Trenton, NJ, January 9, 2024. In the January 2024 New Jersey Register, the Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) proposed changes to their Ground Water Quality Standards (GWQS – NJAC 7:9C). Revisions to the GWQS are made under the authority provided in the New Jersey Water Pollution Control Act, which requires NJDEP to classify and manage groundwater resources in the State, and adopt and enforce GWQS for the protection of human health and the environment.
More than two hundred constituents are regulated under the GWQS. The proposed changes update individual criteria using current USEPA methodologies and most recent chemical toxicity data. The regulation includes the equations used to calculate criteria for each regulated constituent with default values used for each variable, and contaminant-specific properties. For all calculations, the proposed changes increase average body weight from 70 to 80 kg and the quantity of water consumed daily from 2 to 2.4 liters per day. For twenty-nine compounds, NJDEP utilized alternative values that differ from USEPA default values for certain equation variables. NJDEP included justification for each alternative value in the Register.
The criteria for fifty constituents will decrease, becoming more stringent, while just thirteen contaminants increase, becoming less stringent. Seven of the fifty decreases reduce the criteria by more than an order of magnitude, which can potentially result in the re-opening of closed cases.
Proposed Class II-A Criteria Decreases of More than One Order of Magnitude (ug/L)
Constituent Current GWQS Proposed GWQS
1,1-biphenyl………………………………….. 400……………………………………….. 5
Cobalt……………………………………………. 100……………………………………….. 2
Cyanide…………………………………………. 100……………………………………….. 5
1,3-dichlorobenzene……………………… 600……………………………………….. 5
Heptachlor epoxide……………………….. 0.2…………………………………….. 0.02
Methoxychlor…………………………………. 40………………………………………. 0.1
Vinyl chloride 1 0.035
Also of note are the effects on some common contaminant groups found at many regulated sites in New Jersey.
- Chlorinated solvents: tetrachloroethene (PCE) and its daughter products, trichloroethene (TCE), cis-1,2-dichloroethene (DCE), and vinyl chloride, become more stringent;
- Gasoline constituents: no changes are proposed for toluene, xylenes and additives, but benzene and ethylbenzene criteria both decrease.
- Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs): the total PCB criteria decreases by 60%.
- PFAS compounds: perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) standards change from interim status to final criteria.
NJDEP is hosting a public hearing regarding these proposed changes on January 30, 2024, and the 60 day public comment period ends in early March. To discuss your project, contact Jeff Campbell, Kassidy Klink
DEP rule proposal Jeffrey Campbell, LSRP, PG Kassidy Klink,PG, LSRP Back to News