Waste Discharge Requirements, General Order for In-situ Groundwater Remediation

Waste Discharge Requirements, General Order for In-situ Groundwater Remediation

The Regional Board proposes to adopt General Waste Discharge Requirements (WDRs) for in-situ groundwater remediation at sites impacted by volatile organic compounds, nitrogen compounds, perchlorate, pesticides, semi-volatile organic compounds, hexavalent chromium, and/or petroleum hydrocarbons. These constituents pollute various sites throughout the Central Valley Region and cause, or threaten to cause, adverse impacts to existing and potential beneficial uses of the region's groundwater resources. In many cases, in-situ cleanup of groundwater at these sites includes the use and application of chemical, biological, and physical treatment processes, such chemical oxidation, chemical reduction, nutrient or chemical addition for enhanced biodegradation, or groundwater pump and treat technology with the return of treated groundwater back to the same aquifer zone. The adoption of general WDRs for in-situ groundwater remediation/cleanup would: (a) provide a level of protection of water quality comparable individual, site-specific WDRs; (b) simplify the application process for dischargers; (c) allow more efficient use of Regional Board staff time; (d) reduce Regional Board time by enabling the Executive Office to notify the discharger of the applicability of the general WDRs; and (e) enhance the protection of surface water quality by eliminating the discharge of wastewater to surface waters. In addition, each individual in-situ cleanup project will be required to have complied with CEQA on a site-specific basis prior to being allowed to be covered under the general WDRs.

California Department of Conservation (DOC), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Habitat Conservation Planning (CDFW), California Department of Parks and Recreation, California Department of Transportation, Division of Transportation Planning (DOT), California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC), California State Lands Commission (SLC), Central Valley Flood Protection Board, Department of Toxic Substances Control, Department of Water Resources, Resources Agency, Resources, Recycling and Recovery, State Water Resources Control Board, Divison of Financial Assistance

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