Title 69, Waters, Waterways, Drains And Levees

(a) (1) The board has and shall exercise the power, duty, and responsibility to establish and adopt standards of quality for all waters of the state.(2) The general assembly recognizes that, due to various factors, no single standard of quality and purity is applicable to all wat…

(a) As used in this section:(1) “Artificial isolated wetland”:(A) Means:(i) A wetland formed in an area that would otherwise be upland as a result of prior human alterations such as drainage, fill, cropping, ditching, tile drainage, excavation, tire ruts, silviculture, or impound…

(1) In addition to any power, duty, or responsibility given to the commissioner under this part, the commissioner has the power, duty, and responsibility to:(1) Exercise general supervision and control over the quality of all state waters, administer and enforce all laws relating…

(a) Every person who is or is planning to carry on any of the activities outlined in subsection (b), other than a person who discharges into a publicly owned treatment works or who is a domestic discharger into a privately owned treatment works, or who is regulated under a genera…

(a) (1) Whenever the commissioner has reason to believe that a violation of any provision of this part or regulation promulgated thereunder or orders issued pursuant thereto has occurred, is occurring, or is about to occur, the commissioner may cause a written complaint to be ser…

(a) Any hearing brought before the board pursuant to § 69-3-105(i), § 69-3-109, § 69-3-115, § 69-3-116, or § 69-3-118 must be conducted as a contested case heard before an administrative judge sitting alone pursuant to § 4-5-301(a)(2), unless settled by the parties. The administr…

An appeal may be taken from any final order or other final determination of the board by any party, with the exception of the department. An appeal from a final order or other final determination of the board is instituted by filing a petition for review in the chancery court of …

It is the duty of the district attorneys general in the various districts throughout the state or the attorney general and reporter to assist the department, upon its request, by prosecuting those persons in violation of §§ 69-3-115 — 69-3-117.

(a) (1) Any person whom the board or the commissioner has reason to believe is causing, or may be about to cause, pollution, or any person having information concerning such person, shall furnish the board or the commissioner, upon request by the board or commission, all pertinen…

(a) It is unlawful for any person to discharge any substance into the waters of the state or to place or cause any substance to be placed in any location where such substances, either by themselves or in combination with others, cause any of the damages as defined in § 69-3-103, …

(a) (1) Any person who does any of the following acts or omissions is subject to a civil penalty of up to ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per day for each day during which the act or omission continues or occurs:(A) Violates an effluent standard or limitation or a water quality st…

(a) The commissioner may assess the liability of any polluter or violator for damages to the state resulting from any person's pollution or violation, failure, or neglect in complying with any rules, regulations, or standards of water quality promulgated by the board or permits, …

The commissioner may initiate proceedings in the chancery court of Davidson County or the county in which the activities occurred against any person who is alleged to have violated or is about to violate this part, conditions of permits issued under this part, the rules and regul…

(a) (1) Any person may file with the commissioner a signed complaint against any person allegedly violating this part. Unless the commissioner determines that such complaint is duplicitous or frivolous, the commissioner shall immediately serve a copy of it upon the person or pers…

All fees, penalties, and damages assessed and collected under this part shall be placed in a special fund and earmarked, allocated, and appropriated to the division for the purpose of complying with this part. Any unexpended balance of the special fund in any fiscal year shall re…

(a) This part is intended to supplement other provisions of this code, and no part thereof shall be construed to repeal any such provisions specifically enacted for the protection of health or the protection of fish and game of the state, except that the administration of any law…

(a) The rules and regulations previously promulgated under the Water Quality Control Act of 1971 shall remain in effect as the rules and regulations under this part. Any of these rules or regulations that may conflict with a statutory provision of this part are hereby rendered vo…

(a) No person shall construct, operate or hold out to the public as proposing to construct or operate a sewerage system unless such person first provides a bond or other financial security to the department, and has received approval of the same. (b) The board may by regulation e…

(a) (1) Whenever the local administrative officer of any pretreatment agency has reason to believe that a violation of any provision of the pretreatment program of the pretreatment agency or orders of the local hearing authority issued pursuant thereto has occurred, is occurring,…

(a) Any hearing or rehearing brought before the local hearing authority shall be conducted in accordance with the following:(1) Upon receipt of a written petition from the alleged violator pursuant to this section, the local administrative officer shall give the petitioner thirty…

(a) (1) Any person, including, but not limited to, industrial users, who does any of the following acts or omissions shall be subject to a civil penalty of up to ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per day for each day during which the act or omission continues or occurs:(A) Violates …

(a) The local administrative officer may assess the liability of any polluter or violator for damages to the pretreatment agency resulting from any person's or industrial user's pollution or violation, failure, or neglect in complying with any permits or orders issued pursuant to…

The local administrative officer may initiate proceedings in the chancery court of the county in which the activities occurred against any person or industrial user who is alleged to have violated or is about to violate the pretreatment program, §§ 69-3-123 — 69-3-129, or orders …

Any net increase in expenditures after subtracting out net gains from penalties and damage payments received by a local governmental entity pursuant to §§ 69-3-123 — 69-3-129 shall be borne equally by the local governmental entity and by the department. The local governmental ent…

All damages or penalties, or both, assessed and collected under §§ 69-3-123 — 69-3-128 shall be placed in a special fund by the pretreatment agency and allocated and appropriated to the pretreatment agency for the administration of its pretreatment program.

(a) (1) Ditch construction, the purpose of which is either to:(A) Restore swamped-out bottomland hardwoods to bottomland hardwoods; or(B) Restore swamped-out cropland to cropland or to bottomland hardwoods;is permitted in any waters of this state, under general permit and without…

The board shall promulgate rules and regulations pursuant to the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5, which rules and regulations shall govern the manner in which emergency repairs made in accordance with § 69-3-108(n) must be made. The departmen…

There is hereby created an advisory committee to the division of water pollution control to advise and assist the division on procedures and policies concerning the application of this part to the removal of debris from streams and stabilization of stream banks. The members of th…

When certain silvicultural activities have polluted waters of the state as a result of an operator's failure or refusal to use forestry best management practices, the commissioner of environment and conservation may issue a stop work order to the operator. If the owner is differe…

(1) No operator who at any time within the previous two (2) years has been found to have violated this part in the conduct of silvicultural activities, such finding of violation not having been overturned or reversed on appeal, shall start any silvicultural activities, unless the…

A written request for a hearing before the board of water quality, oil and gas on the stop work order must be filed by the operator with the commissioner of environment and conservation within thirty (30) days of receipt of notice. If a hearing is requested, the operator shall al…

Failure of an operator to give the notice required by § 69-3-134 or to comply with a stop work order issued pursuant to §§ 69-3-133 and 69-3-135 shall subject the operator to the penalties in § 69-3-115(a)(1)(E).

(a) The department of environment and conservation and the department of agriculture shall devise a form to be used to notify the departments of a situation in which a person alleges that pollution has resulted or will result from a forestry operation that may have violated the W…

(a) (1) Whenever a person contracts in writing with a master logger to conduct any type of timber harvesting on the person's property, the master logger shall assume sole liability for compliance with this chapter for a period of one (1) year after the timber harvest is completed…

(a) The commissioner is authorized to issue stop work orders for coal surface mining operations in accordance with subsections (b) and (c). (b) When certain coal surface mining activities have polluted waters of the state as a result of an operator's failure or refusal to comply …

(a) (1) In collecting water samples drawn to test the water quality of the Pigeon River at the time the river enters Tennessee from Haywood County, North Carolina, the department shall draw samples from the river within one-quarter (¼) mile of the border separating Tennessee and …

(a) The general assembly finds and adopts as a matter of public policy, the following statements:(1) The permitting process under this chapter should be a predictable, ordinary process for the benefit of the commissioner and permit applicants alike;(2) As with all governmental re…

(a) The commissioner shall submit by January 31 of each year to the chair of the energy, agriculture and natural resources committee of the senate and the chair of the agriculture and natural resources committee of the house of representatives the following information:(1) The nu…

Sections 69-3-143 — 69-3-147 shall govern rock harvesting operations as defined in § 69-3-144.

(1) As used in §§ 69-3-143 — 69-3-147, unless the context otherwise requires:(1) As used for the purposes of rock harvesting under §§ 69-3-143 — 69-3-147 only, “mineral” means dimension stone, flagstone, fieldstone, landscaping stone, drystack stone, façade and marble, but does n…

(a) No operator shall engage in rock harvesting without having first obtained from the commissioner a permit or notice of coverage under a general permit as required in § 69-3-108 and the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto. At least thirty (30) days prior to engaging in roc…

(a) The commissioner is authorized to issue stop-work orders for rock harvesting operations in accordance with this section. (b) When rock harvesting activities have polluted waters of the state as a result of an operator's knowing violation of permit conditions, or an operator h…

Except where a specific provision of §§ 69-3-143 — 69-3-147 is applicable, rock harvesting is subject to and shall be governed by this part.

(a) The department may establish a program under which municipal separate storm sewer systems may become qualified local programs allowing for the streamlining of permits for construction activity as provided in this section. (b) The department may review and approve applications…

The department of environment and conservation is hereby directed to conduct a stream mapping project in the Red River and Barren River watersheds of Sumner County.

As used in this part, unless the context otherwise requires, “stream mapping” means the collection and analysis of water samples along streams that normally exhibit water flow at least six (6) consecutive months per year within a given area.