Impaired Waters in Ohio

How will the multi-watershed bacteria TMDL impact nonpoint sources? Ohio EPA does not directly regulate nonpoint sources. Preparing a TMDL does not give Ohio EPA additional regulatory authority over nonpoint sources that are targeted for load reduction under the TMDL. The implementation plan developed for this project will identify common nonpoint sources of pollution associated with recreation use impairment and describe BMPs that can be used to address them. Ohio EPA will work with other state and local agencies to prioritize and focus implementation efforts. In addition, implementation can be assisted by voluntary actions on the part of citizen and/or environmental groups. Funding may be available through various state and federal agencies to help offset the cost of BMP installation. What about failing home sewage treatment systems (HSTS)? Ohio EPA will continue to work with Ohio Department of Health and local health departments on identifying and addressing failing HSTS as part of implementation of this TMDL report. How will improvements in recreation water quality standards attainment be tracked? Through routine watershed water quality surveys, Ohio EPA will continue to monitor E. coli in streams to determine whether water quality is improving. This information will be reported in biological and water quality reports and future IRs. Additional Information • The loading analysis plan is available at epa.ohio.gov/dsw/wq • The 2020 IR interactive map is available at https://geo.epa.ohio.gov/portal/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=79c3595f371e4324b82b0e5a9f96fc15 • The biological and water quality reports are available at epa.ohio.gov/dsw/document_index/psdindx • More information on Ohio EPA’s TMDL Process is available at epa.ohio.gov/Portals/35/tmdl/TMDL_Fact_Sheet_Feb_2020.pdf?ver=2020-02-03-142916-353. • For more information about biological, chemical and physical monitoring, please see the Water Quality Monitoring webpage at epa.ohio.gov/dsw/bioassess/ohstrat.aspx. • Information about how discharging HSTS are regulated in Ohio may be found at epa.ohio.gov/Portals/35/permits/General_NOI-Factsheet%20Final.pdf. Information about Ohio’s loan fund that helps repair and replace existing HSTS is available at epa.ohio.gov/Portals/29/documents/HSTSLinkedDeposit.pdf • Information about nonpoint source pollution control in Ohio, including funding programs for implementation, can be found at epa.ohio.gov/dsw/nps/index. References Ohio EPA (Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, Division of Surface Water). 2020. Ohio 2020 Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report. Published at: epa.ohio.gov/dsw/tmdl/OhioIntegratedReport#123145265-2020

Page|3