DEC Contact:
Clynda A. Case
Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation
1700 E. Bogard Rd., Building B, Suite 103
Wasilla, AK 99654
Phone: (907) 376-1865
Fax: (907) 376-2382
E-mail: Clynda.Case@alaska.gov

Draft Permit Public Notice Period:
Public Notice Start Date: October 31, 2016
Public Notice Expiration Date: January 6, 2017

Permit No.: AKG521000
Proposed Permit Coverage: DEC proposes to issue APDES general permit (permit) AKG521000 to operators of seafood processors and operators of community grinders (i.e., owners/operators of a fish carcass grinder and associated outfall) that discharge seafood waste to marine or fresh water. The permit authorizes discharges to all waters of the U.S. (marine and fresh) under the jurisdiction of the State of Alaska except for those listed in the permit as Excluded Areas.

Description of Discharges:
The pollutants of concern associated with the discharges includes residues, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), total suspended solids (TSS), and non-petroleum oil and grease. These pollutants come from the waste solids (shell, bones, skin, scales, flesh, and organs), blood, body fluids, slime, stickwater, and oils and fats from cooking and rendering operations. Ammonia may be present intermittently to a lesser extent. Other regulated parameters include color, turbidity, pH, and temperature.

The permit also authorizes the discharge of commingled industrial storm water, cooling water, boiler water, domestic wastewater, vessel’s sanitary effluent and graywater discharges, freshwater pressure relief water, refrigeration condensate, refrigerated seawater, cooking water, scrubber water, catch transfer water, and live tank water from seafood processing facilities. Pollutants in these discharge streams may include TSS, BOD, fecal coliform bacteria, non-petroleum oil and grease, pH, and temperature.

Mixing Zone: For each outfall/port where a mixing zone is requested and can be approved, a standard mixing zone sized as a circle with a 100-foot radius centered at the discharge terminus extending vertically up to the surface and down to the seafloor will be authorized for those facilities listed in Permit AKG521000 - Appendix D, and new permittees meeting the conditions of the permit.

Project Area Zone of Deposit (Project Area ZOD): For Remote facility wastewater discharges, DEC is proposing facility specific Project Area ZODs to allow deposits of seafood residues. The Project Area ZOD will encompass a specified total area of seafloor where the seafood processing facility’s activities are expected to occur. Project Area ZODs will be authorized in marine and estuarine waters per 18 AAC 70.210 (June 26, 2003), which allow the water quality criteria of 18 AAC 70.020(b) and the antidegradation requirements of 18 AAC 70.015 to be exceeded. After the submittal of a complete Notice of Intent, Project Area ZODs will be issued to Remote facilities listed in the Permit AKG521000 - Appendix D. Maps of each facility’s Project Area ZOD are available at: http://dec.alaska.gov/das/gis/apps.htm

Tentative Determination:
DEC has tentatively determined to issue a discharge permit for the activity described above.

Public Comments:
Written comments or requests for a public hearing on the APDES draft general permit must be submitted within 68 days of the issuance of this public notice. Please direct written comments to the attention of Clynda A. Case at the address or email identified above. All comments should include the name, address, and telephone number of the commenter and a concise statement of comment on the permit condition(s) and the relevant facts upon which the comment is based. Comments of either support or concern which are directed at specific, cited permit requirements are appreciated. Mailed comments must be postmarked on or before the expiration date of the public notice.

DEC will consider all comments when making the final decision, and will respond to received comments in a Response to Comments document issued when DEC issues a final permit. The Response to Comments will be made available to the public.

Any interested person may submit a written request for a public hearing if no hearing has already been scheduled. A request for a public hearing shall state the nature of the issues to be raised, as well as the requester's name, address and telephone number. DEC will hold a public hearing whenever DEC finds, on the basis of requests, a significant degree of public interest in a draft permit. DEC may also hold a public hearing if a hearing might clarify one or more issues involved in a permit decision or for other good reason in DEC’s discretion.

DEC will transmit the final permit, fact sheet (amended as appropriate), and Response to Comments to anyone who provided comments during the public review period or requested to be notified of DEC final decision.

DEADLINE FOR WRITTEN COMMENTS OR REQUEST FOR PUBLIC HEARING
January 6, 2017 at 5:00 p.m. [AST]

Administrative Record:
The APDES preliminary draft general permit, fact sheet, and associated documents are available for public review at the DEC offices located in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, Soldotna, and Wasilla. Please contact a DEC office listed below to arrange for hard copies of the documents to be available for your review.

If you would like to see any additional supporting technical documents, contact the permit writer and technical contact, Clynda A. Case.

The documents are also accessible from the DEC website at:
http://www.dec.state.ak.us/water/wwdp/index.htm

To receive email notifications about the APDES Program, including when permits are available to review, follow the link below to join the APDES email list.
http://dec.alaska.gov/water/npdes/npdes_email_list.htm

Disability Reasonable Accommodation Notice
The State of Alaska, Department of Environmental Conservation complies with Title II of the American with Disabilities Act of 1990. If you are a person with a disability who may need a special accommodation in order to participate in this review, please contact Natalie Wolfe at (907) 269-0291 or TDD Relay Service 1-800-770-8973/TTY or dial 711 within 10 days of publication of this notice to ensure that any necessary accommodations can be provided.