Western States Water Council 2005 Report

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the states, saying, "There simply must be more than one acceptable method with which to improve water quality." Governor Hoeven also expressed NGA's concern that draft CAFO regulations under consideration would impose large new burdens upon state agencies already facing permitting systems backlogs and possibly triple the current workload. He remarked that NGA is at odds with the cost analysis included in the regulation, stating that it seriously underestimates the costs that will be imposed on states to implement its requirements. He urged that "...the assumptions expressed be carefully reexamined, and that Congress conduct a hearing to determine the actual impact of the proposed changes to the CAFO requirements...." Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber addressed his state's experience with the TMDL program, streamlining Section 404 permitting, and the importance of Section 401 certification. He also decried the "one- size - fits -all" approach, saying it is "...counterproductive to stubbornly force local partners to adhere to inappropriate processes and unrealistic timelines." He urged the federal government to be a "fully committed member" in local watershed processes and not resort to regulating from afar, exercising "rigidly inflexible oversight, or to speak in abstractions," as such "participation does not translate into the realities of life at the local level." Jon Craig, Director of the Oklahoma Water Quality Division and a WSWC member, testified as President of the Association of State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Administrators. He emphasized the states must maintain the lead role in the Nation's clean water programs. Confined /Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a notice of proposed rulemaking to reduce water pollution from large Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) in the Federal Register on January 12th, 2001. Comments were requested by May 2nd on some 28 issues.37 Some of the issues included the use of a two -tier structure based on animal unit thresholds for defining CAFOs, removing the 25 -year, 24 -hour storm event exemption, requiring all CAFOs to apply for a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit, defining a CAFO to include the production and land application areas, requiring certification for off -site recipients of CAFO - generated manure, tracking off -site transfers through recordkeeping, providing information for the recipients regarding proper management, restricting the land application of manure so as to avoid any pollutant discharges to U.S. waters and potentially prohibiting land application at certain times or using certain methods. On March 26, EPA Administrator Christie Whitman extended the public comment period on the complex and lengthy proposed rule through July 30. In March, EPA held eight public meetings across the country to provide additional information and encourage public comment on the proposal. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman told a 4 -H Club group, "Ultimately, there will be some regulation that comes out with a balance that recognizes the important role that agriculture plays. 1138 31 Western States Water, Issue #1402, April 2, 2001. 38Western States Water, Issue #1403, April 9, 2001. 41