CSHB 149(RES): "An Act relating to the authority of the Department of Environmental Conservation to require certain monitoring, sampling, and reporting and to require permits for certain discharges of pollutants; relating to criminal penalties for violations of the permit program; and providing for an effective date."
00 CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 149(RES) 01 "An Act relating to the authority of the Department of Environmental Conservation to 02 require certain monitoring, sampling, and reporting and to require permits for certain 03 discharges of pollutants; relating to criminal penalties for violations of the permit 04 program; and providing for an effective date." 05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 * Section 1. AS 46.03.020 is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 07 (13) require the owner or operator of a facility to undertake 08 monitoring, sampling, and reporting activities described in 33 U.S.C. 1318 (sec. 308, 09 Clean Water Act). 10 * Sec. 2. AS 46.03.100(a) is amended to read: 11 (a) A person may not construct, modify, or operate a sewerage system or 12 treatment works or take any action [DISPOSE OF OR CONDUCT AN 13 OPERATION] that results in the disposal or discharge of solid or liquid waste 14 material or heated process or cooling water into the waters or onto the land of the state
01 without prior authorization from the department. [DEPARTMENT 02 AUTHORIZATION SHALL BE OBTAINED FOR DIRECT DISPOSAL AND FOR 03 DISPOSAL, OTHER THAN OF DOMESTIC SEWAGE, INTO PUBLICLY 04 OWNED OR OPERATED SEWERAGE SYSTEMS.] 05 * Sec. 3. AS 46.03.100(b) is amended to read: 06 (b) Prior authorization may be provided by the department, in its discretion, 07 [IS PROVIDED] through one or a combination of the following: 08 (1) an individual permit issued for a specific facility or disposal 09 activity; 10 (2) a general permit issued on a statewide, regional, or other 11 geographical basis for a category of disposal activities that the commissioner, using 12 information available when the permit is developed, determines are similar in nature 13 and will comply with applicable environmental quality standards established under 14 this title; 15 (3) regulations adopted by the department authorizing a category of 16 disposal without requiring a permit and establishing specific siting or operational 17 requirements, discharge limits, or best management practices for the disposal 18 category; 19 (4) designation and approval of a plan as described under (c) of this 20 section; 21 (5) an integrated waste management and disposal authorization as 22 described in (d) of this section. 23 * Sec. 4. AS 46.03.100(e) is amended to read: 24 (e) This section does not apply to 25 (1) a person discharging only domestic sewage into a publicly owned 26 treatment works [SEWERAGE SYSTEM]; 27 (2) disposals subject to regulation under AS 31.05.030(e)(2); 28 (3) injection projects permitted under AS 31.05.030(h); 29 (4) discharges of solid or liquid waste material or water discharges 30 from the following activities if the discharge is incidental to the activity and the 31 activity does not produce a discharge from a point source, as that term is defined in
01 regulations adopted under this chapter, [DIRECTLY] into any waters [SURFACE 02 WATER] of the United States [STATE]: 03 (A) mineral drilling, trenching, ditching, and similar activities; 04 (B) landscaping; 05 (C) water well drilling and geophysical drilling; or 06 (D) drilling, ditching, trenching, and similar activities 07 associated with facility construction and maintenance or with road or other 08 transportation facility construction and maintenance; however, the exemption 09 provided by this subparagraph does not relieve a person from obtaining a prior 10 authorization under this section if the drilling, ditching, trenching, or similar 11 activity will involve the removal of the groundwater, stormwater, or 12 wastewater runoff that has accumulated and is present at an excavation site for 13 facility, road, or other transportation construction or maintenance and a prior 14 authorization is otherwise required by this section; 15 (5) bilge pumping, unless the bilge product pumped may be expected 16 to yield an oily sludge, emulsion, or sheen on the surface of any water of the state; 17 (6) cooling water discharges from a boat or vessel into any surface 18 water of the state; or 19 (7) the firing or other use of munitions in training activities conducted 20 on active ranges, including active ranges operated by the United States Department of 21 Defense or a United States military agency, unless it results in a discharge into 22 waters of the United States. 23 * Sec. 5. AS 46.03.100(h) is amended to read: 24 (h) The program developed to issue permits by the department to authorize 25 discharge of pollutants into surface waters and submitted to the United States 26 Environmental Protection Agency for approval under 33 U.S.C. 1342 (sec. 402, Clean 27 Water Act) shall include the monitoring and reporting requirements included in the 28 permits, limited to those requirements authorized [MANDATED] by law, including 29 33 U.S.C. 1318 (sec. 308, Clean Water Act), and any legal settlements, and those 30 necessary to ascertain compliance with the effluent limitations contained in the permit 31 and with state water quality standards. .
01 * Sec. 6. AS 46.03.100 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 02 (m) For purposes of the permit program authorized by the United States 03 Environmental Protection Agency under 33 U.S.C. 1342 (sec. 402, Clean Water Act), 04 "waste material" includes pollutants, as defined in 33 U.S.C. 1362(6) (sec. 502(6), 05 Clean Water Act). 06 * Sec. 7. AS 46.03.110 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 07 (f) The standards for determining waste material in AS 46.03.100(m) apply to 08 this section. 09 * Sec. 8. AS 46.03.790 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 10 (i) Notwithstanding (a) and (d) of this section, a person is guilty of a class A 11 misdemeanor if the person negligently 12 (1) violates a regulation adopted by the department under 13 AS 46.03.020(12); 14 (2) violates a permit issued under the program authorized by 15 AS 46.03.020(12); 16 (3) fails to provide information or provides false information required 17 by a regulation adopted under AS 46.03.020(12); 18 (4) makes a false statement, representation, or certification in an 19 application, notice, record, report, permit, or other document filed, maintained, or used 20 for purposes of compliance with a permit issued under or a regulation adopted under 21 AS 46.03.020(12); or 22 (5) renders inaccurate a monitoring device or method required to be 23 maintained by a permit issued under or a regulation adopted under AS 46.03.020(12). 24 * Sec. 9. This Act takes effect immediately under AS 01.10.070(c).