TAMPA BAY NITROGEN MANAGEMENT CONSORTIUM BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY IN SUPPORT OF DECLARATIONFinal NMC Approved Tampa Bay Nitrogen. Management Consortium Declaration 9/11/09
TAMPA BAY NITROGEN MANAGEMENT CONSORTIUM
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY IN SUPPORT OF DECLARATION
SUSTAINING T HL- R.EC VER OF THE TAMPA BAY ESTUARY
From the uppermost reaches of Old Tarnpa Bay and 1illsborough Bay to the mouth, of the bay at
Egmont Key, the Tampa Clay estuary is made up of a variety, of habitats where fish and other
wildlife find shelter and food. They range from lush underwater beds of seagrasses, to tidal
marshes and mangrove swamps. Abundant and healthy habitatsaare critical to the health of the,
bay_. Without'them, Tampa Bay would lack the diversity of fish, birds and other wildlife that
contribute to the natural wonder of the region and is essential to its: economic vitality.
Submerged seagrass is among the most important habitats because it serves as shelter, nursery,
and food source for a diverse variety of species and stabilizes the bay bottom. Restoration of
:grass habitat is a priority environmental goal of local government and agency partners ol` the
Tampa Bay Estuary Program. The key to restoring seagrass is improving and. then maintaining
adequate water clarity that allows light'to penetrate into.. the shallow waters. of the, bay where
scagrasses grow. And the. key to maintaining water clarity is preventing excessive nitrogen - a
nutrient necessary for plant growth - from entering the bay and stimulating the growth of
microscopic algae that cloud the water and prevent` light from reaching the seagrasses.
Water clarity in Tampa Bay declined markedly: in the 1950s,. 60s, and 70s as rapid population
growth led'to increased discharges of partially treated sewage with large amounts ofnitrogen..
Algae. blooms and fish kills were common and almost 5.0% of seagrass in the bay died off as:a
result of insufficient light. Unregulated dredge and fill operations contributed to the problem by
further clouding the water.
The. year 1979 marked a turning poitit in the condition of the bay when,the City of Tampa
upgraded: the Howard F. Curren Plant at Hookers Point to advanced wastewater treatment, which
increased nutrient removal and sharply reduced the amount of nitrogen being discharged into the
bay. Across the bay, the City of St. Petersburg pioneered the country's first large-scale.reclaimcd
wastewater program, reclaiming water for irrigation of lawns. and golf courses rather than
discharging it into the bay.
The quality of bay waters responded quickly to the sharp reduction in nitrogen loading.
Concentrations of chlorophyll - an indicator of the amount of algae suspended in the water -
dropped dramatically in all major segments of the. bay between 1982 and 1984. In Hillsborough
Bay alone, the average chlorophyll concentrations fell from 37 units of chlorophyll in 1982 to 13
units in 1984. Seagrasses responded more slowly to the improving water clarity, but, expanded to
25,200 acres by .1990 from a low point of 21,600 acres in 1982. Seagrass recovery has
continued, and seagrasses in 2008 covered 29,650 acres baywide.
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Final NMC Approved "Pampa Bay Nitrogen Management Consortium Declaration 9/11/09
The Tampa Bay National Estuary Program (N EP) was established in 1991 to help local
governments, agencies, and other stakeholders in the Tampa Bay area develop a plan to sustain
the recovery of Tampa Bay. The NEP partners adopted a Comprehensive Conservation and
Management Plan in December 1996 that included measurable goals for restoring seagrasses.and
related targets for reducing nitrogen discharges to the bay. The parties unanimously adopted a
"hold the line" target on nitrogen discharges that capped the. load at a level that would ensure
adequate water clarity and light to sustain seagrass recovery. Local government. and agency
partners in the NEP reinforced their commitment to achieving the goals through an Interlocal
Agreement. adopted in 1.998.
In August 1996, the NEP's governmental partners joined with key industries in the Tampa Bay
mgion'to: create a unique ad-hoc public/private partnership known as the Tampa Bay Nitrogen
Management Consortium for the express purpose of developing a. Consortium Action Plan to
meet the "hold the line" `target. The original Action Plan consisted of more than 100 projects that
collectively reduced`or precluded nitrogen discharges to the bay by an estimated 134 tons/year
between 1995 and `1999. The Action Plan, entitled Partnership for Progress; was the core of a
larger nitrogen management strategy that included: the baywide seagrass restoration/preservation
,goal; chlorophyll and nitrogen reduction targets for each major bay, segment; apportionment of
responsibility, for.meeting the nitrogen reduction targets; and a. process to track whether. the
targets "were. being: met,
In November 2002, the Florida Department. of Environmental Protection (FDEP) concluded that
the Tampa Bay Nitrogen Management Consortium's nitrogen management strategy provided
reasonable. assurance that the state water quality criteria for nutrients would be met. The U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the meantime continues to recognize a 1998 action
_by FDEP that proposed ;a total maximum load ("federally-recognized TMOV ) of nitrogen that
could be discharged to the bay .annually and still meet state water quality standards related to.
nutrients, Both F'DEP's: reasonable assurance determination and the total maximum nitrogen
loading. recognized by EPA are based on statistical modeling and data analyses done: by the
Tampa Bay Estuary Program and. its partners.
In 2007, additional local governments, industries and agencies located within the Tampa Bay
watershed were invited to.become participants in the Consortium, to help develop and.: implement
a collaborative watershed approach to nitrogen management for Tampa Bay and to meet
regulatory requirements of FDEP and EPA. A total of 49 entities now actively participate in the
Consortium. Additional background on the history of the Tampa Bay nitrogen management
strategy can be found in Exhibit "A".
The remarkable recovery of the Tampa Bay ecosystem after decades of decline is unprecedented,
among urban estuaries worldwide. The rebound in water quality and ecological health ofthe bay
seven more remarkable in light of the strong population growth during the recovery period.
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Final NMC Approved Tampa Bay Nitrogen Management Consortium Declaration 9/11/09
FDEP, EPA, and the. Consortium want to continue the success of the collaborative nitrogen
management strategy spearheaded by the Consortium. At the same time the regulated members
of the. Consortium recognize the duties of FDEP and EPA to administer the environmental
regulations for which they are responsible and that FDEP and EPA have indicated they may not
issue discharge permits without limitations that ensure compliance with the total maximum
rtitrogeri load recognized by EPA.
In '1998, USEPA approved a. Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for nitrogen for Tampa Bay as
is required by Section 303(d) of the federal Clean Water Act. In. 2007, USEPA and FDE P
advised the-Nitrogen . Management Consortium that existing and future surface water discharge
permit limits for entities discharging to Tampa. Bay must not cumulatively exceed the federally-
recognized TM DL for nitrogen loading, and that no new or renewed permits would be approved
until facility-specific allocations consistent:with the TMDL were developed. In December 2007H
the. Nitrogen Management Consortium proactively committed to develop an. equitable process
and define suggested allocations to all sources through the 2009 Tampa Bay Reasonable
Assurance Addendum.
To help ensure continued recovery of vital seagrass habitat and the successful nitrogen
management'strategy that makes it possible, local governments, agencies; and industry.
participants of the Nitrogen Management Consortium worked together over 18 months-to provide
FDEP with an updated reasonable assurance document, ensuring that state water quality criteria
.for nutrients will continue to 'be met in the bay. The participants developed. a set of nitrogen
wasteload allocations that attempts to equitably distribute the burden of nitrogen management
:across all sectors and sources of nitrogen. loading within the basin, as well. as the total maximum
loading of nitrogen to each major bay segment.
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Final NMC Approved Tampa Bay Nitrogen Management Consortium. Declaration 9/11/09
DECLARATION OF THE TAMPA BAY NITROGEN MANAGEMENT CONSORTIUM
PARTICIPANTS IN THE TAMPA BAY NITROGEN MANAGEMENT CONSOWI-IUM
DECLARE TFiE1R INTENT TO IMPLEMENT THE 2009 TAMPA BAY REASONABLE.
ASSURANCE ADDENDUM AS FOLLOWS TO ENSURE CONTINUING RECOVERY OF
THE TAMPA BAY ESTUARY:
The undersigned Consortiums participant (City of Clearwater) hereby accepts the 2009
Tampa. Bay Reasonable Assurances Addendum. and agrees with the undersigned Consortium
pa . icipant's nitrogen load allocations established by the Consortium for the 2009-2012
Reasonable Assurance period (as described in Exhibit "A"),
This Declaration shall take effect as to the undersigned Consortium participant executing this
document upon its date of execution.
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Final NMC zApproved Tampa Bay Nitrogen Management Consortium Declaration, 9/11109
The undersigned entity (City ` of Clearwater) hereby approves the TAMPA BAY NITROGEN
MANAGEMENT CONSORTIUM Declaration and attachments.
Countersigned:
CITY OF CL ;ARwxr R., ,LORIDA
Xxu?. 4A1,
Frank Hibbard Williarn,8. Hornet!
Mayor City Manager
Approved as to form:.
&,,, .- `),/ L?J-, I-N- a K. Dougall- i s
Assistant City Atto.
Attest:
T E d
Chia E. Goudeau
Ci lerk e_Z&La ;
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Final NMG Approved Tampa Bay Nitrogen Management Consortium lleclar tion 9/11109
EXHIBIT "A
[Final 2009 Reasonable Assurance. Addendum: A] location & Assessment :Report]
This 400+ page document can be viewed utilizing the Iink below;
i C AP OY 009 IAA d
endurn
Table VII-1
Old Tampa Bay Load Allocations, as found in the above referenced report is attached.
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Final NMC Approved Document
September 11, 2009
Table VII=1; Proposed nitrogen load allocation tableJor Old Tampa Bay. SW-Surface water
discharge allocation, RE=Reuse discharge allocation,
5-yr Annual Average Allocation
Entity Source Proposed Set
Allocations
ton. ear Proposed Remaining
Source Allocation of
Remainin Load %
Cheval West MS4 01%
MS4 2.7%
^
Point Source - Clearwater East SW 9.3
Point Source - Clearwater East RE
Clt
of Clea
w
t 0.1
y
r
a
er Point Source - Clearwater
Northeast SW
16'6
Point Source - Clearwater
Northeast RE 1.1
Heritage Harbor NPS 0:2%
MS4 23.3%
Point Source - Dale Mabry SW 7.4
Point Source- Dale Mabry RE 2.8
Point Source- Northwest Regional
Hillsborough County SW 2.9
Point Source - Northwest Regional
RE 5.5
Point Source - River Oaks SW. 13.4
Point Source- River Oaks RE 1.6
Point Source -flan byke'RE 0.8
MS4 1.4%
City of Largo Point Source - Largo SW 16.4
Point Source - Largo RE 2.6
MacDill Air Force Base MS4 0,11%
MS4 1.4%
City of Oldsmar Point Source -- Oldsmar SW 2.7
Point Source - Oldsmar RE 0.5
On Tap of the World Point Source - On Top of the World
RE 0-5
Palm Bay NPS <0A%
Park Place NPS 0 1 ",
Pasco County MS4 0.4%
MS4 14.7°/a
Pinellas County Point Source - W.E. Dunn RE 2.3
Point Source - Bridgeway Acres SW 1.2
City of Pinellas Park MS4 1.0%
49
Final NMC'Approved Document
September 11, 2009
Table VII-1 (continued):
Old Tampa Bay proposed allocations.
5-yr Annual Average Allocation
Entity Source Proposed Set
Allocations
tons ear Proposed Remaining
Source Allocation of
--Remaining Load eh
City of Safety Harbor MS4
City of St. Petersb
r M54
7 „ 0.9%
u
g
Point Source - St. Pete Facilities
EE
4.7
'Stonebriar NPS U%
City of Tarpon Springs MS4 0,4%
City of Tampa MS4 5.3%
Westchase NPS ..•:{ ;
Westchase East NPS. 0.401.
Non-MS4/Non-Ag NPS 2.6
Atmospheric Deposition 33,60/6,
Other (Groundwater,
Springs, Conservation
3,6%
FDACS (Agriculture) 6.1%
Small Sources 1.0
Total 93.3 100 50