Texas Administrative Code
Title 31 - NATURAL RESOURCES AND CONSERVATION
Part 1 - GENERAL LAND OFFICE
Chapter 26 - COASTAL MANAGEMENT PROGRAM
Subchapter B - GOALS AND POLICIES
Section 26.21 - Policies for Discharge of Municipal and Industrial Wastewater to Coastal Waters

(1) comply with the requirements of the Clean Water Act, 33 United States Code Annotated, §§1251 et seq, and implementing regulations at Code of Federal Regulations, Title 40, which include establishing surface water quality standards in order to protect designated uses of coastal waters, including the protection of uses for water supply, recreational purposes, and propagation and protection of terrestrial and aquatic life, and establishing water-quality-based effluent limits, including toxicity monitoring and specific toxicity or chemical limits as necessary to protect designated uses of coastal waters;

(2) provide for the assessment of water quality on a coastal watershed basis as required by the Texas Water Code, § 26.0135(d);

(3) to the greatest extent practicable, provide that all permits for the discharge of wastewater within a given watershed or region of a single watershed contain the same expiration date in order to evaluate the combined effects of permitted discharges on water quality within that watershed or region;

(4) identify and rank waters that are not attaining designated uses and establish total maximum daily pollutant loads in accordance with those rankings using scientifically valid models calibrated and validated with monitored data and with public input from affected stakeholders; and

(5) require that increases in pollutant loads to coastal waters shall not:

(1) Discharges shall comply with water-quality-based effluent limits.

(2) Discharges that increase pollutant loadings to coastal waters shall not impair designated uses of coastal waters and shall not significantly degrade coastal water quality unless necessary for important economic or social development.

(3) To the greatest extent practicable, new wastewater outfalls shall be located where they will not adversely affect critical areas.