117 Neb. Admin. Code, ch. 7, § 004

Current through September 17, 2024

Section 117-7-004 - Beneficial Uses

Beneficial uses are assigned to wetlands within or bordering upon the State of Nebraska. Assigned beneficial uses are protected by the narrative and numerical water quality criteria listed or referenced in this chapter. Additionally, assigned and existing beneficial uses are protected by the Antidegradation Clause in Chapter 3. Some uses require higher quality water than others. When multiple uses are assigned to the same wetland, all assigned uses will be protected.

Beneficial uses assigned to all wetlands are:

Aquatic Life

Wildlife

Agricultural Water Supply

Aesthetics

These uses are not intended in any way to conflict with the quantitative beneficial uses provided for in Neb. Rev. Stat., Ch 46, regulating irrigation or the authority of the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources.

004.01 Aquatic Life

Wetlands assigned this beneficial use provide, or could provide, habitat capable of supporting aquatic biota on a regular or periodic basis. Aquatic biota are life forms which require water to fulfill basic life functions such as reproduction, growth, and development. Examples of aquatic biota include, but are not limited to, fish, macroinvertebrates, amphibians, and hydrophytic vegetation.

004.01A General Criteria

Water quality criteria are established to protect assigned beneficial uses. However, traditional water quality parameters in wetlands such as pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, ammonia, chloride, and conductivity may naturally vary outside accepted ranges for other surface waters. Water quality criteria for specific wetlands or wetland complexes, except numerical criteria for toxic substances (paragraph 004.01C1), petroleum oil (paragraph 004.01D), and residual chlorine (paragraph 004.01F), are to be based on natural background values for traditional water quality parameters. However, these criteria are to be no more stringent than those associated with the Class B Warmwater Aquatic Life classification or the General Criteria for Aquatic Life of Chapter 4, Paragraphs 003.01A, 003.01B, 003.01G, and 003.04B.

004.01B Biological Criteria

The biological integrity of wetlands is to be maintained and protected. Any human activity causing water pollution which would significantly degrade the biological integrity of wetlands is a violation of these Standards. Upland soil and water conservation practices or normal farming, silviculture, and ranching activities involving tilling, seeding, cultivating, harvesting, and grazing for the production of food, fiber, and forest products, will not be considered to cause significant degradation of biological integrity in wetlands. However, the criteria in section 004.01C for toxic substances are applicable to wetlands where such toxic substances are the result of activities listed within this subsection.

004.01B1 Any human activity causing water pollution which would cause a significant adverse impact to an identified "key species" is a violation of these Standards.

004.01B1a Key Species

Key aquatic species are identified endangered or threatened species. The following list defines the aquatic species considered by the Department to be key species. In addition to this list, any key species listed in Chapter 5 for a waterbody adjacent to a surface-water overflow wetland will be considered a key species for the wetland.

COMMON NAME	SCIENTIFIC NAME
Endangered Species
Saltwort Colorado Butterfly Plant	Salicornia rubra Gaura neomexicana ssp. coloradensis
Threatened Species:
Western Prairie Fringed Orchid	Platanthera praeclara
Ute Ladies'-tresses	Spiranthes diluvialis
Small White Lady's Slipper	Cypripedium candidum

004.01C Toxic Substances

Wetlands are to be free from toxic substances, alone or in combination with other substances, in concentrations that result in acute or chronic toxicity to aquatic life, except as specified in Chapter 2. Toxic substances are not to be present in concentrations that result in bioaccumulation or biomagnification in aquatic organisms which renders them unsuitable or unsafe for consumption.

004.01C1 The following numerical criteria for the protection of aquatic life and their uses are not to be exceeded. Unless otherwise noted, criteria are based on total concentrations.

CRITERIA (ug/L)
POLLUTANT	Acute	Chronic	CAS No.*
Pesticides:
Acrolein	3^c	3^d	107-02-8
Alachlor	760^c	76^d	15972-60-8
Aldrin	3.0^a	0.0000077^b,e	309-00-2
Atrazine	330^c	12^d	1912-24-9
Hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH)-Technical	100^a	0.1^b,e	608-73-1
alpha-Hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH)	(Reserved)	0.0039^b,e	319-84-6
beta-Hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH)	(Reserved)	0.14^b,e	319-85-7

Carbaryl	2.1	2.1	63-25-2
Chlordane	2.4^a	0.0032^b,e	57-74-9
Chlorpyrifos	0.083^c	0.041^d	2921-88-2
DCPA¹	(Reserved)	14,300^d	1861-32-1
p,p'-Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane or DDT	1.1^a	0.0003^b,e	50-29-3
p,p'-Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene or DDT metabolite (DDE)	1050^a	0.0022^b,e - 0.00018^b,e	72-55-9
p,p'-Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane or DDT metabolite (TDE, DDD)	e 0.6^a	0.0012^b,e	72-54-8
Demeton	(Reserved)	0.1^b	8065-48-3
Diazinon	0.17^c	0.17^d	333-41-5
Dieldrin	0.24^a	0.000012^b,e	60-57-1
Dioxin²	< 0.01^a	0.000000051^b,e	1746-01-6
alpha-Endosulfan	0.22^a	0.056^b	959-98-8
beta-Endosulfan	0.22^a	0.056^b	33213-65-9
Endosulfan sulfate	(Reserved)	40^b,f	1031-07-8
Endrin	0.086^a	0.03^b,f	72-20-8
Endrin aldehyde	(Reserved)	1.0^b,f	7421-93-4
Guthion	(Reserved)	0.01^b	86-50-0
Heptachlor	0.52^a	0.000059^b,e	76-44-8
Heptachlor epoxide	0.52^a	0.00032^b,e	1024-57-3
Isophorone	117,000^a	18,000^b,e	78-59-1
gamma-Hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) or Lindane	0.95^a	0.16^b	58-89-9
Malathion	(Reserved)	0.1^b	121-75-5
Methoxychlor	(Reserved)	0.02^b,f	72-43-5
Metolachlor	390^c	100^d	51218-45-2
Metribuzin	(Reserved)	100^d	21087-64-9
Mirex	(Reserved)	0.001^d	2385-85-5
Parathion	0.065^c	0.013^d	56-38-2
Pentachlorophenol	e^{( 1.005(pH)- 4.869)} c	e 0.4^b,e	87-86-5
Propachlor	(Reserved)	8.0^d	1918-16-7
Toxaphene	0.73^c	0.0002^d	8001-35-2
Tributyltin (TBT)	0.46^c	0.072^d	.........
Chlorphenoxy Herbicide (2,4-D)	Reserved	12,000^b,f	94-75-7
Chlorphenoxy Herbicide (2,4,5-TP) [Silvex]	Reserved	400^b,f	93-72-1
Metals and Inorganics³:
Aluminum	750^c	87^d	7429-90-5
Antimony	88^c	30^d	7440-36-0
Arsenic	340^c	16.7^b,e	7440-38-2
Beryllium	130^a	5.3^d	7440-41-7
Cadmium ⁴	(ACF) e^{( 0.9789[lnhardness]- 3.421)} c	(ACF) e^{( 0.7977[lnhardness]- 3.909)}d	7440-43-9
Chromium (III)	(ACF) e^{( 0.819[lnhardness]+ 3.764)} c	(ACF) e^{( 0.819[lnhardness]+ 0.724)} d	16065-83-1
Chromium (VI)	16^c	11^d	18540-29-9
Copper	(ACF) e^{( 0.9422[lnhardness]-1.700)} c	(ACF) e^{(.08545[lnhardness]- 1.702)} d	7440-50-8
Cyanide	41.3^c	9.8^d	57-12-5
Iron	(Reserved)	1,000^b	7439-89-6
Lead⁵	(CF)e(^{1.273[lnhardness]- 1.460)} c	(CF) e^{[ 1.273[lnhardness]- 4.705)} d	7439-92-1
Manganese	(Reserved)	1,000^b,e	7439-96-5
Mercury⁶	1.4^c	0.77^d	7439-97-6
Nickel	( 0.998)e^{( 0.846[lnhardness]+ 2.255)} c	(0. 997) ^{( 0.846[lnhardness]+ 0.0584)} d	7440-02-0
Selenium	See 004.01C3		7782-49-2
Silver	( 0.85)e^{1.27[lnhardness]- 6.59)} c	(Reserved)	7440-22-4
Thallium	1,400^a	0.47^b,f	7440-28-0
Zinc	( 0.978)e^{( 0.8473[lnhardness]+ 0.884)} c	(CF) e^{( 0.8473[ln hardness]+ 0.884)} d	7440-66-6
PCBs and Related Compounds:
PCBs	2.0^a	0.00064^b,e	.........
Chlorinated Naphthalenes	1,600^a	43,000^b,e	.........
Halogenated Aliphatics:
Halomethanes	11,000^a	157^b,e	.........
Bromoform	(Reserved)	1,200^b,e	75-25-2
Methyl bromide	(Reserved)	10,000^b,f	74-83-9
Chloroform	28,900^a	1,240^b	67-66-3
Carbon tetrachloride	35,200^a	50^b,e	56-23-5
Methylene chloride	(Reserved)	3,000^b,f	75-09-2
1,2-dichloroethane	118,000^a	6,500^b,e	107-06-2
Hexachloroethane	980^a	0.8^b,f	67-72-1
Pentachloroethane	7,240^a	1,100^b	76-01-7
Trichlorinated ethanes	18,000^a	(Reserved)	25323-89-1
1,1,1-trichloroethane	(Reserved)	200,000^b,f	71-55-6
1,1,2-trichloroethane	(Reserved)	89^b,e	79-00-5
Tetrachloroethanes	9,320^a	(Reserved)	25322-20-7
1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane	(Reserved)	30^b,e	79-34-5
Dichloroethylenes	11,600^a	(Reserved)	25323-30-3
1,1-dichloroethylene	(Reserved)	20,000^b,f	75-35-4
Trans-1,2-dichloroethylene	(Reserved)	4,000^b,f	156-60-5
Tetrachloroethylene	5,280^a	70^b,f	127-18-4
Trichloroethylene	45,000^a	30^b,f	79-01-6
Chlorodibromomethane	(Reserved)	210^b,e	124-48-1
Dichlorobromomethane	(Reserved)	270^b,e	75-27-4
Dichloropropane	23,000^a	5,700^b	26638-19-7
1,2-dichloropropane	(Reserved)	310^b,e	78-87-5
Dichloropropene	6,060^a	244^b	26952-23-8
1,3-dichloropropene	(Reserved)	120^b,e	542-75-6
Hexachlorobutadiene	90^a	0.02^b,f	87-68-3
Hexachlorocyclopentadiene	7.0^a	4.0^b,f	77-47-4
Vinyl Chloride	(Reserved)	16^b,e	75-01-4
Ethers:
Bis(2-chloroethyl) Ether	(Reserved)	22^b,e	111-44-4
Bis(2-chloro-1-methylethyl) Ether	(Reserved)	4,000^b,f	108-60-1
	(Reserved)	0.17^b,e	542-88-1
Bis(chloromethyl) Ether
Chloroalkyl ethers	238,000^a	(Reserved)	.........
Haloethers	360^a	122^b	.........
Monocyclic Aromatics except Phenols, Cresols, and Phthalates:
Benzene	5,300^a	90^b,f	71-43-2
Chlorinated benzenes	250^a	50^b	.........
Chlorobenzene	(Reserved)	800^b,f	108-90-7
1,2-dichlorobenzene	(Reserved)	3,000^b,f	95-50-1
1,3-dichlorobenzene	(Reserved)	10^b,f	541-73-1
1,4,-dichlorobenzene	(Reserved)	900^b,f	106-46-7
Ethylbenzene	32,000^a	130^b,f	100-41-4
Hexachlorobenzene	6.0^a	0.00079^b,e	118-74-1
Nitrobenzene	27,000^a	600^b,f	98-95-3
Pentachlorobenzene	(Reserved)	0.1b,f	608-93-5
1,2,4,5-tetrachlorobenzene	(Reserved)	0.03^b,f	95-94-3
1,2,4-trichlorobenzene	(Reserved)	0.76^b,e	120-82-1
Toluene	17,500^a	520^b,f	108-88-3
2,4-dinitrotoluene	330^a	17^b,e	121-14-2
Phenols and Cresols:
Phenol	10,200^a	2,560^b	108-95-2
2-chlorophenol	4,380^a	800^b,f	95-57-8
3-methyl-4-chlorophenol	30^a	2,000^b,f	59-50-7
2,4-dichlorophenol	2,020^a	60^b,f	120-83-2
2,4,5-trichlorophenol	100^a	63^b	95-95-4
2,4,6-trichlorophenol	(Reserved)	6^b,f	88-06-2
Dinitrophenols	(Reserved)	1,000^b,f	25550-58-7
Nitrophenols	230^a	150^b	.........
Nonylphenol	28^c	6.6^d	1044-05-1
2-methyl-4,6-dinitrophenol	(Reserved)	30^b,f	534-52-1
2,4-dinitrophenol	(Reserved)	300^b,f	51-28-5
2,4-dimethylphenol	2,120^a	3,000^b,f	105-67-9
Phthalate Esters:
Phthalate esters	940^a	3.0^b	.........
Butylbenzyl phthalate	(Reserved)	1.0^b,e	85-68-7
Di-N-butyl phthalate	(Reserved)	30^b,f	84-74-2
Diethyl phthalate	(Reserved)	600^b,f	84-66-2
Bis(2-ethylhexyl) Phthalate	2,000^a	3.7^b,e	117-81-7
Dimethyl phthalate	(Reserved)	2,000^b,f	131-11-3
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs):
Acenaphthene	1,700^a	90^b,f	83-32-9
Anthracene	(Reserved)	400^b,f	120-12-7
Benzo(a)anthracene	(Reserved)	0.013^b,e	56-55-3
Benzo(a)pyrene	(Reserved)	0.0013^b,e	50-32-8
Benzo(b)fluoranthene	(Reserved)	0.013^b,e	205-99-2
Benzo(k)fluoranthene	(Reserved)	0.13^b,e	207-08-9
Chrysene	(Reserved)	1.3^b,e	218-01-9
Dibenzo(a,h)anthracene	(Reserved)	0.0013^b,e	53-70-3
Fluoranthene	3,980^a	20^b,f	206-44-0
Fluorene	(Reserved)	70^b,f	86-73-7
Indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene	(Reserved)	0.013^b,e	193-39-5
Naphthalene	2,300^a	620^b	91-20-3
2-chloronaphthalene	1,600^a	1,000^b,f	91-58-7
Phenanthrene	30^a	6.3^b	85-01-8
Pyrene	(Reserved)	30^b,f	129-00-0
Nitrosamines and other Nitrogen-containing Compounds:
Nitrosamines	5,850^a	12.4^b,e	.........
Benzidine	2,500^a	0.11^b,e	92-87-5
3,3'-dichlorobenzidine	(Reserved)	1.5^b,e	91-94-1
1,2-diphenylhydrazine	270^a	2.0^b,e	122-66-7
Acrylonitrile	7,550^a	70^b,e	107-13-1
N-nitrosodibutylamine	(Reserved)	2.2^b,e	924-16-3
N-nitrosodiethylamine	(Reserved)	12.4^b,e	55-18-5
N-nitrosodimethylamine	(Reserved)	30^b,e	62-75-9
N-nitrosodiphenylamine	(Reserved)	60^b,e	86-30-6
N-nitrosodi-N-propylamine	(Reserved)	5.1^b,e	621-64-7
N-nitrosopyrrolidine	(Reserved)	340^b,e	930-55-2

^a Concentration not to be exceeded at any time

^b Twenty-four hour average concentration

^c One-hour average concentration

^d Four-day average concentration

^e Human health criteria at the 10^-5 risk level for carcinogens based on the consumption of fish and other aquatic organisms

^f Human health criteria based on the consumption of fish and other aquatic organisms

¹ Dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate

² 2,3,7,8-tetrachloro-dibenzo-p-dioxin or 2,3,7,8-TCDD

³ Criteria for metals and inorganics apply to dissolved concentrations

⁴ The conversion factors for cadmium are hardness dependent and defined by:

ACF = 1.136672-[ln hardness ( 0.041838)]

CCF = 1.101672-[ln hardness ( 0.041838)]

⁵ The conversion factor for lead (acute and chronic) is hardness dependent and defined by:

CF = 1.46203- [(ln hardness)( 0.145712)]

⁶ Chronic criterion for mercury applies to total recoverable concentrations

004.01C2 The following criteria for the protection of human health based on consumption of fish and other aquatic organisms are not to be exceeded. These criteria are expressed as fish tissue concentrations (mg/kg fish).

POLLUTANT	CRITERIA (mg/kg)	CAS No.^*
Methylmercury	0.215	22967-92-6

^* Chemical Abstract Services Registry Number

004.01C3 The following Selenium criteria are for the protection of aquatic life. These criteria are expressed preferentially as fish tissue concentrations (mg/kg fish), followed by water column concentrations (mg/L) in the absence of fish tissue information.

POLLUTANT			CAS No.^*
Selenium			7782-49-2
	FISH TISSUE¹ CRITERIA		WATER COLUMN⁴ CRITERIA
Criterion Element	Egg/Ovary²	Fish Whole Body or Muscle³	Thirty-day average	Intermittent Exposure⁵
Magnitude	15.1 mg/kg	8.5 mg/kg whole body or 11.3 mg/kg muscle	1.5 µg/L	WOCt = WQC30-day - Cbkgrnd(1-fint) fint
Duration	Instantaneous measurement⁶	Instantaneous measurement⁶	30 days	Number of days/month with an elevated concentration
Frequency	Not to be exceeded	Not to be exceeded	Not more than once in three years on average	Not more than once in three years on average

^1. Fish tissue elements are expressed as steady-state.

^2. Egg/Ovary supersedes any whole-body, muscle, or water column element when fish egg/ovary concentrations are measured.

^3. Fish whole-body or muscle tissue supersedes water column element when both fish tissue and water column concentrations are measured.

^4. Water column values are based on dissolved total selenium in water and are derived from fish tissue values via bioaccumulation modeling. Water column values are the applicable criterion element in the absence of steady-state condition fish tissue data.

^5. Where WQC30-day is the water column monthly element, for either a lake or stream; Cbkgrnd is the average background selenium concentration, and fint is the fraction of any 30-day period during which elevated selenium concentrations occur, with fint assigned a value >= 0.033 (corresponding to 1 day).

^6. Fish tissue data provide instantaneous point measurements that reflect integrative accumulation of selenium over time and space in fish populations at a given site.

* Chemical Abstract Services Registry Number

004.01D Petroleum Oil.

Not to exceed 10 mg/L.

004.01E Alkalinity

No less than 20 mg/L as CaCO₃ except where natural background is less.

004.01F Residual Chlorine

004.01F1 One-hour average concentration not to exceed 19 µg/L.

004.01F2 Four-day average concentration not to exceed 11 µg/L.

004.02 Wildlife

Wetlands assigned this beneficial use provide, or could provide, habitat capable of supporting wildlife on a regular or periodic basis. Wildlife are undomesticated terrestrial or avian life forms which may utilize wetlands to support life functions such as watering, feeding, loafing, predator protection, and nesting. Examples of wildlife include, but are not limited to, furbearers, waterfowl, shorebirds, migratory birds, and reptiles.

004.02A General Criteria

Because wildlife utilizing wetlands rely on aquatic biota in many cases for food and habitat, general criteria and toxic criteria listed for the protection of aquatic life (paragraphs 004.01A and 004.01C) also apply for the protection of wildlife.

004.02B Biological Criteria

Any human activity causing water pollution which would cause a significant adverse impact to an identified "key species" is a violation of these Standards.

004.02B1 Key Species

Key wildlife species are identified endangered, threatened, or sensitive species. The following list defines the wildlife species considered by the Department to be key species.

COMMON NAME

SCIENTIFIC NAME

Endangered Species:

Whooping Crane

Interior Least Tern

Grus americana

Sternula antillarum athalassos

River Otter

American Burying Beetle

Salt Creek Tiger Beetle

Lontra canadensis

Nicrophorus americanus

Cicindela nevadica lincolniana

Threatened Species:

Piping Plover

Rufa Red Knot

Western Massasauga

Charadrius melodus

Calidris canutus rufa

Sistrurus tergeminus

Sensitive Species

A freshwater snail

American Toad

Bald Eagle

Blanding's Turtle

Graham's Crayfish Snake

Great Plains Narrowmouth

Toad

Fossaria techella

Anaxyrus americanus

Haliaeetus leucocephalus

Emydoidea blandingii

Regina grahamii

Gastrophryne olivacea

Niobrara ambersnail

Platte River Caddisfly

Red-eared Slider

Smallmouth Salamander

Smooth Soft Shelled Turtle

Osyloma haydeni

Ironoquia plattensis

Trachemys scripta elegans

Ambystoma texanum

Apalone mutica

004.03 Agricultural Water Supply

Wetlands assigned this beneficial use are used or have the potential to be used for general agricultural purposes (e.g., irrigation and livestock watering) without treatment. In some cases, however, natural background water quality may limit their use for agricultural purposes.

004.03A General Criteria

Wastes or toxic substances introduced directly or indirectly by human activity in concentrations that would degrade the use (i.e., would produce undesirable physiological effects in crops or livestock) will not be allowed. Where natural background water quality limits the use of a wetland for agricultural purposes, water quality criteria for conductivity and selenium are to be based on the natural background condition.

004.03B Conductivity.

Not to exceed 2,000 umhos/cm between April 1 and September 30.

004.03C Nitrate and Nitrite as Nitrogen.

Not to exceed 100 mg/L.

004.03D Selenium.

Not to exceed 0.02mg/L.

004.04 Aesthetics.

This use applies to all wetlands of the state. To be aesthetically acceptable, wetlands are to be free from human-induced pollution which causes:

1) noxious odors;

2) floating, suspended, colloidal, or settleable materials that produce objectionable films, colors, turbidity, or deposits; and

3) the occurrence of undesirable or nuisance aquatic life (e.g., algal blooms). Wetlands are also to be free of junk, refuse, and discarded dead animals.

117 Neb. Admin. Code, ch. 7, § 004

Amended effective 12/13/2014.

Amended effective 6/24/2019