Okla. Stat. tit. 27A, § 27A-1-1-202: State environmental agencies - Powers, duties and

responsibilities.

A. Each state environmental agency shall:

1. Be responsible for fully implementing and enforcing the laws

and rules within its jurisdictional areas of environmental

responsibility;

2. Utilize and enforce the Oklahoma Water Quality Standards

established by the Department of Environmental Quality;

3. Seek to strengthen relationships between state, regional,

local and federal environmental planning, development and management

programs;

4. Specifically facilitate cooperation across jurisdictional

lines of authority with other state environmental agencies regarding

programs to resolve environmental concerns;

5. Cooperate with all state environmental agencies, other state

agencies and local or federal governmental entities to protect,

foster, and promote the general welfare, and the environment and

natural resources of this state;

6. Have the authority to engage in environmental and natural

resource information dissemination and education activities within

their respective areas of environmental jurisdiction; and

7. Participate in every hearing conducted by the Department of

Environmental Quality for the consideration, adoption or amendment

of the classification of waters of the state and standards of purity

and quality thereof, and shall have the opportunity to present

written comment to the members of the Environmental Quality Board at

the same time staff recommendations are submitted to those members

for Board review and consideration.

B. 1. In addition to the requirements of subsection A of this

section, each state environmental agency shall have promulgated by

July 1, 2001, a Water Quality Standards Implementation Plan for its

jurisdictional areas of environmental responsibility in compliance

with the Administrative Procedures Act and pursuant to the

provisions of this section. Each agency shall review its plan at

least every three (3) years thereafter to determine whether

revisions to the plan are necessary.

2. Upon the request of any state environmental agency, the

Department of Environmental Quality shall provide consulting

assistance to such agency in developing a Water Quality Standards

Implementation Plan as required by this subsection.

3. Each Water Quality Standards Implementation Plan shall:

a. describe, generally, the processes, procedures and

methodologies the state environmental agency will

utilize to ensure that programs within its

jurisdictional areas of environmental responsibility

will comply with anti-degradation standards and lead

to:

(1) maintenance of water quality where beneficial

uses are supported,

(2) removal of threats to water quality where

beneficial uses are in danger of not being

supported, and

rocedures and

methodologies the state environmental agency will

utilize to ensure that programs within its

jurisdictional areas of environmental responsibility

will comply with anti-degradation standards and lead

to:

(1) maintenance of water quality where beneficial

uses are supported,

(2) removal of threats to water quality where

beneficial uses are in danger of not being

supported, and

(3) restoration of water quality where beneficial

uses are not being supported,

b. include the procedures to be utilized in the

application of use support assessment protocols to

make impairment determinations,

c. list and describe programs affecting water quality,

d. include technical information and procedures to be

utilized in implementing the Water Quality Standards

Implementation Plan,

e. describe the method by which the Water Quality

Standards Implementation Plan will be integrated into

the water quality management activities within the

jurisdictional areas of environmental responsibility

of the state environmental agency,

f. detail the manner in which the agency will comply with

mandated statewide requirements affecting water

quality developed by other state environmental

agencies including, but not limited to, total maximum

daily load development, water discharge permit

activities and nonpoint source pollution prevention

programs,

g. include a brief summary of the written comments and

testimony received pursuant to all public meetings

held or sponsored by the state environmental agency

for the purpose of providing the public and other

state environmental agencies an opportunity to comment

on the plan, and

h. describe objective methods and means to evaluate the

effectiveness of activities conducted pursuant to the

Water Quality Standards Implementation Plan to achieve

Oklahoma Water Quality Standards.

C. 1. Each state environmental agency with groundwater

protection authority pursuant to Article III of the Oklahoma

Environmental Quality Act shall be the groundwater protection agency

for activities within its jurisdictional areas of environmental

responsibility.

2. The Department of Environmental Quality shall cooperate with

other state environmental agencies, as appropriate and necessary, in

the protection of such unassigned activities.

3. Groundwater regulatory agencies shall develop groundwater

protection practices to prevent groundwater contamination from

activities within their respective jurisdictional areas of

environmental responsibility.

4. Each groundwater protection agency shall promulgate such

rules, and issue such permits, policies, directives or any other

appropriate requirements, as necessary, to implement the

requirements of this subsection.

5. Groundwater protection agencies shall take such action as

may be necessary to assure that activities within their respective

jurisdictional areas of environmental responsibility protect

groundwater quality to support the uses of the state's water

quality.

6. In addition, each groundwater protection agency with

enforcement authority is hereby authorized to:

a. engage the voluntary cooperation of all persons in the

maintenance and protection of groundwater, and to

advise, consult and cooperate with all persons, all

agencies of the state, universities and colleges, the

federal government or other states, and with

interstate agencies in the furtherance of the purposes

of this subsection, and to this end and for the

purposes of studies, scientific or other

investigations, research, experiments and

demonstrations pertaining thereto, receive and spend

funds as appropriated by the Legislature, and from

such agencies and other officers and persons on behalf

of the state,

b. encourage the formulation and execution of plans to

maintain and protect groundwater by cooperative groups

or associations of municipal corporations, industries,

fic or other

investigations, research, experiments and

demonstrations pertaining thereto, receive and spend

funds as appropriated by the Legislature, and from

such agencies and other officers and persons on behalf

of the state,

b. encourage the formulation and execution of plans to

maintain and protect groundwater by cooperative groups

or associations of municipal corporations, industries,

industrial users and other users of groundwaters of

the state, who, jointly or severally, are or may be

impacting on the maintenance and protection of

groundwater,

c. encourage, participate in or conduct or cause to be

conducted studies, scientific or other investigations,

research, experiments and demonstrations relating to

the maintenance and protection of groundwater, and to

collect data with respect thereto, all as may be

deemed advisable and necessary to carry out the

purposes of this subsection, and to make reports and

recommendations with respect thereto,

d. conduct groundwater sampling, data collection,

analyses and evaluations with sufficient frequency to

ascertain the characteristics and quality of

groundwater and the sufficiency of the groundwater

protection programs established pursuant to this

subsection, and

e. develop a public education and promotion program to

aid and assist in publicizing the need of, and

securing support for, the maintenance and protection

of groundwater.

D. Each state environmental agency and each state agency with

limited environmental responsibilities shall participate in the

information management system developed by the Department of

Environmental Quality, pursuant to Section 1-4-107 of this title,

with such information as the Department shall reasonably request.

E. In each even-numbered year, in cooperation with other state

environmental agencies participating in the monitoring of water

resources, the Department of Environmental Quality shall provide a

report on the status of water quality monitoring to the Legislature

for review.