The Department of Energy and Environment presented proposed updates to Arkansas water-quality standards at a legislative committee meeting, including new numeric criteria for E. coli and five hydrocarbon-related toxicants, an extended primary-contact recreation season, and revisions to ecoregion boundaries.

DEQ staff said the changes come from the agency’s required triennial review under the federal Clean Water Act and from research and stakeholder input. Bailey Taylor, chief administrator of environment and DEQ director, told committee members the department is seeking review and approval so the rule can be codified and implemented consistent with federal requirements.

Why it matters: The standards govern ambient water-quality expectations used to set effluent limits on MPDES (discharge) permits and to designate protective uses for Arkansas waters. Changes to criteria can affect municipal and industrial wastewater permits, monitoring requirements and local planning.

Major technical changes described to lawmakers
- New toxics: DEQ said it added criteria for five hydrocarbon-related toxics (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene and phenol). DEQ staff told the committee that dischargers already monitor many of these compounds and that permitted facilities are generally meeting the proposed numeric limits.
- E. coli standard: DEQ added an E. coli criterion to replace fecal-indicator language; staff said the testing method is already common practice and that E. coli is a better representative measure for primary contact risk.
- Ammonia and season extension: The agency revised ammonia criteria and extended the primary-contact recreation season to include April and October, saying Arkansans recreate in those months and the change aligns protective criteria with observed use.
- Site-specific criteria and ecoregions: DEQ added site-specific pH and dissolved-oxygen criteria based on research and updated ecoregion boundaries to match other state and federal maps. The agency also proposed adjustments to the list of ecologically sensitive waters after consultation with Arkansas Game and Fish; specific trout-waters exceptions were removed in response to agency comments.

Implementation and compliance
DEQ staff told legislators permit writers will consider the updated water-quality criteria at permit renewal and can provide optimization or compliance schedules where necessary. "On the renewal, when we're already opening up the permit, and if we see new limits are needed, we will do that and we can offer optimization and we can offer a compliance schedule," Keisha Morrison, chief counsel for energy and environment, told the committee.

DEQ also said testing methods for the newly listed priority toxics are commonly available at commercial labs and that municipalities and industries typically already conduct priority-pollutant scans that would detect the listed compounds.

Questions from lawmakers
Legislators asked about the number and substance of public comments (cities such as Jonesboro and Springdale had commented), the likely cost or operational impact on municipal wastewater permits, and whether the department would phase in changes via existing MPDES renewal cycles. DEQ said it expects limited immediate financial impact because most facilities already meet the numeric levels and because permit limits are set case by case, but it acknowledged permittees may request optimization periods or three-year compliance schedules during permit renewals.

Lawmakers also asked about the basis for extending the primary-contact season into April and October; DEQ said the change is driven by observed recreational use and that the extension has minimal impact on dischargers because standard disinfection practices already target bacteria.

Outcome
After questions from members, the committee recorded the water-quality rule as reviewed without objection. DEQ staff said the rule will be codified in the Code of Arkansas Rules following the committee review and completion of the administrative process, consistent with the Clean Water Act review schedule.