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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDWQ-2024-003696FACT SHEET UTAH POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM GENERAL PERMIT FOR CONSTRUCTION DEWATERING AND/OR HYDROSTATIC TESTING PERMIT NO. UTG070000 APPROPRIATENESS OF THE GENERAL PERMIT AND BACKGROUND: The State of Utah was granted primacy for the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program by United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1987. Utah Admin.Code R317-8-2.5 authorizes the issuance of General Permits for categories of point sources within the same geographical area with discharges that are from similar types of operations and wastes, and that require similar effluent limitations and monitoring. In Utah, discharge permits are issued by the Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Water Quality (DWQ). Utah’s program is known as the Utah Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (UPDES) Program. The Director is reissuing the UPDES Construction Dewatering/Hydrostatic Testing Permit (Permit) to regulate the discharge of groundwater, surface water from construction activities, and water used for hydrostatic testing. The basis for the permit is described in the Utah Water Quality Act in Utah Code Title 19, Chapter 5. This Fact Sheet has been prepared in accordance with Utah Admin. Code R317-8-11.3(6)(c) and (d). COVERAGE UNDER THE GENERAL PERMIT: This Permit shall apply to construction dewatering and/or hydrostatic testing of pipelines, tanks, or other vessels located in the State of Utah. This Permit may also be applied to other uncontaminated discharges of groundwater or surface water related to construction activities, drinking water pump testing or well development, etc. Discharges other than actual construction dewatering and hydrostatic testing must be identified and described in the Notice of Intent (NOI). The Directormay deny coverage from such a discharge, thereby disallowing the discharge, or require an individual permit. Except for suspended solids and oil & grease (which are limited in thisPermit) a discharge under this permit must be compatible with the water quality standards. The Director may require discharge sample analysis to demonstrate that the discharge is compatible. Discharges covered by this permit shall have no sanitary waste or chemicals associated with fuel tanks. Tested vessels must not have residual product left in the vessel before testing. This permit does notaddress toxic pollutants or other pollutants such as petroleum hydrocarbons, metals, acids, caustics, dissolved solids, sewage, nutrients, herbicides, pesticides, organics, inorganics, radiological contaminants, or other contaminants. SUMMARY OF CHANGES FROM THE 2020 PERMIT: There are several changes to the Permit from the 2020general permit (2020 Permit). Many of the changes provide clarity and update the permit to include the EPA eReporting tools for NeTRDHT and NetDMR. Additions and revisions to the Permitalign with the Utah Administrative Code, the United States Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.), and the 2022 EPA Construction General Permit which includes construction dewatering requirements. Only those changes that will have an effect on the permittee or existing permit conditions are noted in this Fact Sheet. Parts of the Permit that were moved from another part of the 2020Permit for organizational purposes are not noted in this document, unless it will have an impact or wording is significantly different from that listed in the 2020Permit. Additionally, 2020Permit requirements that have been removed or added will also be addressed in this Fact Sheet. COVERAGEUNDER THIS PERMIT Part I.A.1 and Part I.A.2Permitting Authority and Permit Area:this section was added to the permit to remain consistent with other UPDES permits and clarify the coverage area. Part I.B(2020 Permit Part I.A) Coverage Under this General Permit:the section was reformatted to clarify the discharges covered under the Permit parts B.1 and 2. Discharges not covered under the Permit are identified in Part I. B.3. “Contaminated water”, treated groundwater and surface water were added to part I.B.3a to align with 2022 EPA Construction General Permit (CGP) part 2.4 and CGP 1.2.2 specification of discharges not covered under the Permit. Part I.C. (2020 Permit Part I.A.4): Obtaining Authorization to Discharge:has been updated from the 2020Permit. This section has been updated to describe the process of obtaining permit coverage and paying the permit fee in NeT. The permit fee covers a year of permit coverage. If a project extends more than a year the permittee must renew the coverage within 60 days before the expiration. This section has been updated for the NeT Groundwater Remediation and Hydrostatic Testing General Permit (NeTRDHT) NOI submission process. Use of an electronic reporting tool is a requirement of the eReporting Rule(40 C.F.R. 127.16.)which will modernize the Clean Water Act (CWA) reporting for municipalities, industries and other facilities. The NOI requirements in this section were updated to include the information that will be required for the NOI submission on NeTRDHT. Part I.D.Modification to the NOI: This section was added to reflect the NOI modification process in NeTRDHT. Part I.E.Electronic Reporting Requirements:this section was added to include the NeT eReporting tool to meet the eReporting Rule (40 C.F.R. 127.16). The sectionalso was updated to include conditions for which a permittee shall request a waiver from the Director if they are unable to submit NOIs, NOTs, and Discharge Monitoring Reports electronically. PartI.F. (2020 Permit Part I.A.5) Termination of Coverage: this section was updated to include that to terminate the Permit the permittee shall submit a NOT on NeTRDHT within 30 days of termination of discharge. Part I.G.(2020 Permit Part I.B) Permit Exclusions:to remain consistent with the other general permits, the following information was added. The Director may grant additional time to submit the application upon request of the applicant. If an owner or operator fails to submit in a timely manner an individual UPDES permit application as required by the Director, then the applicability of this permit to the individual UPDES permittee is automatically terminated at the end of the day specified for application submittal. Part I.H. (2020 Permit Part I.B)Requiring an Individual Permit or an Alternative General permit: The language was updated and the Director notification details were clarified. EFFLUENT LIMITATIONS AND MONITORING REQUIRMENTS This information had previously been included in Part I.C and D.It was moved to a separate section for clarity. Part II.A. Water Quality Standards: The following statement was added for consistency with DWQ discharge standards in General Permits and the 2022 EPA CGP section 2.4. Discharge(s) must be controlled as necessary to meet applicable water quality standards. DWQ expects that compliance with the conditions in the Permit will result in discharges being controlled as necessary to meet applicable water quality standards. If at any time the permittee becomes aware, or DWQ determines that discharges are not being controlled as necessary to meet applicable water quality standards, the permittee shall take correction action to minimize or prevent the discharge of pollutants and documentation as described in Part II.C.12 . PartII.C. (2020 Permit Part I.D)The Specific Limitations and Self-Monitoring: This section was updated for clarification that all authorized discharges designated in the NOI shall be limited and monitored by effluent limits and monitoring requirements in Table 1. PartII.C.10. (2020 Permit Part I.D.10): This statement was added for consistency with the 2022 EPA CGPPart 2.4. Appropriate Best Management Practices (BMPs) should be correctly installed and managed. PartII.C.11. (2020 Permit Part.I.D.10): This section wasupdated to clarify that the Dewatering Control Plan (DCP) must be kept on-site and reflect BMPs installed. The DCP template is located on the DWQ website at https://documents.deq.utah.gov/water-quality/info-data-services/DWQ-2023-123902.pdf. PartII.C.12. (2020 Permit Part.I.D.11)Corrective Action Practices: This statementwas moved from Appendix E in the 2020 Permitto Part II.C.12. Some of the language was clarified in this section. The Permit contains the following Corrective Action steps that the permittee shall conduct: a.Take a grab sample for analysis anytime there is an observation of elevated turbidity and/oil and grease; b.Cease discharge of dewatering effluent until the issue is resolved; c.Conduct a site-wide inspection to observe operation conditions and BMP maintenance; d.Address any BMP failures, determining whether there was a failure in design, maintenance or installation and perform the appropriate measures to fix the failure, including determining whether BMPs should be modified or if additional measures must be taken; e.Document the issue and resolution in the daily log and update the DCP, f.The permittee shall notify DWQ with the appropriate written and oral notification requirement as detailed in Part III.M-N, MONITORING, RECORDING AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. This section was Part II. in the 2020Permit. Part III.F. Discharge Log: Thissection now includes the statement requiring that discharge logs shall be kept onsite as required for Daily Logs. This has been updated to reflect the EPA requirements for documentation while discharging. Part III.G.(2020 Permit Part II.G) Daily Log: This was added as a separate section for clarification of permit documentation requirements. Updated language to include that the permittee shall preform daily inspections of the dewatering operations and maintain a daily log. This was required in the 2020Permit but not clearly stated as the EPA CGP4.3.2 inspection requirement language. PartIII.H.(2020 Permit Part II.G) Reporting of Monitoring Results: This section has been updated to require DMR submissions through the EPA eReporting Tool NeTDMR unless an Electronic Waiver has been obtained. PartIII.N.(2020 Permit Part II.M.)Other Noncompliance Reporting:This section was updated to include the following statement to remain consistent with UPDES General Permits with the following statement: Where the permittee becomes aware that it failed to submit any relevant fact in a permit application, or submitted incorrect information in its permit application or in any report to the Director, it shall promptly submit such facts or information. V. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS PartV.D. Duty to Reapply:This section was updated to include NeTRDHT eReporting requirements. The permittee shall submit a renewal for the Permit on NeTRDHT or to the Director if an Electronic Waiver has been obtained, within 60 days before the expiration date of the permit unless an Electronic Waiver had been submitted. PartV.G.Signatory Requirements: The following statement below was included to clarify the acceptable electronic signature conditions required by the EPA eReporing rule. Electronic Signatures. Accordance with Utah Admin. Code R317-1-9, a person may submit Discharge Monitoring Reports and related information only after completion of a Subscriber Agreement in a form designated the director to ensure that all requirements of 40 C.F.R. 3. EPA’s Cross Media Electronic Reporting Regulation (CROMERR) are met; and completion of subsequent steps specified by EPA's CROMERR, including setting up a subscriber account. Any person who submits a Discharge Monitoring Report or related information under the NetDMR program, and who electronically signs the report or related.Part V.G.Transfers:This section was removed any modifications to the NOI including transfers are covered in Part I.D. Part V.O. Stormwater: the following statement below was included in the Permit to clarify the Permit does not cover stormwater permit requirements. Storm water permit requirements are not covered under this Permit. Coverage under the General Permit for Storm Water Discharges from Construction Activities (CGP) is required for projects which disturb one (1) acre or greater. These sites must develop and implement a sediment and erosion control plan or Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan utilizing BMPs for the control of storm water runoff. All sites one (1) acre or greater are required to submit a Notice of Intent with DWQ prior to any disturbance. Coverage under the CGP may be waived for small construction sites that disturb between 1 to 5 acres if construction will start and finish (meaning final stabilization) between January 1 and April 30 of the same calendar year (Low Erosivity Waiver). Reasonable measures to control erosion and sediment transport must still be used in case runoff occurs during the time period. All point source discharges that are covered under a storm water permit shall be required to install velocity dissipation devices at discharge locations along the length of any outfall channel as necessary to insure nonerosive velocity flow from the structure to water course so that the natural physical and biological characteristics and functions are maintained and protected (e.g. no significant changes in the hydrological regime of the receiving water). A copy of the CGP can be viewed and downloaded at the DWQ website.VI. DEFINITIONS, ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS Part V.A. Definitions; this section was updated to add the following definitions: “Control Measures”means any stormwater control or other method used to prevent or reduce the discharge of pollutants of waters to the state. “Corrective Action”means any action taken, or required to be taken, to: Repair, modify, or replace any stormwater control used at the site; Clean up and dispose of spills, releases, or other deposits found on the site; or Remedy a permit violation. “DMR” Discharge Monitoring Report. A report of the results of discharge monitoring required by the permit. “Discharge Point” means the location where collected and concentrated stormwater flows are discharged from the facility such that the first receiving waterbody into which the discharge flows, either directly or through a separate storm sewer system, is a water of the state.“Effluent Limitation Guidelines” means a regulation published by the EPA under Section 304(b) of the Clean Water Act to adopt or revise effluent limitations A “grab” sample, for monitoring requirements, is defined as a single “dip and take” sample collected at a representative point in the discharge stream. “Hazardous Waste” means any liquid, solid, or contained gas that contain properties that are dangerous or potentially harmful to human health or the environment. “Hazardous Substance” means any substance designated under 40 CFR Part 116. “MS4” Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System. Large or medium MS4s shall mean all MS4s that are either: a. located in an incorporated place (city) with a population of 100,000 or more as determined by the latest Decennial Census by the Bureau of Census.at the issuance date of this permit, Salt Lake City is the only city in Utah that falls in this category; b. located in the counties with unincorporated urbanized populations of 100,000 or more, except municipal separate storm sewers that are located in the incorporated places, townships or towns within such counties. At the issuance date of this permit Salt Lake County is the only county that falls in this category and the County only manages the system for facilities owned by the County; or c. owned or operated by a municipality other than those described in paragraph a. or b. and that are designated by the Director as part of the large or medium municipal separate storm sewer system. “Minimize” means to reduce and/or eliminate to the extent achievable using control measures that are technologically available and economically practicable and achievable in light of best industry practices. “NPDES” the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System defined by 40 CFR 122.2 as national program for issuing, modifying, revoking and reissuing, terminating, monitoring and enforcing permits, and imposing and enforcing pretreatment requirements, under Sections 307, 402, 318, and 405 of Clean Water Act. “Outfall”see “Discharge Point.” “Operator” means, for the purposes of this Permit and in the context of discharges associated with construction dewatering and/or hydrostatic testing, any party associated with a project that meets either of the following two criteria: 1) the party which has operational control over construction plans and specifications, including the ability to make modifications to those plans and specifications (e.g. in most cases this is the record owner of the site, sometimes it is a lessor); or 2) the party which has day-to-day operational control of those activities at a project that are necessary to ensure compliance with the Permit conditions (e.g., they are authorized to direct workers at a site to carry out activities required by the Permit; in most cases this is the general contractor of the project).“Pollutant” defined in 40 CFR 122.2. A partial listing from this definition includes: dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, filter backwash, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, heat, wrecked or discarded equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt, and industrial, municipal and agricultural waste discharged into water. “Pollution” means any man-made or man-induced alteration of the chemical, physical, biological, or radiological integrity of any waters of the State, unless such alteration is necessary for the public health and safety. Alterations which are not consistent with the requirements of the Clean Water Act and implementing regulations shall not be deemed to be alterations necessary for the public health and safety. A discharge not in accordance with Utah Water Quality Standards, stream classification, and UPDES permit requirements, including technology-based standards shall be deemed to be pollution. “Process Wastewater” means any water which, during manufacturing or processing, comes into direct contact with or results from the production or use of any raw material, intermediate product, finished product, byproduct, or waste product. “Site” means the land or water area where any "facility or activity" is physically located or conducted, including adjacent land used in connection with the facility or activity. “Uncontaminated Discharge” means a discharge that does not cause or contribute to an exceedance of applicable water quality standards. Part.V.B. Abbreviations and Acronyms were added to the Permit for clarification. BMPs – Best Management Practices CFR – United States Code of Federal Regulations CGP – Construction General Permit CDHT- Construction Dewatering Hydrostatic Testing Permit DEQ – Utah Department of Environmental Quality DCP- –Dewatering Control Plan DMR –Discharge Monitoring Reports DWQ – Utah Division of Water Quality EPA – United States Environmental Protection Agency MS4 – Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System NeTDMR-NPDES eReporting Tool Discharge Monitoring Reporting NeTRDHT – NPDES eReporting Tool Remediation Dewatering Hydrostatic Testing NOI – Notice of Intent. NOT – Notice of Termination NPDES – National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System POTW – Publicly Owned Treatment Works UPDES – Utah Pollutant Discharge Elimination SystemAPPENDICESAll appendices were removed from the permit and information moved elsewhere as follows: Appendix ANotice of Intent (NOI)All NOI submissions shall be done on NeTRDHT unless an Electronic Waiver has been granted. ANOI is available on the DWQ website for those with the Waiver.https://documents.deq.utah.gov/water-quality/permits/updes/DWQ-2019-005143.pdfAppendix B Notice of Termination (NOT)All NOTs submissions shall be done in NeTRDHT unless an Electronic Waiver has been granted. A NOT is available on the DWQ website for those with the Waiver. https://documents.deq.utah.gov/water-quality/permits/updes/DWQ-2019-005143.pdfAppendix C Discharge Monitoring Reports (DMR)All DMR reports shall be submitted through NeTDMR. A template version is available on the DWQ website.Help files for DMR submissions are located on the website.https://documents.deq.utah.gov/water-quality/info-data-services/DWQ-2023-123902.pdfAppendix DDewatering Control Plan (DCP) GuidelinesThe DCP template and guidelines are available on the DWQ website. https://documents.deq.utah.gov/water-quality/info-data-services/DWQ-2023-123902.pdfAppendix ECorrection Action Practices Correction Actions Practices were moved to Permit Part III.C.11 and updated to include a more detailed list of triggers for action. Appendix FFrequently Asked QuestionsThis document is available on the DWQ website. Minor changes were made to the language to reflect permit. The Fee has been updated to reflect current fee for the permit coverage. NeTRDHT information was added.https://deq.utah.gov/water-quality/general-construction-storm-water-updes-permitsAppendix F DMR Form This document is available on the DWQ website.https://documents.deq.utah.gov/water-quality/info-data-services/DWQ-2023-123902.pdfAppendix GNon-compliance FormThis document is available on the DWQ website.https://documents.deq.utah.gov/water-quality/permits/updes/DWQ-2019-005143.pdfBEST CONVENTIONAL POLLUTANT CONTROL TECHNOLOGY FOR TOTAL SUSPENDED SOLIDS: Discharges covered under this Permit can contain high concentrations of suspended solids without proper treatment. Total suspended solids (TSS) is a total quantity measurement of solid material per volume of water. TSS is also an indicator of the un-dissolved solids that are present in discharges. High levels of TSS can negatively affect aquatic health, increase nutrient concentrations, and impact other water quality parameters, such as causing a decrease in dissolved oxygen. Many pollutants adhere to sediment particles; therefore, reducing sediment will reduce the amount of other pollutants in discharges. Imbalance in loading of suspended and bedded sediment to aquatic systems is considered one of the greatest causes of water quality impairment in the Nation (U.S.EPA, 2003a). CWA section 304 (a)(4) designates TSS as a conventional pollutant.Discharges of conventional pollutants must achieve a minimum effluent limitation representing the degree of effluent reduction attainable by the application of the Best Conventional Pollutant Control Technology (BCT). See Utah Admin. Code R317-8-7.1(1)(b)(2). Utah’s first Construction Dewatering/Hydrostatic Testing (CDHT) Permit following Utah’s grant of primacy in 1987 was issued in 1989 (1989 Permit). The 1989 Permit established the following TSS effluent limits: 35 mg/L 7-day average and 25 mg/L 30-day average for TSS based on the State of Utah secondary treatment standards Utah Admin. Code 317-1-3. The 1989 Permit established the daily maximum value of 70 mg/L TSS based on Best Professional Judgement (BPJ). Specifically, responses to comments received on the 1989 Permit state: A maximum concentration of 90 mg/L would make it impossible for a discharge of less than 3 days (which is quite common) to comply with the monthly average limitation. Since other industrial discharges are often required to not exceed two times the monthly average, the 70 mg/L is considered reasonable. It is our Best Professional Judgment that the water discharged from hydrostatic testing is easily treatable by settling ponds or filtration to less than 70 mg/L maximum.Additionally, 70 mg/L is the same as the standards for the Coal Mining Point Source Category established in 40 CFR 434.22. These limits have been in each subsequent CDHT Permit since. Due to rule changes in 2020 that limited the applicability of secondary standards to publicly owned treatment works, DWQ reviewed the historic TSS effluent limitations and monitoring requirements during the renewal, and considered industry-wide costs; equipment; facilities; control technologies' performance; and pollutant reduction benefits. Based on this review, DWQ determined that historical TSS requirements are achievable and practical based on BCT. DWQ reviewed the cost of implementing BMPs to manage discharges covered under this Permit. Sites can implement dewatering controls such as vegetative swales; check dams install well points with gravel or sand filtration; and utilize site design features that reduce sediment input and help remove sediment at minimal cost. The International Stormwater Best Management Practices Database effectiveness for stormwater controls demonstrated that these types of controls can reduce TSS by 60 to 85 percent depending on the control employed. A review of DWQ records indicated DWQ has issued coverage under the CDHT to over 1,000 permittees since 2015. Filter bags, one of the most commonly employed dewatering BMPs indicated by permittees, have demonstrated a median TSS removal percentage of 80% in EPA and American Society Civil Engineer studies. Depending on the project, filter bags range from $50-$250 and typically last about two weeks. Weir tanks, which cost around $1,000 monthly to rent, are also common construction dewatering BMPs indicated by permittees. The International Stormwater BMP Database indicates that the commonly employed BMPs in the State of Utah demonstrated the ability to achieve a 60-95 percent removal of TSS. The uses of more than one BMPs such as filter bags and sedimentation basins demonstrate an even higher success rate. Construction dewatering can vary significantly; smaller projects cost less than $5,000, and the average cost of more extensive projects ranges around $10,000. A review of permitted sites that reported discharges in NeTDMR from 2023 to 2024 revealed that 92 percent complied with the TSS effluent limits, demonstrating that the Permit limits from the 1989 Permit were achievable. The daily maximum value average reported in NeTDMR was 35 mg/L which is well under the daily maximum effluent limit of 70 mg/L, and 85% of the reported daily maximum values meeting the daily maximum. Based on the review of permitting data in NetDMR and the associated BMPs commonly utilized by permittees, the effluent limits have been demonstrated to be achievable. In addition to the review of the TSS limits, DWQ evaluated whether turbidity monitoring and limitations were more appropriate for this permit. The numeric Water Quality Standard R317-2-14 limits discharges to an increase of 10 NTUs for recreational, domestic, and agricultural and for cold water and warm water game fish and aquatic wildlife. Developing an effluent limit based on turbidity would present economic and logistical challenges for the operator. Turbidity effluent limitations would require daily sampling of the receiving water body and the discharge. As many of the permittees discharge to storm drains, sampling the receiving water body may require the permittee to travel to access the receiving water body; identify the correct receiving water body and monitoring location; and potentially face safety concerns related to monitoring in flowing streams. Turbidity can be measured on-site with turbidity meters, which typically range in cost from $800 to $ 1,500; require calibration/maintenance; and present sampling assurance concerns. Lab analysis for turbidity on average costs $20 per sample and has a 2-day holding time and requires the sample be refrigerated and kept in the dark. Lab analysis for TSS costs $18 dollars on average and has a 7-day holding time. In addition, if turbidity monitoring replaced TSS monitoring in the permit it would be required to be monitored daily, whereas TSS would have a weekly monitoring requirement. Depending upon the frequency of discharge, the cost for turbidity monitoring could be higher. Permittees have developed procedures and are familiar with the previous permit regulations and effluent limitations, dating back to the 1989 Permit. Changing the requirement for turbidity would create an unnecessary burden on the permittee, without a pollutant-reduction benefit. References ASCE/EPA Database. International Stormwater Best Management Practices (BMP) Database. ASCE/EPA 2000. Determining Urban Stormwater Best Management Practice Removal Efficiencies. EPA Assistance Agreement Number CX 824555-01-Task 3.4. Gannon, Joe,. 1999. A review of Sediment Control Measures. Stormwater Solutions. Kang, J., and McLaughlin, R.A. Simple Systems for Treating Pumped, Turbid Water With Flocculants and a Geotextile Dewatering Bag. Journal of Environmental Management, Vol. 182, 2016, pp. 208-213. Minnesota Pollution Control Agency 2023. Minnesota Stormwater Manual. https://stormwater.pca.state.mn.us/index.php?title=Information_on_pollutant_removal_by_BMPs#References Weiss, P.T., J.S. Gulliver, and A.J. Erickson. 2005. The Cost and Effectiveness of Stormwater Management Practices. Minnesota Department of Transportation, St. Paul, MN. Lewis N. LLoyd 2021. Evaluation of the filtration effectiveness of Dewatering Bags adn Potential Improvements. http://www.virginiadot.org/vtrc/main/online_reports/pdf/21-r17.pdf? Virginia Transportation Research Council PERMIT DURATION:This Permit is scheduled to be effective for duration of 5 years from date of Permit issuance.PUBLIC NOTICE INFORMATION:UPDES permits are required to have a 30-day public comment period before issuance.Began: Ended:Comments will be received at:195 North 1950 WestPO Box 144870 Salt Lake City, UT 84114-4870Or by email to wqcomments@utah.govThe Public Notice of the draft permit was published on the DWQ webpage. During the public comment period provided under Utah Admin. Code R317-8-6.5, any interested person may submit written comments on the draft Permit and may request a public hearing, if no hearing has already been scheduled. A request for a public hearing shall be in writing and shall state the nature of the issues proposed to be raised in the hearing. All comments will be considered in making the final decision and shall be answered as provided in Utah Admin. Code R317-8-6.12.