Effluent Guidelines

Effluent Guidelines Plan

Photos of industrial facilities

EPA annually reviews industrial wastewater dischargers to determine if they pose a concern to human health and the environment, or if more advanced pollution controls are available to reduce their discharges. New or existing industries that EPA identifies as a potential hazard priority, or for which more effective pollution controls are available, are studied further to determine if they are candidates for new or revised Effluent Guidelines. The biennial Effluent Guidelines Program Plan identifies the industries selected by the Agency for potential study or regulation.

EPA first publishes a Preliminary Plan, requests public review and comment on its content, and then publishes a Final Plan the year thereafter. Public comment and information submitted on the Preliminary Plan helps to inform the Final Plan.

Preliminary 2016 Effluent Guidelines Program Plan

EPA published its Preliminary 2016 Effluent Guidelines Program Plan on June 27, 2016. The Plan announces actions EPA is taking, or plans to take, to better control industrial wastewater discharges. EPA also published its 2015 Annual Effluent Guidelines Review Report providing detailed information about industrial wastewater discharges.

The public comment period closed on July 27, 2016.

Supporting Documents

All supporting materials for the Preliminary 2016 Plan can be found in Docket EPA-HQ-OW-2015-0665.

Past Effluent Guidelines Plans

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Year Preliminary Plan (PDF) Final Plan (PDF)
2014 September 16, 2014 (79 FR 55472) August 4, 2015 (80 FR 46280)
2012 August 7, 2013 (78 FR 48159) September 16, 2014 (79 FR 55472)
2010 December 28, 2009 (74 FR 68599) October 26, 2011 (76 FR 66286)
2008 October 30, 2007 (72 FR 61335) September 15, 2008 (73 FR 53218)
2006 August 29, 2005 (70 FR 51042) December 21, 2006 (71 FR 76644)
2004 December 31, 2003 (68 FR 75515) September 2, 2004 (69 FR 53705)
2002 June 18, 2002 (67 FR 41417) August 27, 2002 (67 FR 55012)
2000 June 16, 2000 (65 FR 37783) August 31, 2000 (65 FR 53008)
1998 May 28, 1998 (63 FR 29203) September 4, 1998 (63 FR 47285)
1996 July 3, 1996 (61 FR 35041) October 7, 1996 (61 FR 52581)
1994 May 18, 1994 (59 FR 25859) August 26, 1994 (59 FR 44234)
1992 May 7, 1992 (57 FR 19748) September 8, 1992 (57 FR 41000)
1990 August 25, 1988 (53 FR 32584) January 2, 1990 (55 FR 80)

Additional Information

For additional information, please contact Bill Swietlik (swietlik.william@epa.gov), Project Manager, at 202-566-1129.