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Photo courtesy John Winters Thanks to The Boren Foundation, and Jack and Karen Kay Leonard for making this website possible. |
Indiana Citizen's Rulemaking Petition to Stop Increasing Sewage to Our Streams Through Irresponsible Development.
IDEM and Water Pollution Control Board Schedule 5 Hearings on Petition for November 2001
Indiana Code 13-14-8-5 allows citizens to have a hearing on proposed rulemaking if they have 200 signatures from citizens. A collaboration of groups that includes Sierra Club, Izaak Walton League, SCREAM, Hoosier Environmental Council, Save the Dunes, and Improving Kids' Environment are obtaining signatures for a petition. The petition would require that new connections to sewer systems that include combined sewers ensure that their flow will not increase the amount of sewage overflowing the the combined sewer system. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) currently approves of new connections even though the increase the sewer overflows from combined sewer systems.
Please sign the petition and mail it to Tom Neltner of IKE if you want to stop making sewage in our streams worse.
For more information on the Coalition's Scoring System on LTCPs
What does the proposal require?
The proposal makes it clear that:
IDEM has a responsibility to verify the accuracy of the evidence it receives regarding the potential impact on the sewer system. Developers have argued that IDEM must accept the evidence even if IDEM has contradictory evidence in its possession or has reason to believe it is false or inaccurate.
Capacity is based on the treatment and the collection system. A municipality cannot claim it has capacity by ignoring massive overflows from a collection system that is incapable of conveying the sewage to the plant.
Capacity is based on wet weather events not just on the most favorable conditions. While not explicitly giving municipalities any guidance on the conditions to use, IDEM knowingly accepts capacity certifications based solely on dry weather conditions.
Sets an upper limit of a five-year rainfall to evaluate wet weather conditions. A five-year rainfall is predicted to occur only once every five years. This upper limit provides a common standard to evaluate the situation.
For more information on combined sewer issues.
Indiana law allows citizens to have a hearing on proposed rulemaking if citizens submit the request with 200 signatures Pursuant to IC 13-14-8-5, we present this written proposal for the amendment of 327 IAC 3-6-4 and 327 IAC 3-6-7 to the Water Pollution Control Board for its consideration. Since the Board has rulemaking authority for the subject matter, we request that the Board hold a hearing on the proposal and consider its prompt adoption.
Citizen rulemaking petition to avoid overloading combined sewers with irresponsible growth.