Overview
Wasteload Management is a planning process. It requires the owner or operator of a wastewater treatment plant to monitor the volume and organic strength of the incoming wastewater. They must take actions to prevent the plant from receiving too much flow or organic material for it to treat properly.
Wasteload Management also applies to sewage pump station owners or operators. They must monitor flows and pump usage to ensure the pumps can convey flows to the treatment plant.
All publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) and sewer systems owned by or serving a municipality are covered by DEP's Wasteload Management Regulations in Chapter 94.
The purpose of these regulations is to provide adequate conveyance and treatment for future needs, prevent sewage facilities from becoming overloaded, limit additional connections to overloaded facilities, correct overload conditions, and prevent introduction of industrial discharges into municipal sewer systems that will interfere with operations or pass through the plant.
Ultimately, these regulations protect Pennsylvania's waters from inadequately treated wastewater discharges.
How to submit your annual wasteload management report
The regulations require that each municipality with a permit from DEP to treat wastewater ("permittees") submit an annual report by March 31 to the appropriate DEP regional office.
The report must evaluate, in part, the existing and projected hydraulic and organic loads to a municipal wastewater treatment facility. It must also assess the existing and projected hydraulic loads (flow) to sewage pumping stations. This is to determine whether to upgrade the facilities.
DEP's Chapter 94 Municipal Wasteload Management Overview and Summary document (PDF) provides additional information on this program.
DEP has developed a Chapter 94 Spreadsheet (Excel) to facilitate consistency in determining existing and projected hydraulic and organic conditions at treatment plants. Following the input of hydraulic, organic and equivalent dwelling unit data, the spreadsheet produces hydraulic and organic load charts.
DEP recommends that the spreadsheet and charts be attached to Chapter 94 reports for permittees with treatment plants to improve consistency and facilitate DEP review of the reports. The file is a macro-enabled Excel spreadsheet that is designed for Excel 2007 or later.
DEP also encourages permittees to use DEP's Chapter 94 report template to streamline reviews of Chapter 94 reports by DEP staff and facilitate consistency in the format of reports.
Electronic reporting available
DEP has developed an electronic system for the submission of documents. It is called OnBase. DEP would like to encourage the use of the OnBase system for the submission of Wasteload Management (Chapter 94) Annual Reports. Here are instructions for Electronic Submission of Wasteload Management Annual Reports.
The spreadsheet should be used for the preparation of the report. Tables and graphs from the spreadsheet may be copied and pasted into the report template. The report should be saved as a PDF file for uploading into OnBase.
In order to be considered to be a timely submission, complete and accurate reports are due no later than March 31.
Contact us
For additional information about municipal wasteload management and Chapter 94, contact the appropriate DEP regional office or the Bureau of Clean Water at 717-787-5017.