TITLE 327 WATER POLLUTION CONTROL BOARDLSA Document #08-764SUMMARY/RESPONSE TO COMMENTS FROM THE SECOND COMMENT PERIODThe Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) requested public comment from December 16, 2009, through January 30, 2010, regarding development of new rules and amendments to rules concerning antidegradation standards and implementation procedures. IDEM received comment letters from the following parties by the comment period deadline:Alcoa Warrick Operations, Denny Wene, Senior Staff Environmental Engineer (AWO)Barnes & Thornburg, Fredric P. Andes (BT)Chambers, Claire S., citizen of Murrieta, California (former Indiana resident) (CSC)Davies, Margaret, citizen of Dana Point, California (MD)Daya, Christopher, citizen of Chicago, Illinois (CD)Environmental Coalition, Jeff Hyman, including the Alliance for the Great Lakes, Conservation Law Center, Environmental Law and Policy Center, Hoosier Environmental Council, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Sierra Club Hoosier Chapter (EC) (The EC comment letter includes two attachments as part of the comment letter and included in this summary of comment letters. Attachment A is the ECs edited version of the antidegradation draft rule. Attachment B is answers to IDEM posed questions to the antidegradation subgroup in October 2008.)Finder-Stone, Patricia, League of Women Voters of Greater Green Bay, DePere, Wisconsin (PFS)Frost, Abigail, founder of Save Maumee Grassroots Organization, Fort Wayne, Indiana (AF)Ilg, Carissa, citizen of Chicago, Illinois (CI)Indiana Coal Council, Nat Noland (ICC)Indiana Farm Bureau and Indiana Pork Producers Association (IPP, IFB)Indiana Energy Association, Stan Pinegar, representing a trade association whose membership includes 13 investor-owned electric and gas utilities and one charitable public trust gas utility, all operating in the state of Indiana. Collectively, the IEA members and individual non-members are referred to in these comments as the Indiana Utility Group (IUG) (The IUG comment letter incorporated by reference the written comments prepared by Bill Beranek, Indiana Environmental Institute, Inc., a copy of which is included in this summary of comment letters.)Indiana Steel Environmental Group, Patrick M. Gorman, representing a coalition of Indiana steel companies, including ArcelorMittal USA, Inc., ArcelorMitttal Indiana Harbor, LLC, United States Steel Gary Works, United States Steel Midwest Plant, ArcelorMittal Burns Harbor LLC, and Nucor Steel Crawfordsville. (ISEG)Indiana Water Quality Coalition and the Indiana Manufacturers Association, William C. Wagner. IWQC is a group of businesses with shared interests in Indiana regulations, policies, and operating procedures concerning water quality. IMA is a voluntary, nonprofit trade association representing nearly 2,000 companies and 600,000 manufacturing jobs. (IWQC-IMA)Jonson, Suzanne, citizen of San Francisco, California (SJ)Kelso, David and Kerry, citizens of Sierra Vista, Arizona (DKK)Landry, Robert W., citizen of Egg Harbor, Wisconsin (RWL)Lannin, Susan D., citizen of Chicago, Illinois (SDL)Ledgerwood, Lynn, citizen of Olympia, Washington, supporter of the Alliance for the Great Lakes (LL)MED, citizen of Chicago, Illinois, supporter of the Alliance for the Great Lakes (MED)Montapert, Anthony, citizen (AM)Northern Indiana Public Service Company, Dan Plath, with four active electric generating stations, two sited on Lake Michigan, one on the Kankakee River, and one located off of the Wabash River near Terre Haute (NIPSCO)Northwest Indiana Forum, Kay Nelson, representing industrial and commercial businesses, financial entities, universities and municipalities within Lake, Porter, LaPorte, and Starke counties (NIF)Pawlik, Laura A., citizen of Chicago, Illinois (LAP)Palleon, Marjorie, citizen of Cedarburg, Wisconsin, (MP)Petering, Louise, President of League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (LP)Sannito, Julie, citizen of Munster, Indiana (JS)Shillinglaw, Craig, citizen of Valparaiso, Indiana (CS)Southerland, Ada, citizen (AS)U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 5, Water Quality Branch, Linda Holst (USEPA)Valley Watch, Inc., John Blair, President (VWI)Following is a summary of the comments received and IDEMs responses thereto:INTRODUCTIONThe Federal Clean Water Act requires states to develop rules to: Protect existing uses of waters; Maintain existing water quality; Provide a mechanism to include a public input process for evaluating any proposed deterioration of water quality from discharges. This draft antidegradation rule is IDEMs proposed process for determining when a proposed deterioration is necessary and provides a social and economic benefit. The current antidegradation rule only applies to the Great Lakes basin.The proposed Draft Rule expands the antidegradation procedures to apply to all waters acro