La. Admin. Code tit. 33 § IX-307

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 5, May 20, 2024

Section IX-307 - Modification, Revocation and Reissuance

A. Any permittee shall report to the Office of Environmental Services any facility changes that result in increases in the quantity of pollutants discharged or decreases in the quality of the discharges. The permittee shall also report any facility changes that result in decreases in the quantity of pollutants discharged or increases in the quality of discharges of pollutants where such change is expected to last in excess of 180 days. Such report shall be by submission of a modified permit application or, if the discharge does not violate the effluent limitations specified in the permit, by submission of notice to the Office of Environmental Services of the nature of such facility changes. The permittee shall not commence any facility expansion, production increases, or process modifications that result in new or increased discharges of pollutants without receiving a modified LWDPS permit or written authorization from the Office of Environmental Services. The provisions of this Subsection shall not apply to facility changes that were considered during the permitting process.

B. When the Office of Environmental Services receives any new information or receives a request for modification or revocation, such permit may, after an opportunity for hearing, be modified, or alternatively revoked and reissued, in whole or in part, for cause, including but not limited to:

1. violations of any terms or conditions of the permit;

2. obtaining a permit by misrepresentation or failure to disclose fully all relevant facts;

3. a change in any condition that results in either a temporary (greater than 180 days) or permanent reduction or elimination of any discharge controlled by the permit;

4. the department has received new information; permits may be modified during their terms for this cause only if the information was not available at the time of permit issuance (other than revised regulations, guidance, or test methods) and would have justified the application of different permit conditions at the time of issuance;

5. material and substantial alterations or additions to the permitted facility or activity which occurred after permit issuance which justify the application of permit conditions that are different or absent in the existing permit;

6. the standards, or prohibitions on which the permit was based have been changed by promulgation of amended standards or regulations or by judicial decision after the permit was issued;

7. failure to report any facility changes as described in LAC 33:IX.307.A;

8. change of ownership or operational control (see LAC 33:IX.311.D);

9. when the level of discharge of any pollutant which is not limited in the permit exceeds the level which can be achieved by the technology-based treatment requirements appropriate to the permittee under a BPJ determination;

10. when the permittee demonstrates operation and maintenance costs that are totally disproportionate from the operation and maintenance costs considered in the development of a subsequently promulgated effluent limitations guideline, but in no case may the limitations be made less stringent than the subsequent guideline;

11. the nonconformance of the discharge with any applicable facility, basin or areawide plans; or

12. permit inconsistency with any duly promulgated effluent limitation, permit, regulation, statute, or other applicable state law.

C. Only those permit conditions that are subject to modification are reopened for comment in a public hearing. When a permit is revoked and reissued, the administrative authority may either allow only those portions modified to be reopened, or may decide that the entire permit is reopened just as if the permit has expired and is being reissued.

D. If a permit modification satisfies the following minor modification criteria, the permit may be modified without issuance of a draft permit or public review. Any permit modification not processed as a minor modification shall be made in accordance with a fact sheet and public notice requirements as described in LAC 33:IX.313 and 315. Minor modifications may only:

1. correct typographical errors;

2. require a change in the frequency of monitoring or reporting by the permittee;

3. change an interim compliance date in a schedule of compliance, provided the new date is not more than 120 days after the date specified in the existing permit and does not interfere with attainment of the final compliance date requirement;

4. allow for a change in ownership or operational control of a facility where the Office of Environmental Services determines that no other change in the permit is necessary, provided that a written agreement containing a specific date for transfer of permit responsibility, coverage, and liability between the current and new permittees has been submitted to the department (see LAC 33:IX.307.B.8 and 311.D);

5. change the construction schedule for a discharger which is a new source or modification of an existing source. No such change shall affect a discharger's obligation to have all pollution control equipment installed and in operation prior to discharge;

6. delete a point source outfall when the discharge from that outfall is terminated and does not result in discharge of pollutants from other outfalls except in accordance with permit limits; or

7. make changes in other minor provisions within the permit on a case-by-case basis.

E. Modification cannot extend a permit beyond its original five-year duration.

F. Requests for modification or revocation, and reissuance do not suspend any permit condition during the processing of the request.

La. Admin. Code tit. 33, § IX-307

Promulgated by the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Water Resources, LR 11:1066 (November 1985), amended by the Office of Environmental Assessment, Environmental Planning Division, LR 26:2540 (November 2000), amended by the Office of the Secretary, Legal Affairs Division, LR 31:2505 (October 2005), LR 33:2161 (October 2007).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:2001 et seq., and in particular Section 2074(B)(3) and (B)(4)