Florida DEP Announces TMDLs for Caloosahatchee River Basin

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection is initiating rulemaking to establish Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for surface waters within the Caloosahatchee River Basin. The Notice of Rulemaking does not specify which water bodies will be included. However, it is anticipated that this rulemaking will result in the setting of TMDLs for nutrients and DO, as applicable, for the entire Caloosahatchee River Basin, plus those impaired tributaries. The Notice specifies that these waterbodies previously have been identified as impaired for specific pollutants and included on the Department’s verified list of impaired waters. Further, the Notice states that these nutrient TMDLs, if adopted, are intended to constitute site specific numeric interpretations of the narrative nutrient criterion set forth in paragraph 62-302.530(47)(b), F.A.C. This is important for purposes of compliance with the NNC criteria.

The FDEP concurrently noticed a workshop to discuss progress on the Caloosahatchee tributaries nutrient TMDLs and to discuss the Caloosahatchee TMDL rulemaking. The details on the workshop are:

DATE AND TIME: June 5, 2013, 1:30 p.m.
PLACE: Southwest Florida Regional Planning Council, First Floor Conference Room, 1926 Victoria Avenue, Ft. Myers, Florida