LOUISIANA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY | Secretary Aurelia S. Giacometto
A DEPARTMENT OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
ECHO, Enforcement and Compliance History Online, is a Web tool developed and maintained by the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) for public use. The ECHO Web site, publicly accessible and EPA-maintained, provides compliance and enforcement information for approximately 800,000 regulated facilities nationwide.
EDMS stands for Electronic Document Management System, the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality's electronic repository of official records that have been created or received by DEQ. All DEQ employees are responsible for ensuring official records are routinely submitted to the EDMS. Employees and members of the public can search and retrieve documents stored in the EDMS via this web application.
Water quality based effluent limitations for point source permitting are based on the TMDL and WLA. Implementation plans are based on the TMDL and the LA. The water quality based approach is to establish pollution control limits for waters not meeting the State's water quality standards. In this context, the TMDL process includes assessment for water quality standards attainment, identification of water quality limited waters, the ranking and targeting of high priority waters, and the development of TMDLs that should result in the attainment of water quality standards when implemented (USEPA, 1991). Identification of Nutrient limits and loading are an important part of the effluent standards process.
The mission of the Louisiana Environmental Leadership Program (ELP) is to promote a cleaner and better environment for Louisiana through voluntary pollution prevention, waste reduction and/or other environmental stewardship efforts. The Louisiana Environmental Leadership was established in 1995 as a voluntary cooperative effort between the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality and various Louisiana industries. It was fully operational by 1997 to promote pollution prevention and other efforts, in the pursuit of environmental excellence and leadership. The current program is comprised of Louisiana large, medium and small businesses, federal facilities, municipalities, non-governmental organizations, and schools and universities. Any organization committed to improving the quality of Louisiana’s environment through pollution prevention, waste reduction and other environmental improvements is eligible to join the program as a participating member.
A voluntary program that provides financial and technical assistance to agricultural producers through contracts up to a maximum term of ten years in length. These contracts provide financial assistance to help plan and implement conservation practices that address natural resource concerns and for opportunities to improve soil, water, plant, animal, air and related resources on agricultural land and non-industrial private forestland. In addition, a purpose of EQIP is to help producers meet Federal, State, Tribal and local environmental regulations.
The ETN is dedicated to sharing information related to the development and implementation of successful water quality trading programs and other market-based strategies for achieving healthy, sustainable ecosystems. It is the only national clearinghouse for key policy and regulatory issues, and transferable water quality trading program design elements. The ETN is an international clearinghouse for information on water quality trading projects and other environmental markets. The ETN has led or participated in a variety of market-based environmental market projects since its inception. In the Great Lakes, these projects focused on issues of water quality and water quantity and how markets or market-like mechanisms could be used to help maintain the balance between use and protection of the resource (see Water Quality Trading and Water Quantity Management). More recently, it has primarily focused on accumulating and posting up-to-date information that is relevant to water quality trading program development in the U.S. and internationally. High level information is also posted for other environmental markets focused on wetland and habitat banking including current information on credit stacking.