Section NR 111.14 - Monitoring requirements At a minimum, the WPDES permit for a facility subject to this subchapter shall require the permittee to monitor, as required in ss. NR 111.12, and 111.13, according to all of the following:
(1) MONITORING REQUIREMENTS FOR IMPINGEMENT MORTALITY. The department may establish monitoring requirements to quantify impingement mortality in addition to those specified in s. NR 111.12, including biological monitoring, intake velocity, and flow measurements. If the department establishes additional monitoring requirements, the specific protocols shall be determined by the department.(2) MONITORING REQUIREMENTS FOR ENTRAINMENT. The department shall determine monitoring requirements for entrainment on a site-specific basis, as appropriate, to meet requirements under s. NR 111.13. The department may establish entrainment monitoring requirements in addition to those specified in s. NR 111.13.(3) FLOW RATE MONITORING. The owner or operator of the facility shall monitor the total volume of water withdrawn and the percent used for cooling on a daily basis. Additionally, if applicable, make-up water and blowdown daily flow rates shall be monitored. Alternatively, an owner or operator of the facility complying with s. NR 111.12(1) (a) 1. may monitor cycles of cooling in lieu of flow monitoring. Also alternatively, an owner or operator of the facility may report percent of flow used for cooling on a less frequent basis if daily monitoring is infeasible or overly burdensome and if the department approves an alternate method of estimating this value. The department may require additional monitoring as necessary to demonstrate compliance with s. NR 111.21.(4) VISUAL OR REMOTE INSPECTIONS. The owner or operator of a facility shall conduct either visual inspections or employ remote monitoring devices during the period the cooling water intake structure is in operation. The owner or operator of a facility shall conduct inspections at least weekly to ensure that any technologies operated to comply with ss. NR 111.12, 111.13, and 111.16 are maintained and operated to function as designed. The department may establish alternative procedures if this requirement is not feasible, such as in the cases of offshore intakes, velocity caps, intakes inside dams, or monitoring during periods of inclement weather.(5) REQUEST FOR REDUCED MONITORING. For a facility that is subject to s. NR 111.12(1) (a) 7. and where the facility's cooling water intake structure does not directly or indirectly affect threatened or endangered species or federally designated critical habitat, the owner or operator of the facility may request that the department reduce monitoring requirements after the first full permit term in which these monitoring requirements are implemented, on the condition that the results of the monitoring to date demonstrate that the owner or operator of the facility has consistently operated the intake as designed and is meeting the requirements specified in s. NR 111.12.(6) ADDITIONAL MONITORING REQUIREMENTS. The owner or operator of the facility shall comply with any additional monitoring for impingement or entrainment at the cooling water intake structure, including any of the following: (a) The department may require additional monitoring if there are changes in operating conditions at the facility or in the source waterbody that warrant a re-examination of the operational conditions specified in s. NR 111.41(7).(b) The department may require additional monitoring for species not subject to the BTA requirements for impingement mortality under s. NR 111.12. Such monitoring requirements shall be determined by the department on a site-specific basis.(7) ADDITIONAL MONITORING RELATED TO THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES AND FEDERALLY DESIGNATED CRITICAL HABITAT. When the department requires additional measures to protect federal threatened or endangered species or federally designated critical habitat under s. NR 111.16, the department shall require monitoring associated with those measures.Wis. Admin. Code Department of Natural Resources NR 111.14
Adopted by, CR 19-105: cr. Register May 2020 No. 773, eff. 6-1-20; correction in (4) made under s. 35.17, Stats., Register May 2020 No. 773, eff. 6/1/2020