There has been an 82 percent increase in the total number of enforcement 
actions taken from fiscal year 1983 to fiscal year 1987 and a 1,305 
percent increase in the dollar amount of water quality penalty 
assessments. 
One of the major management challenges within the Department of Ecology 
has been the demand to move beyond conventional pollution controls to the 
control of toxics. 
Considering we weren't even at the point where we wanted to be in 
controlling conventional pollutants, this was an enormous shift in 
management emphasis. 
The shift was difficult because so little was known about this field. 
There were no EPA standards or industrial and chemical standards, so we 
did not have clear roadmaps to point the way. 
Our work on Commencement Bay in Puget Sound started us on the road to a 
toxic source control program and laid the groundwork for where we go in 
other urban bays. 
The Commencement Bay work was a first step toward development of sediment 
criteria and a cornerstone for development of analytical techniques for 
measuring low levels of chemicals in the sediment. 
Commencement Bay also was the first area where extensive human health 
assessment techniques were used and our work there taught us 
more about linking contaminants in the sediment to sources. 
Today we are developing a toxics control strategy which will be based more 
on biological effects of discharges rather than on standards for each 
chemical in the discharges. By looking at the effects of the discharge as 
a whole, we will be able to take into account the cumulative and combined 
affects of many chemicals. 
Another key management thrust will be to beef up our permit and inspection 
efforts. These programs have been woefully underfunded in the past. 
While the Legislature has not yet approved a final plan, the authority's 
plan sets some goals for the enforcement and permit programs. 
We hope to inspect every permitted facility once a year. And we want to 
have three inspection visits a year to every major discharger. 
Currently our inspection efforts are very inadequate. We have 1,100 
permitees but are inspecting only 200. 
The permit process also is behind. We have an enormous backlog — 50 
percent for NPDES permits and 60 percent for state permits. Our goal is 
to get current and remain current in five years. 
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