The purpose of this document is to describe and standardize the process by which fish consumption advisories (FCAs) are developed and publicly disseminated in Colorado. This document identifies the roles and responsibilities of the state agencies involved in the process, and describes the steps involved in implementing this policy.
The Water Quality Control Division (the Division) in the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is tasked with administering water quality control programs to protect waters of the state. The Division provides education, compliance assistance, permits, inspections and enforcement to promote prevention, control and abatement of water pollution. Per HB121119, the Division has been meeting since June (a total of 10 meetings) with stakeholders in the construction industry and other interested parties to develop a more responsive, streamlined process to improve compliance, reduce violations and provide timely enforcement. This report includes the results of this collaborative effort, including actions to develop more streamlined and responsive processes and recommendations for moving forward.
The federal Clean Water Act requires that stormwater discharges from certain types of facilities be authorized under stormwater discharge permits. The goal of the stormwater permits program is to reduce the amount of pollutants entering streams, lakes and rivers as a result of runoff from residential, commercial and industrial areas. The original 1990 regulation covered municipal (i.e., publicly-owned) storm sewer systems for municipalities over 100,000 population. The regulation was expanded in 1999 to include smaller municipalities as well. This expansion of the program is referred to as Phase II.
