Activities listed here are not part of an active Clean Water Act triennial review process for proposed regulatory revisions; however, these activities may be adopted in the future. In cases where EPA has already issued criteria guidance, the SWQS Section reviews these criteria for potential adoption into 314 CMR 4.00, usually with the assistance of MassDEP’s Office of Research and Standards. If EPA has not issued criteria guidance, or EPA’s guidance may need updating, the SWQS Section may develop or refine criteria, which is a process that requires extensive research and scientific expertise. Any SWQS criteria review, development or refinement usually includes stakeholder engagement and inter- and intra-agency coordination.
The Surface Water Quality Standards (SWQS) Section regularly reviews and develops standards and criteria for potential future adoption into the Massachusetts SWQS regulation, 314 CMR 4.00.