Comments
GWPC COMMENTS
The GWPC publishes and submits comments on policy positions for a variety of topics when necessary. Filter and search for previously published GWPC comments below.
Filter by Topic
Comments on EPA Applying the Supreme Court’s County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund Decision in the Clean Water Act Section 402 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit Program
The Ground Water Protection Council (GWPC) provided comments and feedback to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding their draft memorandum which will provide guidance to the regulated community and permitting authorities on applying the recent decision of the United States Supreme Court in County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund, 140 S. Ct. 1462 (2020), in the Clean Water Act Section 402 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program for point source discharges that travel through groundwater before reaching waters of the United States.GWPC recognizes that groundwater is not and has never been a jurisdictional water under the definition of waters of the United States. States have full authority over their groundwater resources. Many of our member agencies protect groundwater quality and resources utilizing both federal and state authorities that are outside the regulatory jurisdiction of the CWA.
Joint Comments on the USEPA on the Proposed 2020 Financial Capability Assessment for Clean Water Act (CWA) Obligations
The Ground Water Protection Council and the National Ground Water Association jointly provided comments and feedback on the USEPA on the Proposed 2020 Financial Capability Assessment for Clean Water Act (CWA) Obligations. We support funding for communities needing assistance in managing their water resources and for stormwater reuse that may be used as a source of recharge for aquifers as well as supporting the environment. Assessing the financial capability of communities is fundamental to providing financial assistance for adequate needed infrastructure.
ASDWA and GWPC Comments on 2018 Farm Bill Implementation (USDA-2019-0001) Federal Register Notice 2/14/19, 84 FR 4041, 2018 Farm Bill Implementation Listening Session
GWPC and ASDWA are the professional associations that represent the collective interests of the nation's state drinking water and ground water programs responsible for implementation of Federal Safe Drinking Water Act regulations and voluntary source water and wellhead protection programs and actions. Our comments address implementation of Farm Bill Section 2503(d), Source Water Protection Through Targeting of Agricultural Practices.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: EPA Strategic Plan Information on Source Water Protection
The Association of State Drinking Water Administrators (ASDWA) and the Ground Water Protection Council (GWPC) are pleased to submit the following comments on the proposed Information Collection Request (ICR) on EPA ICR No. 1816.07 (OMB Control No. 2040-0197) for “Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: EPA Strategic Plan Information on Source Water Protection.” ASDWA and GWPC are the professional associations that represent the collective interests of the nation's state drinking water and ground water programs responsible for implementation of Federal Safe Drinking Water Act regulations and voluntary source water and wellhead protection programs and actions. Collectively, the members of our organizations are responsible for reporting on this EPA strategic plan measure and will be most impacted by this ICR. The following comments are intended to broadly address the proposed rule, but they do not necessarily reflect the concerns of individual states.
Comments on 40 CFR Part 122 [EPA–HQ–OW–2018–0063; FRL–9973–41–OW] Clean Water Act Coverage of ‘‘Discharges of Pollutants’’ via a Direct Hydrologic Connection to Surface Water
The Ground Water Protection Council (www.gwpc.org) provided comments and feedback to the EPA regarding the Agency review and potential revisions or clarification to its previous statements concerning the applicability of the CWA NPDES permit program to pollutant discharges from point sources that reach jurisdictional surface waters via groundwater or other subsurface flow that has a direct hydrologic connection to a jurisdictional surface water. The following comments are intended to broadly address this request, but they do not necessarily reflect all of the concerns of individual states.
Comments on proposed rule defining Waters of the United States protected under the Clean Water Act (79FR22188)
Comments on Proposed USDA Forest Service Directive on Groundwater Resource Management
GWPC recognizes the emphasis in this document on working with states. We feel that collaboration and cooperation with the States is necessary for US Forest Service (USFS) to achieve the vision, goals, strategies, and actions set out within the Groundwater Directive for UIC activities. Recognizing that USFS is not authorized to implement the UIC program under the Safe Drinking Water Act and thus does not have the regulatory authority necessary to carry out some of the provision of the directive, our specific comments provide information on how and when USFS can work within the existing UIC regulatory framework administered by US Environment Protection Agency (USEPA) and the delegated states to ensure all applicable UIC authorizations and permits have been issued by the appropriate regulatory authority.