The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) updated its national recommended water quality criteria for human health for chemical pollutants in 2015. The new criteria were calculated using  updated average national values for relative source contributions, bioaccumulation factors, fish consumption rates,  toxicity, body weight, drinking water intake, and other relevant factors.  These revised criteria are not rules, nor do they automatically become a part of a state’s water quality standards. States may adopt the criteria that EPA publishes, modify EPA’s criteria to reflect state/site-specific conditions, or adopt different criteria based on other scientifically-defensible methods.  The criteria the state chooses must be justified to, and approved by, EPA. 

Only a few states have moved forward with adopting 2015 US EPA standards (or some form of those standards). The West Virginia Division of Environmental Protection is currently accepting information about appropriate state-specific modifications  to the EPA default criteria, to be considered when the state adopts its own human health criteria revisions in 2020. The West Virginia Legislature set a deadline for submission of this additional information of October 1, 2019. The West Virginia Manufacturers Association is working with Henthorn Environmental to provide additional data and recommendations by that date.

Additional resources and updates will be added to this page throughout the process, so please check back for new information. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the WVMA at info@wvma.com or by phone at 304-342-2123.  

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Additional Links:

• US EPA Updated Ambient Water Quality Criteria for the Protection of Human Health
• WV Department of Environmental Protection WQS Page
• Upcoming and Recent WQS Public Meetings and Hearings
• Senate Bill 163 (bill history and final version)

DEP human health criteria documents obtained by FOIA

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