Puget Soundkeeper Alliance, V State Of Wa Dept. Of Ecology, 48267-3

Seattle Iron and Metals (SIM) operates a metal recycling facility discharging treated wastewater (outfall 001) and untreated stormwater (outfall 002) to the Lower Duwamish Waterway (LDW), a heavily contaminated Superfund-area waterway.
Ecology issued an NPDES permit (2013) setting PCB, copper, and zinc daily limits for both outfalls; outfall 001 limits were derived from site-specific WQBELs, outfall 002 limits relied on other bases.
For PCBs, Ecology required Method 608 (EPA-listed) for PCB testing; Method 608’s detection/PQL (0.25/0.5 µg/L) is far higher than Washington’s PCB human-health criterion (0.00017 µg/L); Method 1668C is far more sensitive but not listed in 40 C.F.R. Part 136.
For copper and zinc at outfall 002, Ecology used benchmark numeric values from its 2009 Industrial Stormwater General Permit (14 µg/L copper; 117 µg/L zinc) because only two monitoring data points existed for that outfall.
Puget Soundkeeper Alliance appealed portions of the permit to the Pollution Control Hearings Board (Board); Board remanded PCB mixing zone and higher PCB limit for outfall 002 but upheld Method 608 and use of General Permit benchmarks for copper/zinc; Court of Appeals reviewed de novo.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (Puget Soundkeeper)	Defendant's Argument (Ecology)	Held
1) PCB analytical method required in permit	Method 608 is insufficiently sensitive to enforce the PCB water-quality standard; Ecology should require Method 1668C	Method 608 is the only EPA-approved method listed in 40 C.F.R. Part 136; WAC allows only Part 136 methods or EPA-approved/superseding methods; Ecology properly required Method 608	Court deferred to Ecology: Method 608 lawful because it is the only EPA-approved Part 136 method; Method 1668C is not a "published superseding" method for WAC purposes and Ecology did not err in not approving it.
2) Copper and zinc effluent limits for untreated stormwater (outfall 002)	Ecology must impose site-specific WQBELs based on water-quality criteria; General Permit benchmarks are too lax and permit allows violations of state standards	Ecology lacked sufficient monitoring data to compute site-specific WQBELs (could not calculate CV); using General Permit benchmarks was reasonable and protective	Court held Board’s finding that Ecology lacked data is not supported: permit writer could have used default CV and available standards; limits based on General Permit are not adequate where they exceed applicable water-quality criteria—remand to Ecology to set site-specific WQBELs consistent with law.

Cornelius v. Dep’t of Ecology, 182 Wn.2d 574 (2015) (APA standard of review for agency decisions)
Port of Seattle v. Pollution Control Hr’gs Bd., 151 Wn.2d 568 (2004) (NPDES permits must ensure compliance with state water quality standards)
Puget Soundkeeper All. v. Pollution Control Hr’gs Bd., 189 Wn. App. 127 (2015) (deference to Ecology on environmental statutory interpretation and permit requirements)
Snohomish County v. Pollution Control Hr’gs Bd., Wn.2d (2016) (discussing deference to Ecology as water regulator)
Dep’t of Labor & Indus. v. Granger, 159 Wn.2d 752 (2007) (agency interpretation may not conflict with statutory mandate)