Notice of Proposed Issuance of an Alaska Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (APDES) Individual Permit to Discharge to Waters of the United States

A Fact sheet and associated documents are available for review. For inquiries or to request copies of documents, contact:

DEC Contact:  Amber Bennett, 610 University Avenue, Fairbanks, AK 99709, 907-451-2190,   amber.bennett@alaska.gov

Draft Permit Public Notice Period:

Public Notice Start Date: October 8, 2025
Public Notice Expiration Date: November 10, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. AST

Permit Number: AK0022543

Applicant: Anchorage Water and Wastewater Utility
                 Eagle River Wastewater Treatment Facility
                 15524 Artillery Road Eagle River, AK 99577
                  Mailing: 3000 Arctic Boulevard Anchorage, AK  99503      

Proposed Project and Location: The Anchorage Water & Wastewater Utility (AWWU) operates the Eagle River Wastewater Treatment Facility (ER WWTF) in the community of Eagle River, Alaska, part of the Municipality of Anchorage, having a population of approximately 19,500 people. The ER WWTF is a Publicly-Owned Treatment Works (POTW), an activated sludge secondary treatment plant with effluent filtration and ultraviolet disinfection. The design rate for the facility is 2.5 million gallons per day. The ER WWTF discharges secondary treated domestic wastewater to Eagle River at 61.321667 North latitude and 149.591944 West longitude. Separate mixing zones for the summer season (June 1 – September 30) and winter season (October 1 – May 31) will be authorized. Pollutants in the mixing zone are total nitrate/nitrite, zinc, copper, lead, dissolved oxygen, total dissolved solids, temperature, and Whole Effluent Toxicity.

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 permit must be submitted within 30 days of the issuance of this public notice. Any person desiring to comment on the permit may direct written comments and requests to the attention of the DEC contact/permit writer at the email address or postal address identified above. All comments should include the name, address, telephone number, and email address 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 that are directed at specific, cited permit requirements are appreciated. Mailed comments and requests 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, telephone number, and email address. 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:
11/10/2025 at 11:59 p.m.

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

If you would like further information or to see any additional supporting technical documents, contact Amber Bennett. The documents are also accessible from the DEC website at: http://dec.alaska.gov/water/wastewater/.

Disability Reasonable Accommodation Notice

The State of Alaska, Department of Environmental Conservation complies with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. If you are a person with a disability who may need a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in this public process, please contact Kristin Mabry at Kristin.mabry@alaska.gov or 1-907-334-0884, Alaska Relay Services/TTY/TDD 1-800-770-8973/TTY or dial 711 to ensure that any necessary accommodation can be provided.