MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENT WATER AND SCIENCE ADMINISTRATION NOTICE OF TENTATIVE DETERMINATION Worcester County Application for State Discharge Permit 21DP2273: Worcester County Commissioners, 1 West Market Street, Snow Hill, Maryland 21863 submitted an application to renew a permit to discharge treated wastewater from the Mystic Harbour Wastewater Treatment Plant located at 9624 Stephen Decatur Highway, Berlin, Maryland 21811 via: (1) Outfall 001- Injection Well System, a monthly average of 250,000 gallons per day to ground waters; (2) Outfall 002 – Eagle Landing Golf Course, 12367 Eagles Nest Rd, Berlin, MD 21811, a yearly average of 81,000 gallons per day for golf course irrigation; and (3) Outfall 003 – Ocean City Wastewater Treatment Plant. The Department is proposing to reissue the permit with the following limitations and conditions: Outfall 001 – Injection Well System BOD5: 10 mg/l (monthly average); (2) suspended solids: 10 mg/l (monthly average); (3) total nitrogen: 5 mg/l (monthly average); (4) pH: 6.5-8.5; (5) E.coli: non-detect (monthly geometric mean); (6) Total P 0.3mg/l and (7) flow: 100,000 gal/day (monthly average) The following conditions are also a part of this permit: 1) Operation of the injection well shall not cause injected wastewater to rise up to ground surface; and 2) The permittee shall monitor the groundwater quality via 5 groundwater monitoring wells. Outfall 002 – Eagle Landing Golf Course Irrigation BOD5: 10 mg/l (monthly average); (2) suspended solids: 10 mg/l (monthly average); (3) total nitrogen: 5 mg/l (monthly average); (4) pH: 6.5-8.5; (5) E.coli: non-detect (monthly geometric mean); (6) Total P 0.3mg/l and (7) flow: 81,000 gal/day (yearly average). The following conditions are also a part of this permit: 1) The application of treated wastewater onto the golf course is to meet the vegetation water demand only; and 2) The permittee shall monitor the groundwater quality via 4 groundwater monitoring wells. Outfall 003 – Ocean City Wastewater Treatment Plant Allowance for the discharge of treated wastewater to Ocean City Wastewater Treatment Plant when capacity does not exist in either the injection wells or the golf course irrigation system. The discharge at Outfall 003 shall not cause the wastewater flow from the West Ocean City service area to exceed a yearly average flow of one million gallons per day based on the existing MOU agreement with the City of Ocean City. The effluent limits for BOD, TSS, and Nitrogen are carried over from the previous permit. A review of the groundwater quality standards showed that these limits were protective of groundwater quality at the property line. Per MD Environmental Article § 1–602(a)(2), an EJ score was calculated for this facility. The EJ Score is 54.70. This score has been calculated considering a combination of the following factors: Pollution Burden Exposure Percentile, Pollution Burden Environmental Effects Percentile, and Sensitive Population Percentile. For more information on how the score was calculated, launch the MDEnviroScreen tool from this website - https://mdewwp.page.link/EJ. A copy of the draft permit, draft fact sheet, and permit application may be downloaded from the Department’s website at https://mdewwp.page.link/wwpportal. At that webpage, search for State Number 21DP2273, click “More Info,” and then select the desired document(s) to download. If a written request is received by October 8, 2025, a public hearing on the tentative determination for this application can be scheduled. The request should be sent to the Maryland Department of the Environment, Water and Science Administration, 1800 Washington Blvd., Baltimore, Maryland 21230-1708, Attn.: Mary Dela Onyemaechi, Chief, Groundwater Discharge Permits Division and must include the name, address and telephone number (home and work) of the person making the request, the name of any other party whom the person making the request may represent, and the name of the facility and permit number. Failure to request a hearing by October 8, 2025 will constitute a waiver of the right to a public hearing on the tentative determination for this permit. Written comments concerning the tentative determination will be considered in the preparation of a final determination if submitted to the Department, to the attention of Mary Dela Onyemaechi at the above address, on or before October 20, 2025. Any hearing-impaired person who requests a hearing may request an interpreter at the hearing by contacting Mrs. Onyemaechi at (410) 537-3106 or 1-800-633-6101, or by written request to the above address at least ten working days prior to the scheduled hearing date. Information supporting the tentative determination, including the draft permit and fact sheet, may be reviewed by contacting Mrs. Onyemaechi at the above telephone number to make an appointment or by written request to Mrs. Onyemaechi at the above address. Copies of documents may be obtained at a cost of $0.36 per page.   To Be Published on: September 18 and 25, 2025 9/18/2025, 9/25/2025