NYSDEC Releases DRAFT Guidance Values to Advance New York State’s Regulation of Phosphorus
Release of draft TOGS documents for public comment.
On December 20, 2024, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) released new water quality guidance values (GVs) that will advance the State’s regulation of the nutrient phosphorus in ambient freshwaters. This announcement will be formalized in NYSDEC’s Environmental Notice Bulletin (ENB) on December 24, 2024, and the public comment period closes on February 24, 2025.
The new guidance values are established in a draft addendum to “Technical and Operational Guidance Series (TOGS) 1.1.1: Ambient Water Quality Standards and Guidance Values and Groundwater Effluent Limitations.” The draft addendum is supplemented by the release of a draft revision to “TOGS 1.3.6: Phosphorus Removal for Wastewater Discharges.”
The TOGS 1.1.1 Addendum includes phosphorus guidance values to protect human health and aquatic life in both flowing and ponded waterbodies. Because phosphorus is naturally occurring and an essential nutrient for most aquatic systems, the TOGS 1.1.1 Addendum also includes linked biological response variables that aid in identifying when phosphorus concentrations have become excessive. The response variable are chlorophyll-a and Biological Assessment Profile (BAP) and are detailed in the table below:
WATER CLASSES | WATER TYPE / ECOREGION | TOTAL PHOSPHORUS GV1 (µg/L) | RESPONSE VARIABLE | BEST USE PROTECTED | |
A, A-S, AA, AA-S, B, C | Flowing2 waters / Aggregated Nutrient Ecoregions3 8 & 11 | 30 | Biological Assessment Profile (BAP) shall not be less than or equal to 5 | Fishing (Aquatic Life) | |
A, A-S, AA, AA-S, B, C | Flowing2 waters / Aggregated Nutrient Ecoregions3 7 & 144 | 75 | BAP shall not be less than or equal to 5 | Fishing (Aquatic Life) | |
AA, AA-S | Flowing2 waters (Statewide) | 25 | Chlorophyll-a 4 µg/L | Drinking Water (Human Health) | |
A, A-S | Flowing2 waters (Statewide) | 25 | Chlorophyll-a 6 µg/L | Drinking Water (Human Health) | |
AA, AA-S | Ponded2 waters (Statewide) | 12 | Chlorophyll-a 4 µg/L | Drinking Water (Human Health) | |
A, A-S | Ponded2 waters (Statewide) | 17 | Chlorophyll-a 6 µg/L | Drinking Water (Human Health) | |
A, A-S, AA, AA-S, B, C | Ponded2 waters (Statewide) | 20 | Chlorophyll-a 8 µg/L | Fishing (Aquatic Life) | |
Remarks: | 1 “Flowing” values apply as mean concentrations, “Ponded” values apply as epilimnetic mean concentrations 2 “Ponded” waters (ponds, lakes, and reservoirs) are identified by a “P” in their Water Index Number (WIN) and also include the waters of Lake Champlain, Lake Ontario, and Lake Erie. “Flowing” waters (rivers, creeks, and streams) are any fresh waters not meeting the ponded water criteria. 3 Griffith et al. 1999, USEPA 2000 4 Also including the entire Hudson River south of the Troy Dam |
The derivations of the phosphorus guidance values and the associated response variable are found in the human health and aquatic life fact sheets under “Supporting Documents.”
The updates to TOGS 1.3.6 detail the State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (SPDES) permitting strategy for achieving phosphorus reductions in watersheds across New York State. The revised draft expands the applicability from new and expanding facilities discharging to ponded waters to include flowing waters and existing facilities identified as discharging to waterbodies exceeding, or at risk of exceeding, the proposed phosphorus guidance values. Updating TOGS 1.3.6 is necessary to implement phosphorus reductions more broadly and ensure phosphorus reductions are achieved in an environmentally meaningful and economically feasible way.
Supporting Documents
- Proposed Addendum to TOGS 1.1.1
- Proposed Update to TOGS 1.3.6
- Phosphorus Human Health Fact Sheet for Ponded and Flowing Waters
- Phosphorus Aquatic Life Fact Sheet for Flowing Waters
- Phosphorus Aquatic Life Fact Sheet for Ponded Waters
Public Comment on the Draft TOGS
The public comment period commences on December 20, 2024. Written statements may be submitted to NYSDEC, 625 Broadway, 4th Floor, Albany, NY 12233-3500, ATTN: Gwendolyn Temple or by email to [email protected]. Written statements must be submitted to the NYSDEC by 11:59 PM on February 24, 2025.
Contact: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, 625 Broadway, Albany NY 12233-3500, ATTN: Gwendolyn Temple, Phone: (518) 402-8194, E-mail: [email protected].
Questions and Additional Information
Further information, including copies TOGS and supporting documents, are available upon request by contacting:
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
625 Broadway, 4th Floor
Albany, NY 12233-3500, ATTN: Gwendolyn Temple
Phone: (518) 402-8194
Email: [email protected] Subject: NGV