| | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: |
|
| | | Sec. 1. 38 MRSA §464, sub-§10-A is enacted to read: |
|
| | | 10-A.__Existing hydropower impoundments managed as major river | | basins; recreational use.__For the purposes of water quality | | certification under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, | | Public Law 92-500, Section 401, as amended, and the licensing of | | modifications under section 636, the hydropower project located | | at Gulf Island Pond on the water body referenced in section 467, | | subsection 1, paragraph A, subparagraph (2) is not deemed to have | | met the recreational use criteria in the hydropower project | | impoundment unless: |
|
| | | A.__Monitoring and forecasting is conducted of water | | conditions, including, without limitation, phosphorus, | | nitrogen, oxygen, sediment conditions, temperature and river | | flow, on an ongoing basis; and |
|
| | | B.__Changes in the operating regimen of the hydropower | | project are implemented that would, based on information | | obtained in paragraph A, result in improvement of the | | suitability of the hydropower project impoundment for | | recreational uses in and on the water, including, without | | limitation, mitigation of algae blooms resulting in | | unsuitable conditions for water contact recreation. |
|
| | | If the monitoring and forecasting under paragraph A predict the | | likelihood of algae blooms, then changes in the operating regimen | | of the hydropower project must be implemented immediately to | | prevent the occurrence of algae blooms.__For purposes of | | paragraph B, changes include, without limitation, lowering water | | body temperature, changing river flow or implementing water | | drawdowns at selected periods during summer stratification of the | | water body. |
|
| | | All facilities with wastewater discharge licenses that discharge | | phosphorus into the water body referenced in section 467, | | subsection 1, paragraph A, subparagraph (2) shall fund, on a pro | | rata basis based on wastewater discharge license limits of summer | | biological oxygen demand wastewater discharges in effect on | | January 1, 2005, the development of a real-time monitoring and | | modeling system capable of computing flow fields and nutrient | | water quality parameters sufficient to allow accurate forecasting | | of triggers for drawdown of the hydropower project impoundment to | | prevent algae bloom or anoxic events.__This modeling, which must | | build on existing department modeling, must be done under the | | supervision of the department and must be completed on or before | | February 1, 2006.__Modification to the protocols for the | | operating regimen of the hydropower project must be implemented | | on or before May 1, 2006. |
|
|