-- The public comment period has been extended to March 31. --
Background
The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is seeking public input on potential future changes to human health criteria (HHC) in state water quality standards.
HHC are the maximum concentration of a pollutant in a waterbody that is not expected to cause adverse effects to human health. DEC’s HHC are adopted via the Alaska Water Quality Criteria Manual for Toxic or Other Deleterious Organic or Inorganic Substances (2022) or based on values promulgated by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1992 as part of the National Toxics Rule (NTR). HHC can be derived using an equation-based approach with general and pollutant-specific inputs. DEC has committed to completing HHC revisions and rulemaking by the end of 2024.
No specific regulation revisions are proposed at this time, and there are no draft regulations to review at this time. The Department is seeking public input to inform the development of future draft regulations. DEC is gathering public comments about all aspects of HHC including methodology, formula inputs, and any other aspects of the human health criteria development process. This is a scoping process and all public comments submitted timely will be considered and posted on the DEC website.
Public Input
Written comments must be received by the department no later than 11:59 p.m. on March 31, 2023.
Submit your comments electronically, at this link: https://water.alaskadec.commentinput.com/?id=eBtkD
Alternately, you may mail comments to:
Brock Tabor
Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation
Division of Water – Water Quality Program
PO Box 111800
410 Willoughby Ave, 2nd Floor
Juneau, Alaska 99811
brock.tabor@alaska.gov
Please Note: The full contents of all submitted comments are considered public records and will be posted online in full during the scoping comment period.
Following this scoping process, any proposed regulatory revisions will be released for public review and comment in a separate process consistent with AS 44.62, the Administrative Procedures Act.
The department complies with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. If you are a person with a disability who needs a special accommodation in order to participate in this process, please contact Megan Kohler 907-269-4198 or TDD Relay Service 1-800-770-8973/TTY or dial 711 10 days prior to the end of the public scoping period.
For additional information please go to https://dec.alaska.gov/water/water-quality/human-health-criteria/