Upcoming Public Meeting for Implementation Plan for five Total Maximum Daily Loads for Indicator Bacteria in Hillebrandt Bayou and Neches River Tidal

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has made available for public comment the Implementation Plan (I-Plan) for five draft Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for indicator bacteria in Hillebrandt Bayou and Neches River Tidal, of the Neches-Trinity Coastal Basin and Neches River Basin, in Jasper, Orange, and Jefferson counties.

The purpose of the meeting is to provide the public an opportunity to comment on the draft I-Plan for five assessment units: 0601_01, 0601_02, 0601_03, 0601_04 and 0704_02.

After the public comment period, staff may make appropriate changes to the proposed I-Plan and will respond to public comments. Following the public comment period, the TMDL Program will request that the Commission consider approval of the final I-Plan. Upon approval, the final I-Plan and a response to all comments received will be made available on TCEQ’s website. The I-Plan, combined with the TMDL, provides local, regional, and state organizations with a comprehensive strategy for improving and maintaining water quality in an impaired watershed.

The public meeting for the draft I-Plan will be held at Jefferson County Extension Office, 1225 Pearl St, Ste 200, Beaumont, Texas 77701-3642 on February 28, 2023, at 6:00 p.m.

Meeting-related updates and documents are available on the project websites for Hillebrandt Bayou and Neches River Tidal.

During this meeting, individuals will have the opportunity to present oral statements. An agency staff member will give a brief presentation at the start of the meeting and will be available to answer questions before and after all oral statements have been received.

Written comments on the draft I-Plan may be submitted to Nicole Reed, Water Quality Planning Division, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, MC 203, P.O. Box 13087, Austin, Texas, 78711-3087 or faxed to fax4808@tceq.texas.gov Electronic comments may be submitted at: https://tceq.commentinput.com/

All written comments must be received at TCEQ by midnight on March 14, 2023, and should reference Implementation Plan for five Total Maximum Daily Loads for Indicator Bacteria in Hillebrandt Bayou and Neches River Tidal.
For further information regarding the draft I-Plan, please contact Nicole Reed at Nicole.Reed@tceq.texas.gov

The draft I-Plan can be obtained via TCEQ’s website for each project at https://www.tceq.texas.gov/…/118-hillebrandtbayou-bacteria and https://www.tceq.texas.gov/…/nav/118-nechestidal-bacteria