Tennessee's Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program

Introduction

Section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act requires states to develop TMDLs for those waterbodies not attaining water quality standards. The objective of a TMDL is to allocate loads among all of the known pollutants sources throughout a watershed so that appropriate control measures can be implemented and water quality standards can be achieved.

The TMDL process quantifies the amount of a pollutant that can be assimilated in a waterbody, identifies the sources of the pollutant, and recommends regulatory or other actions to be taken to achieve compliance with applicable water quality standards based on the relationship between pollution sources and instream water quality conditions. A TMDL can be expressed as the sum of all point source loads (waste load allocations), nonpoint source loads (load allocations) and an appropriate margin of safety, and is represented by this relationship:

TMDL = Sum of Point Sources + Sum of Nonpoint Sources + Margin of Safety

More information is available on the EPA web site.

Proposed TMDLs

September 4, 2024

The Division of Water Resources has the following Draft Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Reports available for public review and comment.

Little Tennessee River Watershed
Little TN Public Notice Document
Little TN Draft E. coli TMDL 

Lower Tennessee River Watershed
Lower TN Public Notice Document
Lower TN Draft E. coli TMDL 

Comments on the proposed TMDL reports may be submitted through October 9, 2024, directly via our WEB FORM, or in writing to the address provided in the public notice document.

↑Comments on any above proposed TMDL reports may be submitted through the indicated dates, directly via our WEB FORM, or in writing to the address provided in the public notice document. ↑ 

If you would like to receive a notification e-mail when a TMDL is placed on public notice, please e-mail Regan.McGahen@tn.gov to be added to our e-mail distribution list.

EPA Approved TMDLs

Search for EPA-reviewed and approved TMDLs.  

Contact
Richard Cochran
Watershed Planning Unit Manager
Richard.Cochran@tn.gov

This Page Last Updated: September 4, 2024 at 4:18 PM