2024 Press release - public comment for 303d list FINAL

Website: www.deq.nc.gov
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ncdeq
Twitter: @NCDEQ
1601 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1601
Roy Cooper, Governor Elizabeth S. Biser, Secretary

Release: IMMEDIATE Contact: Laura Oleniacz Date: March 15, 2024 Phone: [phone]
Public comments accepted on proposed 303(d) list of North Carolina’s impaired waters

RALEIGH – The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Division of Water Resources is now
accepting public comment on the proposed list of streams, rivers, reservoirs and other water bodies in North
Carolina considered to be “impaired,” or that do not meet water quality standards, in 2024.

The 2024 draft 303 (d) list, as well as other related documents, can be found on the DWR website. In the
proposed 303(d) list for 2024, 70 water bodies were added, while 56 waters were delisted.

The criteria for determining which water bodies are added to the list are set by the Environmental Management
Commission, an appointed body that oversees and adopts rules for the DEQ Divisions of Air Quality, Land
Resources, Waste Management and Water Resources. The method includes consideration of water quality
rankings by the DWR Biological Assessment Branch, as well as chemical and physical parameters.

The draft 303(d) list may be modified based on the comments received.

DWR staff will accept public comments on the list until April 26. Comments must be submitted no later than
midnight April 26 by email to: [e-mail]. For specific listing questions, or to request
an assessment fact sheet for a specific waterbody, email Cam McNutt, water quality data coordinator, at
[e-mail].

In addition to receiving comment on the list, DWR is seeking input into which specific 303(d) listed waters
should be prioritized for development of a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), or a management or restoration
plan, across the next 10 years. Typically, higher priority waters are those where willing stakeholders are already
implementing restoration activities and/or there is existing knowledge of stressors in the watershed.

North Carolina and other states are required to identify and establish a priority ranking for water bodies every
two years by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act. After the
public comment period, staff will submit the list to the EPA.

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