Code of Massachusetts Regulations
313 CMR - DIVISION OF WATER SUPPLY PROTECTION
Title 313 CMR 4.00 - Interbasin Transfer
Section 4.08 - Determination of Insignificance
Universal Citation: 313 MA Code of Regs 313.4
Current through Register 1531, September 27, 2024
(1) Procedures for a Request for Determination of Insignificance.
(a) A request for
determination of Insignificance of a proposed action to increase the Present
Rate of Interbasin Transfer can be made either by the Person proposing an
action to increase the Present Rate of Interbasin Transfer or at the
Commission's own initiative;
(b)
When requesting a determination of Insignificance, the Person proposing an
action to increase the Present Rate of Interbasin Transfer shall submit the
request to the Executive Director, Water Resources Commission, Executive Office
of Energy and Environmental Affairs, 100 Cambridge Street, Suite 900, Boston MA
02114 and to Water Resources Commission Staff, Department of Conservation and
Recreation, Office of Water Resources, 251 Causeway Street, Boston, MA 02114;
and
(c) The Commission shall
publish a notice of the request for a determination of Insignificance in the
Environmental Monitor within 31 days of the receipt of such
request and send a copy of the notice to the municipalities directly affected.
The notice shall contain the date of the Commission meeting or meetings when
such request will be considered. Within 90 days of the receipt of the request,
or upon receipt of all requested additional information, whichever is later, a
determination shall be made by a Decision of the Commission. The determination
and reasons therefore shall be published in the Environmental
Monitor.
(2) Information Required to Act Upon a Request for Determination of Insignificance.
(a) All requests
for determination of Insignificance must include the following information:
1. Name, address, email address and telephone
number of the Person proposing an action to increase the Present Rate of
Interbasin Transfer;
2. Name of the
project and a brief description;
3.
Any applicable federal or state identification number including the EEA MEPA
File Number;
4. An approximate
timetable for the project;
5. The
increase in Present Rate of Interbasin Transfer made possible by the proposed
action presented as annual average daily capacity and maximum daily capacity
(expressed as gallons per day);
6.
The name and location of the sources of the proposed Interbasin Transfer
delineated on a map of sufficient detail to show the major River Basin lines of
the affected area(s), any potentially affected water bodies, the names of the
communities, sections of communities, water district(s) or sewer district(s),
as applicable, the wastewater discharge point, and special resource values
potentially affected by this transfer, as described in 313 CMR
4.08(3)(f);
7. In the case of
temporary transfers, the purpose for which the water is to be transferred, the
duration and amounts; and
8. Other
information which may be requested by the Commission in specific
instances.
(b) For a
transfer with a maximum daily capacity of less than or equal to 10,000 gallons
per day, after review of the information requested in 313 CMR 4.08(2)(a) l.
through 8., the Commission may make a Decision that the transfer is
Insignificant without requiring the information and analyses described in 313
CMR 4.08(2)(c) and (d). If the Commission requires further analysis of a
transfer with a maximum daily capacity of less than or equal to 10,000 gallons
per day, the Person proposing an action to increase the Present Rate of
Interbasin Transfer shall provide the information requested in CMR 4.08(2)(c)
and (d), as appropriate.
(c) For a
transfer of water supply or a transfer of wastewater triggered by the
development of a local water supply, with a maximum daily capacity of more than
10,000 gallons per day, or for a transfer with a maximum daily capacity of less
than or equal to 10,000 gallons per day that has been determined by the
Commission to need a higher level of review, a request for determination of
Insignificance must also contain the following information, as appropriate:
1. For all transfers, any proposed flow
management provisions, flow protection thresholds or other measures to minimize
or offset impacts of the transfer on streamflows;
2. In the case of transfers primarily derived
from streamflow, either directly or through groundwater withdrawals, the
proposed transfer amount calculated as a percentage of the estimated unimpacted
95% Exceedance Flow. All calculations should be made at an appropriate point in
the Donor Basin river or tributary thereto;
3. In the case of transfers primarily derived
from lakes, ponds, reservoirs or other impoundments either directly or through
groundwater withdrawals, the delineated drainage area of the water body and its
area in square miles;
4. For
transfers of wastewater triggered by the development of a local water supply,
evaluation of potential in-basin alternatives for disposal of wastewater,
including Title 5 septic systems, reuse, and groundwater and surface water
discharges; if available, provide a Department of Environmental
Protection-approved comprehensive wastewater management plan or other
appropriate document that evaluates these options; and
5. For Interbasin Transfers from sources that
are upstream or upgradient of permitted wastewater treatment facilities:
a. 7Q10 flow(s) used in the NPDES Permits of
all wastewater treatment facilities that discharge downstream of transfer
source(s);
b. Recalculated 7Q10
flow(s) that include the proposed transfer;
c. Description of how the transfer will
affect the 7Q10 flow(s) and the permitted wastewater facilities downstream;
and
d. Verification that the
permitting authority for the wastewater treatment facilities has been notified
of the Person's proposed action to increase the Present Rate of Interbasin
Transfer and a copy of that notification.
(d) For a transfer of wastewater with a
maximum daily capacity of more than 10,000 gallons per day or for a transfer
with a maximum daily capacity of less than or equal to 10,000 gallons per day
that has been determined by the Commission to need a higher level of review,
except for a transfer of wastewater triggered by the development of a local
water supply, a request for determination of Insignificance must also contain
the following information:
1. Delineation of
the areas proposed to receive wastewater service, if applicable, or areas where
the capacity of an existing wastewater service is proposed to be
enlarged;
2. Evaluation of
potential in-basin sources of disposal, including Title 5 septic systems,
reuse, and groundwater and surface water discharges; if available, provide a
Department of Environmental Protection approved comprehensive wastewater
management plan or other appropriate document that evaluates these
options;
3. For Interbasin
Transfers from sources that are upstream or upgradient of permitted wastewater
treatment facilities, the Person proposing an action to increase the Present
Rate of Interbasin Transfer shall provide:
a.
7Q10 flow(s) used in the NPDES Permits of all wastewater treatment facilities
that discharge downstream of transfer source(s);
b. Recalculated 7Q10 flow(s) that include the
proposed transfer;
c. Description
of how the transfer will affect the 7Q10 flow(s) and the permitted wastewater
facilities downstream; and
d.
Verification that the permitting authority for the wastewater treatment
facilities has been notified of the Person's proposed action to increase the
Present Rate of Interbasin Transfer and a copy of that notification;
4. For Interbasin Transfers that
will discharge wastewater to a permitted wastewater treatment facility, the
Person proposing an action to increase the Present Rate of Interbasin Transfer
shall provide:
a. Available capacity of the
wastewater treatment facility that is proposed to receive the wastewater;
and
b. Verification that the
permitting authority for the wastewater treatment facilities has been notified
of the Person's proposed action to increase the Present Rate of Interbasin
Transfer and a copy of that notification.
(e) The Commission may consider the
information available from all sources and Persons, including other federal,
state and local agencies, information arising out of a MEPA filing or review,
or on information from the public, when evaluating the project against the
Criteria for Determining Insignificance, listed in 313 CMR
4.08(3).
(3) Criteria for Determining Insignificance. The Commission shall take into account the following criteria in determining if a proposed action to increase the Present Rate of Interbasin Transfer is Insignificant:
(a) That the proposed action to
increase the Present Rate of Interbasin Transfer shall not facilitate an
increase of one million gallons per day or greater;
(b) For temporary transfers, that the
increase would be of short duration and conducted to facilitate the
construction, maintenance or repair of a public utility, for flood control
purposes, for public safety purposes or other similar purposes not related to
water supply or wastewater service;
(c) In the case of transfers primarily
derived from streamflow, that the cumulative transfer including the proposed
amount along with previously approved transfers, in all cases, is less than 5%
of the unimpacted 95% Exceedance Flow as estimated at an appropriate point of
the Donor Basin river or tributary thereto;
(d) In the case of transfers primarily
derived from lakes, ponds, reservoirs, or other impoundments, that the
cumulative annual amount of the transfer including the proposed amount along
with previously approved transfers, in all cases, is less than 1% of the
average annual precipitation on the drainage area of the water body, and less
than 5% of the drought year inflow to the water body;
(e) That the 7Q10 flow, when relied upon in a
program of pollution abatement, will not be significantly diminished or
prolonged;
(f) That special
resource values such as state-listed species and their habitats protected under
the Massachusetts Endangered Species Act, cold-water fisheries as defined in
321 CMR
5.00: Coldwater Fish Resources, river
herring, wetlands, areas of critical environmental concern, designated scenic
rivers, eelgrass and shellfish beds, or areas protected by Article 97 of the
Amendments to the Massachusetts Constitution will not be adversely
affected;
(g) That measures to
protect instream flows, as described in 314 CMR 4.08(2)(c) l., have been taken
where appropriate and achievable, and any such measures are proposed as part of
the application; and
(h) The
Commission shall consider the cumulative impacts of all past, authorized or
proposed transfers on streamflows, groundwater, lakes, ponds, reservoirs, or
other impoundments in the Donor Basin and relevant sub-basins. The Commission
will evaluate the proposed transfer along with previously approved transfers
cumulatively against relevant criteria of 313 CMR 4.08.
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