Kentucky TMDLs
A total maximum daily load, or TMDL, estimates the maximum amount of a pollutant that a water body can receive and still meet water quality standards. The TMDL development process includes three major steps:
- Establish the TMDL
- Allocate pollutant amounts
- Plan for TMDL implementation
TMDLs are developed by individual states or by the Environmental Protection Agency if states cannot develop them. EPA regional offices review and approve TMDLs developed by states.
To better understand what TMDL’s are, the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service has prepared a fact sheet titled, “What is a TMDL?”
In Kentucky, the TMDL program is administered through the Division of Water. The web site for Kentucky’s TMDL Program includes information about approved and proposed TMDLs. TMDLs will be implemented through the Watershed Management Framework, a coordinated effort to more effectively and efficiently manage the resources within Kentucky’s major river basins.
Additional information about the entire TMDL process is available through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency TMDL Program web page.