December 5, 2023

Vol.2, No.15

Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Community Meetings

As part of a Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) awarded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), DEQ will host community meetings throughout the Commonwealth to solicit ideas for measures that could rapidly reduce greenhouse gas air emissions in Virginia. The feedback gathered at these meetings will enable DEQ to develop a short-term priority action plan that includes projects that would then compete for part of a $4.3 billion implementation fund.

Please join us at these upcoming community meetings to discuss the Climate Pollution Reduction Grant project and ideas in your community to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

• Dec. 5, 6-8 p.m. – Danville Community College, Temple 108 (1007 Bonner Ave., Danville, VA 24541)
• Dec. 7, 6-8 p.m. – Massanutten Regional Library Central Branch Grand Meeting Room (174 S Main St., Harrisonburg, VA 22801)
• Dec. 12, 6-8 p.m. – Eastern Shore Community College Rooms 147 and 148 (29300 Lankford Highway, Melfa, VA 23410)
• Dec. 14, 6-8 p.m. – Brunswick County Library, 3rd floor Conference Room (133 Hicks St., Lawrenceville, VA 23868)

Please note additional meetings are planned to be scheduled in January. Virginians are encouraged to attend a community meeting, provide questions or comments to CPRG@deq.virginia.gov, and complete this survey on priority actions by Jan. 31, 2024.

Virginia Drought Conditions Update

DEQ, in coordination with the Virginia Drought Monitoring Task Force, has expanded a drought watch advisory to include 55 counties, an expansion of 42 counties from the previous advisory. Seven counties remain under a drought warning advisory. All regions except for Southwest Virginia, the Middle Peninsula, and Tidewater are affected. While recent rain has helped alleviate dry conditions for the short term, it has not been sufficient to overcome the deficits observed in soil moisture, streamflow, and groundwater levels.

DEQ is working with local governments, public water works, and water users in the affected areas to ensure that conservation and drought response plans and ordinances are followed. All Virginians are encouraged to protect water supplies by minimizing water use, monitor drought conditions, and detect and repair leaks.

Virginia's 2024 Water Quality Assessment Guidance Manual contains the assessment procedures and methods to be used for the development of Virginia's Integrated Report. The guidance addresses all key elements of the EPA 2006 Assessment Guidance and subsequent updates current to January 2023, in addition to the assessment methodology for Chesapeake Bay Water Quality Standards. Modifications have been made to the guidance document since 2022, the most recent approved Integrated Report. A complete list of significant guidance modifications is described in Part II of the manual.

Virginia Draft Chesapeake Bay 2024-2025 Milestones Available for Public Review and Comment

Virginia is committed to setting and working towards two-year milestones to improve water quality in accordance with the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL). These milestones are part of EPA's accountability framework designed to ensure that the nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment allocations of the TMDL will be met.

Virginia's draft Chesapeake Bay 2024-2025 Milestones are available for public comment until Dec. 19. The draft milestones can be found on DEQ's Chesapeake Bay Nutrient and Sediment Reduction Milestones webpage.

Last Call for the 2024 Governor's Environmental Excellence Award Applications!

Has your facility been working to reduce its environmental footprint? Do you have a stellar sustainability initiative? Did you develop an innovative strategy that benefited the environment? Consider applying for the 2024 Governor's Environmental Excellence Awards. The awards acknowledge successful and innovative programs and projects throughout Virginia in the following categories:

• Environmental and Sustainability Program
• Environmental and Sustainability Project
• Green Government for Commonwealth Entities
• Land Conservation
• Virginia Outdoors Plan Implementation

Applications are due Dec. 7. Apply today!

DEQ staff, along with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, recently hosted a Hazardous Materials Incident Tabletop Exercise. The purpose of the exercise was to evaluate an updated oil and hazardous materials response annex to the Commonwealth of Virginia Emergency Operations Plan. This exercise brought local, state, and federal agencies together to review and practice response plans for hazardous incidents such as a train derailment in a populous area. Participants discussed responsibilities of each agency and collaborated to improve their strategies for more efficient responses. As a result, the City of Richmond, Commonwealth of Virginia, and federal partners are now better prepared for any potential hazardous incident.

DEQ Director Michael Rolband and DEQ Water Division Director Scott Morris, along with several staff and partners, recently toured Hampton Roads Sanitation District's Nansemond Treatment Plant in Suffolk for an update on the Sustainable Water Initiative for Tomorrow (SWIFT). SWIFT is an innovative water treatment project in eastern Virginia designed to ensure a sustainable source of groundwater while addressing environmental challenges such as Chesapeake Bay restoration, sea level rise, and saltwater intrusion.

The Virginia Coastal Zone Management (CZM) Program has published its Summer/Fall 2023 magazine issue!

For over 30 years, the CZM program has used storytelling to paint the big picture of coastal zone management. Staff-authored articles combined with colorful and compelling imagery illustrate the extent of our coastal challenges and describe real, on-the-ground change and improvements. These solutions were formed through partner engagement and Federal Coastal Zone Management Act funding.

"Virginia CZM as a program is quite complex, owing to the variety of issues we address and the network of agencies and organizations that make up the program," said Ryan Green, CZM program manager. "A good story can make it very straightforward and simple. That's the value of the magazine.

For a hard copy of the issue, please contact Virginia Whitmer or April Bahen.

We join the Fauquier Times in celebrating Fauquier County for doing more actual recycling than many Virginia counties. That includes items brought there by Fauquier County residents or delivered by Fauquier County and the Town of Warrenton.

The county's separate containers at the collection sites keep the materials from being contaminated with other items. Then the items are separated again and inspected three times at the facility before being processed into bales with only about 2% contamination.

In 2023, Fauquier County's recycling facility processed:

• 524 tons of glass
• 734 tons of cardboard
• 472 tons of mixed paper
• 14 tons of plastic bags
• 52 tons of textiles
• 89 tons of motor oil and antifreeze
• 91 tons of No.1 PET plastic
• 1,191 20 lb. propane tanks

In early December, DEQ Director Michael Rolband and staff visited the City of Alexandria to view the construction of the Waterfront Tunnel. The tunnel is part of the RiverRenew project, which is a series of new tunnels and shafts to capture combined sewer overflows and retain that flow until it can be treated by AlexRenew's Water Resources Recovery Facility. This plan aims to prevent an average of 130 million gallons of combined sewage from polluting the Potomac River and its tributaries each year.

The 12-foot-wide tunnel is located 100 feet below ground. A state-of-the-art custom-built tunnel boring machine named Hazel has so far helped construct 1.25 miles of the 2.2-mile-long tunnel. The volume of soil excavated so far could fill around 4,400 full-sized dump trucks! Currently, Hazel is constructing the portion of tunnel located under the Potomac River.

DEQ has published a draft Default 10e-6 Alternate Concentration Limit (ACL) Table to reflect recent changes to EPA's Regional Screening Level Table. ACLs are used to ensure that groundwater is protected and/or cleaned up to be protective of human health and the environment throughout the solid waste permitting and corrective action processes. The updated ACL Table, which will be effective Jan. 1, 2024, established a new value for isobutyl alcohol, 730 µg/l, which replaces the previous ACL for isobutyl alcohol of 5900 µg/l. Since isobutyl alcohol is uncommon at solid waste facilities, no impacts to Virginia's solid waste landfill groundwater monitoring programs are anticipated from this update. No other ACL values have changed as a result of these modifications. Learn more about solid and hazardous waste permitting on the DEQ website.

Are you passionate about environmental conservation and eager to gain hands-on experience in the field? Look no further! DEQ is thrilled to announce our first-ever Open House for Summer 2024. As the leading environmental agency in Virginia, DEQ is dedicated to protecting and enhancing the quality of our natural resources. We are excited to offer this unique opportunity for college students across Virginia to explore potential internships within our organization.

Open houses will be held Jan. 11 at 9:30 a.m. at our regional offices in Salem, Woodbridge, Richmond, and Virginia Beach. During the open house, interested students will have the chance to:

1. Learn about DEQ: Gain insight into our mission, goals, and the various environmental programs we oversee.
2. Explore internship opportunities: Discover the diverse range of internships available within our organization, tailored to different areas of interest such as air quality, water resources, waste management, environmental education, and more.
3. Meet DEQ professionals: Engage with our experienced staff members who will be present to answer your questions and provide valuable guidance on potential career paths in environmental conservation.
4. Tour our offices: Get an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at four of our regional DEQ offices.

Visit our LinkTree to register for an Open House near you, or to begin the summer internship application process. Internship opportunities are available at all DEQ regional offices.

Public Participation Opportunities

Visit the DEQ website for comment opportunities on pending enforcement orders and permit actions. The following regulatory actions are available for public comment:

• NOIRA Sewage Collection and Treatment Regulations (9VAC25-790) (comment by 12/6)
• Proposed General Virginia Pollutant Discharge Elimination System for Discharges of Stormwater from Construction Activities (9VAC25-880) (comment by 12/6)

In addition, there are numerous DEQ meetings and general comment periods where you can stay up to date on topics of interest:

• Community Pollution Reduction Planning Meeting; Dec. 7 at 6:00 p.m. at Massanutten Regional Library Central Branch, 174 S Main St., Harrisonburg
• Community Pollution Reduction Planning Meeting; Dec. 12 at 6:00 p.m. at Eastern Shore Community College, 29300 Lankford Highway, Melfa
• Implementation Plan Community Engagement Meeting - Watershed Cleanup Plan for North Fork Rivanna River watershed in Albemarle and Greene County; Dec. 13 at 1:00 p.m. at Greene County Cooperative Extension Office, 10013 Spotswood Trail, Stanardsville
• Community Pollution Reduction Planning Meeting; Dec. 14 at 6:00 p.m. at Brunswick County Library, 133 Hicks St., Lawrenceville

Employment Opportunities

Are you committed to protecting human health and the environment? Apply for a job at DEQ. Current openings include:

• Air & Water Permit Writers (Woodbridge; closes Dec. 8)
• Tank Technical Auditor (Richmond; closes Dec. 12)
• Water Permit Writer (Richmond; closes Dec. 12)
• Stormwater/ESC Standards & Specifications Coordinator (Richmond; closes Dec. 12)
• Water Compliance Inspector (Woodbridge; closes Dec. 15)

DEQ does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, age, or sex in administration of its programs or activities, and, DEQ does not intimidate or retaliate against any individual or group because they have exercised their rights to participate in actions protected, or oppose action prohibited, by 40 C.F.R. Parts 5 and 7, or for the purpose of interfering with such rights. Title VI Coordinator Melanie Davenport is responsible for coordination of compliance efforts and receipt of inquiries concerning non-discrimination requirements implemented by 40 C.F.R. Parts 5 and 7 (Non-discrimination in Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Assistance from the Environmental Protection Agency), including Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; the Age Discrimination Act of 1975; Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; and Section 13 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 (hereinafter referred to collectively as the federal non-discrimination laws). If you have any questions about this notice or any of DEQ's non-discrimination programs, policies or procedures, you may contact:

Title VI Coordinator - Melanie Davenport; Virginia Department of Environmental Quality; P.O. Box 1105; Richmond, VA 23218; (804) 698-4000 (phone); (800) 592-5482 (toll-free); Melanie.Davenport@deq.virginia.gov

If you believe that you have been discriminated against with respect to a DEQ program or activity, you may contact the Title VI Coordinator identified above or visit our website at get-involved/about-us to learn how and where to file a complaint of discrimination.