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Bill would exempt DEQ-compliant wastewater lagoons from Montana Dam Safety Act review
Summary
Senators heard House Bill 48, a DNRC-requested bill that would clarify that wastewater treatment pond dams built and maintained to Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) standards are exempt from duplicate review under the Dam Safety Act.
Representative Ken Walsh opened the hearing on House Bill 48, framing it as a request from the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC). "Dams in Montana are regulated under the Dam Safety Act," Walsh said, and the bill would add wastewater treatment pond dams to the list of exemptions where another state or federal regulatory program already ensures safe construction and operation. Walsh said the change would provide "regulatory clarity for the dam owners, ensuring that they don't need to account for cost or compliance with both sets of regulations."
Doug Brugger, acting water operations bureau chief at DNRC and manager of the state's dam safety program, offered support and distributed a dam safety program flyer to the committee. Brugger said he had little to add beyond Walsh's overview but was available for questions.
Lindsey Krywaruchka, water quality division administrator at the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), appeared as an informational witness for questions. When Senator Curti asked how many wastewater lagoons were located within a quarter mile of flowing streams, Krywaruchka said she did not have that number on hand but that a quarter mile is about the minimum separation the agency recommends for siting lagoons and that she could provide the number later. "I don't have the number of lagoons that are located within a quarter mile, but that is about the minimum amount that we do recommend," she said.
Krywaruchka also described the DEQ's review under the Sanitation Act for public wastewater lagoons, saying DEQ examines stormwater mitigation, soils and project design. She told the committee her understanding of the bill is that it removes duplicative review while leaving DEQ's technical review unchanged.
Representative Walsh closed by emphasizing that the bill "doesn't gonna cause any downgrades in regulation. It just gets rid of two agencies fighting over who's going to regulate it," and asked the committee to concur with the House. No committee vote was recorded at the hearing.
