Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report
Alaska's List of Impaired or 303(D) Listed Waterbodies
The Clean Water Act (CWA) mandates that each state develop a program to monitor and report on the quality of its waters and prepare a report describing the status of its water quality. The relevant CWA sections are Section 305(b), which requires that the quality of all waterbodies be characterized, and Section 303(d) which requires that states list any waterbodies that do not meet water quality standards (known as polluted or impaired waters). Alaska's Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report (Integrated Report) combines the information into a single comprehensive report.
- 2022
- 2020
- 2018
2022 Integrated Report
DEC is requesting existing and readily available water quality information on the health of Alaska’s waters for the development of Alaska’s draft and final 2022 Integrated Report. This biennial report describes to Alaskans the health of Alaska’s waters (as required under Sections 303(d) and 305(b) of the federal Clean Water Act) and includes the list of impaired (polluted) waters. In order to be considered, all new data and information must be submitted to DEC no later than 5 PM Dec 15, 2020. Explore this website for more information about Alaska’s Integrated Report and its associated documents.
Solicitation for readily available water quality data and information
Please forward all water quality information, data, and comments to:
Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation
Division of Water
Attention: Amber Bethe
555 Cordova Street
Anchorage, Alaska 99501
Phone: (907) 269-7955
E-mail: amber.bethe@alaska.gov
Additionally, DEC will accept comments by facsimile at (907) 334-2415. Comments may also be submitted electronically through the Alaska Online Public Notice System. The comments must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. on Dec 15, 2020. Written comments received are public records and are subject to public inspection.
If you are a person with a disability who may need a special accommodation in order to participate in this public process, please contact Garret Odom at (907) 465-3945 not later than November 24, 2020, to ensure that any necessary accommodations can be provided.
2020 Integrated Report
(DEC) is currently analyzing water quality data and information for the development of Alaska’s 2020 Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report (Integrated Report).
2018 Integrated Report
Approved 2018 Integrated Report
DEC submitted the final 2018 Integrated Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report to EPA on March 26, 2020, including the 305(b) report on the status of State waters and the 303(d) Impaired Waters List. Major changes in the report including moving several creeks in the Bonanza Creek watershed from Category 5 to Category 2 for turbidity attainment, and moving Eagle River from Category 5 to Category 2 for ammonia, copper, lead, silver and chlorine attainment. For a more detailed summary of the report see the 2018 Integrated Report Fact Sheet. EPA approved Alaska’s Integrated Report on June 23, 2020.
For over 30 years DEC has prepared a “paper” Integrated Report to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to satisfy the reporting requirements of the Clean Water Act. The water quality assessment information from the States is sent to the EPA and is managed and maintained in a system called ATTAINS (Assessment and Total Maximum Daily Load Tracking and Implementation System). EPA is revising and redesigning the ATTAINS system to be more streamlined.
Results from Alaska’s Integrated Report can now be found on Hows My Waterway, recently released by EPA. How’s My Waterway integrates data from the Integrated Report with local water quality data, information on aquatic recreation and harvest, and restoration and protection efforts.
- The Water Quality Exchange (WQX) is the mechanism for data partners to submit water monitoring data to EPA
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