431 



that you think would be helpful would be required. Could you furnish 

 that? 



Mr. RucKELSHAus. I would be glad to furnish you with a statement 

 of my philosophy as to how we go about 



Mr. Rogers. I say I would like to have from the agency for the com- 

 mittee the suggested dates. 



Mr. RucKELSHAus. As to when primary, secondary, and tertiary 

 could be achieved ? 



Mr. Rogers. That is right. 



(The information follows :) 



Question : Deadline Dates foe Municipal and Industrial Wastes 



The postulation of a specific date for the attainment of a particular 

 level of waste treatment by all dischargers has the appeal of simplicity and 

 enforceability. However, it is not advantageous to have such a proposal ex- 

 pressed in the general terms of primary, secondary, and tertiary treatment. 

 These terms relate generally to types of treatment processes vrhich have been 

 historically associated with the clarification of domestic se\Yage. They are 

 not easily defined or related to the treatment of industrial wastes. As an ex- 

 ample of problems associated with their definition, a treatment plant containing 

 a series of "primary" treatment processes (principally settling) -nith the addi- 

 tion of a phospate removal process designed to control eutrophication in the 

 wastes' receiving waters would be essentially a tertiary treatment plant from 

 the standpoint of nutrient removal and a primary treatment plant from the 

 standpoint of the removal of oxygen demanding wastes. 



In addition, these terms relate to the percent removal of pollutants and do 

 not account for the absolute amounts of pollutants being added to the receiving 

 waters. 



The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended, and the Administra- 

 tion's proposed legislation, S. 1014, do not relate to the attainment of primary, 

 secondary, or tertiary treatment but instead refer to the treatment required to 

 meet the imposed water quality criteria to insure the full and designated uses 

 of the Nation's navigable waters. It is imperative that all municipal and in- 

 dustrial waste discharges be in compliance with water quality standards. 



All wastes both municipal and industrial should be required to provide on a 

 national basis a standard effluent level. Specific treatment requirements should 

 be imposed on those municipalities or industries above the standard effluent level 

 as necessary to insure the meeting and compliance with water quality standards. 

 This approach permits the maximum utilization of available financial resources 

 being applied in the most advantageous and cost effective manner, to insure 

 that the major effort be made in those areas where it is most urgently required. 



The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended, and the Administra- 

 tion's proposal, S. 1014, required that each State adopt as part of their water 

 quality standards effluent criteria for its navigable waterways. The achievement 

 of these effluent criteria as discussed in the above paragraph will insure the 

 orderly attainment of water quality standards throughout the Nation. We there- 

 fore endorse the concept of effluent guidelines, as called for in S. 1014, and recom- 

 mend that the approach not be based on simply primary, secondary, or tertiary 

 treatment but on the concept of applying initially a base level of treatment re- 

 flecting the best level of technology. 



The WQO/EPA is currently developing effluent criteria guidelines, in effect 

 standard effluent limitations, for major industrial categories as well as deter- 

 mining the current state of the art for treatment and control within these 

 industries. 



In dealing on an industry-by-industry basis we can specify effluent require- 

 ments consistent with available technology and for industries where technology 

 is presently not proven we allow for the scheduling of the necessary research and 

 development. 



It must be remembered that municipal-sewered wastes and industrial wastes 

 do not constitute all of the national water quality problem areas. In addition, 



