General Assembly>Division of Legislative Services>Publications>Session Summaries>2007>Waters of the State, Ports and Harbors


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Waters of the State, Ports and Harbors

Passed

P HB 1715

Casting garbage. Increases the fine for dumping garbage into the waters of the state from a maximum of $100 to $1,000.
Patron - Kilgore

P HB 1758

Obstructing or contaminating waters. Increases the penalty for obstructing or contaminating state waters to a Class 1 misdemeanor. Currently, the penalty is a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $500 or confinement in jail for not more than 12 months, or both.
Patron - Kilgore

P HB 1847

Waste load allocations. Allows the State Water Control Board to grant waste load allocations for the Chesapeake Bay watershed nutrient credit exchange program to facilities operating under a Virginia Pollution Abatement permit under limited conditions.
Patron - Saxman

P HB 1859

Water quality monitors. Establishes as a goal of the Department of Environmental Quality having citizen volunteers monitor 3,000 stream miles by 2010.
Patron - Wittman

P HB 2180

Stormwater inspectors. Removes the certification of stormwater inspectors required by the Department of Environmental Quality. This requirement is no longer needed because much of the stormwater program has been transferred to the Department of Conservation and Recreation.
Patron - Saxman

P HB 2483

Water quality monitoring. Establishes April 30 of each year as the deadline for the public to submit its recommendations of which specific water segments should be included in the State Water Control Board's water quality monitoring plan. The Board is to respond to the recommendations by August 31. Currently, the Board has until April 30 to respond to citizen recommendations that have been submitted by December 31 of the preceding year.
Patron - Bulova

P HB 2487

Low-flow protections. Requires any Virginia Water Protection Permit issued after July 1, 2007, authorizing the withdrawal of water from the Potomac River and its tributaries for any purpose other than municipal water supply, to incorporate low-flow protections if the withdrawal exceeds 500,000 gallons per day. As a condition of permit, the permittee will be required to augment instream flow during low-flow periods by having available offstream storage equal to the amount of water that is consumed in excess of 500,000 gallons per day. The bill provides several ways for a permittee to comply with this requirement.
Patron - Bulova

P HB 2539

Virginia Water Protection Permit. Restructures the Virginia Water Protection Permit statute by placing the provisions into a separate article of the State Water Control Law titled "Water Resources and Wetlands Protection Program." The provisions are currently included as a section under the general powers of the Water Control Board. Existing permits are exempted from any changes and shall remain in effect until their specified expiration dates or until they are otherwise amended, modified, repealed, or revoked.
Patron - Landes

P HB 2694

Virginia Resources Authority. Expands projects that can be financed through the Authority to include programs or projects for land conservation or land preservation. This bill incorporates HB 1713 and is identical to SB 1211.
Patron - Cline

P HB 2802

Land application of biosolids. Consolidates the program that regulates the application of biosolids (sewage sludge) under one agency, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Currently, the responsibility for regulation of the land application of biosolids is split between DEQ and the Department of Health. The bill also requires DEQ to conduct unannounced site inspections while biosolids are being applied. A fee of $7.50 is assessed on each dry ton of sewage sludge applied in the Commonwealth. The bill becomes effective on January 1, 2008, provided that adequate funds have been appropriated and adequate positions have been authorized to administer the program. This bill is identical to SB 1339 and incorporates HB 2079 and HB 3170.
Patron - Byron

P SB 798

Sewage overflows. Authorizes the State Water Control Board to issue administrative orders to owners of municipal sewer systems that need corrective actions to prevent sanitary sewer overflows. Places a "safe harbor" provision into Virginia law similar to that found in § 309 of the Clean Water Act.
Patron - Locke

P SB 957

Portsmouth Port and Industrial Commission. Authorizes the Portsmouth Port and Industrial Commission to provide financing for facilities for an organization, other than a religious organization, that is exempt from federal income taxation pursuant to § 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. This bill is identical to HB 2989.
Patron - Quayle

P SB 1211

Virginia Resources Authority. Expands projects that can be financed through the Authority to include programs or projects for land conservation or land preservation. This bill is identical to HB 2694, which incorporates HB 1713.
Patron - Hanger

P SB 1300

Storage of sewage sludge. Provides that a locality may adopt an ordinance requiring that a special exception or a special use permit be obtained to begin the storage of sewage sludge in its jurisdiction. No ordinance may require a special exception or a special use permit to begin the storage of sewage sludge if such sludge will be stored on the same farm to which it will be land applied.
Patron - Newman

P SB 1313

Land application of sewage sludge. Requires that the local government certify, within 30 days, as part of the state permit application to store sewage sludge, that the site of the proposed storage is in compliance with all local ordinances. The bill also gives localities the authority to adopt an ordinance that reasonably restricts the storage of sewage sludge to certain areas or parcels based on public health, welfare, or safety criteria. Any such ordinance will not apply to a farmer who stores sewage sludge for land application on his own farm within 45 days. The Department of Environmental Quality or the Department of Health permit application filled out by the person applying the sewage sludge is not considered complete until there is such local certification.
Patron - Hawkins

P SB 1339

Land application of biosolids. Consolidates the program that regulates the application of biosolids (sewage sludge) under one agency, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Currently, the responsibility for regulation of the land application of biosolids is split between DEQ and the Department of Health. The bill also requires DEQ to conduct unannounced site inspections while biosolids are being applied. A fee of $7.50 is assessed on each dry ton of sewage sludge applied in the Commonwealth. The bill becomes effective on January 1, 2008, provided that adequate funds have been appropriated and adequate positions have been authorized to administer the program. This bill is identical to HB 2802.
Patron - Newman

Failed

F HB 1713

Virginia Resources Authority. Expands projects that can be financed through the Authority to include programs or projects for land conservation or land preservation. This bill was incorporated into HB 2694.
Patron - Lewis

F HB 1931

Hampton Roads Sanitation District Commission. Adds four additional members to the Commission. The four additional members are elected officials of the localities within the service area of the Hampton Roads Sanitation District. Two of these shall be officials representing localities south of the James River and two shall represent localities north of the James River. At least one member from each division must represent a locality in which a sewage treatment facility owned and operated by the Hampton Roads Sanitation District is located.
Patron - Rapp

F HB 2079

Land application of biosolids. Consolidates the program that regulates the application of biosolids (sewage sludge) under one agency, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Currently, the responsibility for regulation of the land application of biosolids is split between DEQ and the Department of Health. The bill also requires the on-site presence of state or local officials when biosolids are being applied and assesses a fee of $7.50 on each dry ton of sewage sludge applied in the Commonwealth. The bill becomes effective on July 1, 2008, provided that adequate funds have been appropriated and adequate positions have been authorized to administer the program. This bill was incorporated into HB 2802.
Patron - Wittman

F HB 2085

Virginia Petroleum Storage Tank Fund. Requires that reports submitted to the Virginia Petroleum Storage Tank Fund be submitted by a professionally certified engineer, geologist, or soil scientist.
Patron - Eisenberg

F HB 2938

Potomac River Compact. Restores the jurisdictional provision of the Maryland-Virginia Compact of 1785, allowing the Commonwealth to prosecute crimes committed against Virginians as long as the defendant is not a citizen of Maryland. The provision was dropped from the Compact of 1958, which did not become effective in Virginia until July 17, 2000.
Patron - Miller, J.H.

F HB 3088

Discharges into the Levisa Fork. Prescribes the size of a mixing zone for the discharge of salty mine water into the Levisa Fork or its tributaries. Anyone who violates the mixing zone standard would be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill requires that any discharge permit that conflicts with this mixing zone standard for the Levisa Fork River or its tributaries be promptly amended to comply with the standard established in the bill. The bill also prohibits the issuance or maintaining of a permit or certificate allowing the discharge or dumping of PCBs upon the banks of or into the Levisa Fork. This is emergency legislation.
Patron - Bowling

F SB 1402

Discharges into the Levisa Fork. Prescribes the size of a mixing zone for the discharge of salty mine water into the Levisa Fork or its tributaries. Anyone who violates the mixing zone standard would be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill requires that any discharge permit that conflicts with this mixing zone standard for the Levisa Fork River or its tributaries be promptly amended to comply with the standard established in the bill. The bill also prohibits the issuance or maintaining of a permit or certificate allowing the discharge or dumping of PCBs upon the banks of or into the Levisa Fork. This is emergency legislation.
Patron - Puckett

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