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research: bacteria tmdl implementation control strategies of the southeast: recommendations for georgia 18-20% of the water bodies in Georgia have been sampled by the GAEPD or an authorized sampling unit, representing over 71,000 river miles. Of the 11,285 miles of streams and rivers assessed in Georgia, roughly 57 percent are impaired. As of 2002, over 850 TMDLs had been developed in the state of Georgia. Within The Watershed Protection Branch of Georgia's Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division (GAEPD), the TMDL Implementation Program coordinates implementation efforts and facilitates remediation through education, outreach and funding. The river basins of Georgia are placed into five groups which follow a rotating 5 year schedule for TMDL development, planning, monitoring, modeling, permitting, and other water quality efforts. TMDL implementation planning generally follows a two-step process. The TMDL initial implementation plan includes a list of potential control strategies, BMP projects, and schedules. Revised TMDL implementation plans are then written to include the participation and support of local governments and stakeholder groups; these supercede the initial plan. Revised implementation plans are prepared by either GAEPD or contracted out to sixteen Regional Development Centers (RDCs). Which plans are developed by whom is dictated by the tiered TMDL process established by GAEPD (Radcliffe et al. 2006): • Tier 3 plans are developed in-house by GAEPD staff. This includes streams impaired due to natural conditions (i.e. wildlife), legacy sediments, and streams partially supporting designated uses. • Tier 2 plans require more planning and community/stakeholder involvement, and are therefore contracted to RDCs. These are generally impaired streams that do not support their designated uses. • Tier 1 plans are more complex than Tier 2; and may require further non-point source identification and BMP selection. GAEPD plans for Tier 1 reports to serve as supporting documentation for 319 grant monies. One of the stipulations of the 1997 consent decree from the Sierra Club TMDL lawsuit was to complete a particular number of implementation plans within a particular time limit. With the conclusion of the consent decree in December 2005, GAEPD is now "slowing" the development of TMDL implementation plans. Emphasis is being placed on actually improving water quality, revising TMDL implementation plans to appropriately address water quality issues, and implementing methods of adaptive management to address changing needs and situations. The largest impediment to implementation is a lack of adequate funding. Currently, Clean Water Act Section 319 non-point source grants are available to fund non-point source TMDL implementation efforts and water quality improvement projects. These grants are administered by the Nonpoint Source Program within GAEPD's Watershed Protection Branch. Other potential funding sources and strategies are reviewed in the case studies and recommendations of this project. Georgia links and documents:
USEPA guidance and other relevant documents:
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