C.F.R. » Title 40 » CHAPTER I—ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY › SUBCHAPTER D—WATER PROGRAMS › PART 131—WATER QUALITY STANDARDS › Subpart A—General Provisions

40 C.F.R. § 131.2

Purpose

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A water quality standard defines the water quality goals of a water body, or portion thereof, by designating the use or uses to be made of the water and by setting criteria that protect the designated uses. States adopt water quality standards to protect public health or welfare, enhance the quality of water and serve the purposes of the Clean Water Act (the Act). “Serve the purposes of the Act” (as defined in sections 101(a)(2) and 303(c) of the Act) means that water quality standards should, wherever attainable, provide water quality for the protection and propagation of fish, shellfish and wildlife and for recreation in and on the water and take into consideration their use and value of public water supplies, propagation of fish, shellfish, and wildlife, recreation in and on the water, and agricultural, industrial, and other purposes including navigation.

Such standards serve the dual purposes of establishing the water quality goals for a specific water body and serve as the regulatory basis for the establishment of water-quality-based treatment controls and strategies beyond the technology-based levels of treatment required by sections 301(b) and 306 of the Act. [48 FR 51405, Nov. 8, 1983, as amended at 80 FR 51046, Aug. 21, 2015]
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 28 cases (2 in the last 5 years), 1984–2021 · leading case: Nat. Res. Def. Council, Inc. v. Envtl. Prot. Agency, 301 F. Supp. 3d 133 (D.C. Cir. 2018).
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Nat. Res. Def. Council, Inc. v. Envtl. Prot. Agency, 301 F. Supp. 3d 133 (D.C. Cir. 2018). · cites it 2× “" 40 C.F.R. § 131.2 . Thus, to set water quality standards for a particular waterbody, a state first identifies its "designated uses," 33 U.”
Gulf Restoration Network v. Gina McCarthy, 783 F.3d 227 (5th Cir. 2015). · cites it 2× “40 C.F.R. § 131.2 . These standards must "protect public health or welfare, enhance the quality of water and serve the purposes of the [Act].”
Sierra Club Inc. v. Michael O. Leavitt, 488 F.3d 904 (11th Cir. 2007). “40 C.F.R. § 131.2 . Then, the state must determine the water quality criteria necessary to safely permit the designated use.”
Florida Pub. Interest Rsch. Grp. Citizen Lobby, Inc. v. Env't Prot. Agency, 386 F.3d 1070 (11th Cir. 2004). “40 C.F.R. § 131.2 . The second aspect of water quality standards, the water quality criteria, can be expressed in narrative form or in a numeric form, e.”
Nw. Env't Advocates, a Non-Profit Oregon Corp. & Nina Bell v. City of Portland, 56 F.3d 979 (9th Cir. 1995). “3668, 3671; 40 C.F.R. § 131.2 (1992) (dual purposes).”
In Re Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee Discharge Permit 3-1199, 2009 VT 124 (Vt. 2009). “of land and water resources, and to consult with the Administrator in the exercise of his authority”); 40 C.F.R. § 131.2 (requiring states to put in place water quality standards that designate uses, set criteria necessary to protect those uses, protect water quality through…”
Nw. Env't Advocates, a Non-Profit Oregon Corp. & Nina Bell v. City of Portland, 11 F.3d 900 (9th Cir. 1993). “3668, 3671; 40 C.F.R. § 131.2 (1992) (dual purposes).”
Idaho Conservation League v. Atlanta Gold Corp., 844 F. Supp. 2d 1116 (D. Idaho 2012). · cites it 2× “40 C.F.R. § 131.2 . Water quality standards properly take into account the protection of fish and wildlife, as well as recreation in and on the water.”
El Dorado Chem. Co. v. United States Env't Prot. Agency, 763 F.3d 950 (8th Cir. 2014). “” 40 C.F.R. § 131.2 . They comprise (1) the designated use(s) of the waters (e.”
Upper Missouri Waterkeeper v. Usepa, 15 F.4th 966 (9th Cir. 2021). “” See 40 C.F.R. § 131.2 . The EPA’s regulations require States to adopt water quality standards that protect the uses described in § 1251(a)(2) unless the State can show through a “use attainability analysis” that attaining the water quality necessary to support those uses is…”
Save Our Cabinets v. United States Dep't of Agric., 254 F. Supp. 3d 1241 (D. Mont. 2017). “It establishes water quality standards to protect the desired condition of each waterway.”
Nw. Env't Advocates v. United States Env't Prot. Agency, 855 F. Supp. 2d 1199 (D. Or. 2012). “” 40 C.F.R. § 131.2 . Water quality standards must designate a specified use for each water body, whether or not they are being attained, and set narrative or numeric criteria for the water that will support the designated uses.”
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