Sec. 12.1.
(a) When
a permit issued to a new Great Lakes discharger contains a WQBEL, the permittee
shall comply with such a limitation upon the commencement of the
discharge.
(b) Any existing permit
that is reissued or modified to contain a new or more restrictive WQBEL or a
more restrictive limit of quantitation (LOQ) (when an LOQ is used as the
compliance value for a WQBEL below an LOQ) may allow a reasonable period of
time, up to five (5) years from the date of permit issuance or modification,
for the permittee to comply with that limit in accordance with the following
conditions:
(1) When the compliance schedule
established under this subsection goes beyond the term of the permit, an
interim permit limit effective upon the expiration date shall be included in
the permit and addressed in the permit's fact sheet or statement of basis. The
permit shall reflect the final limit and its compliance date.
(2) If a permit establishes a schedule of
compliance under this subsection, which exceeds one (1) year from the date of
permit issuance or modification, the schedule shall set forth interim
requirements and dates for their achievement as follows:
(A) The time between such interim dates may
not exceed one (1) year.
(B) If the
time necessary for completion of any interim requirement is more than one (1)
year and is not readily divisible into stages for completion, the permit shall
require, at a minimum, specified dates for annual submission of progress
reports on the status of any interim requirements.
(c) Whenever a limit based upon a
Tier II value is included in a reissued or modified permit for an existing
Great Lakes discharger, the permit may provide a reasonable period of time, up
to two (2) years, in which to provide additional studies necessary to develop a
Tier I criterion or to modify the Tier II value. In such cases, the permit
shall require compliance with the Tier II limitation within a reasonable period
of time, not later than five (5) years after permit issuance or modification,
and contain a reopener clause in accordance with the following conditions:
(1) The reopener clause shall authorize
permit modifications if specified studies have been completed by the permittee
or provided by a third party during the time allowed to conduct the specified
studies, and the permittee or a third party demonstrates, through such studies,
that a revised limit is appropriate. Such a revised limit shall be incorporated
through a permit modification and a reasonable time period, up to five (5)
years, shall be allowed for compliance. If incorporated prior to the compliance
date of the original Tier II limitation, any such revised limit shall not be
considered less stringent for purposes of the antibacksliding provisions of
section 10(a)(11) of this rule and Section 402(o) of the Clean Water Act
(CWA).
(2) If the specified studies
have been completed and do not demonstrate that a revised limit is appropriate,
the commissioner may provide a reasonable additional period of time, not to
exceed five (5) years with which to achieve compliance with the original
effluent limitation.
(3) Where a
permit is modified to include new or more stringent limitations, on a date
within five (5) years of the permit expiration date, such compliance schedules
may extend beyond the term of a permit consistent with subsection
(b)(1).
(4) If future studies
(other than those conducted under this subsection) result in a Tier II value
being changed to a less stringent Tier II value or Tier I criterion, after the
effective date of a Tier II-based limit, the existing Tier II-based limit may
be revised to be less stringent if:
(A) it
complies with section 10(a)(11)(B) and 10(a)(11)(C) of this rule and Section
402(o)(2) and 402(o)(3) of the CWA;
(B) in nonattainment waters, the cumulative
effect of the revised effluent limitation will assure compliance with water
quality standards; or
(C) in
attained waters, the revised effluent limitation complies with the
antidegradation standard and procedures contained under 327 IAC
2-1.3.
