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17 <br />governments, but also outline a set of expectations to scientifically support a re-examination. There are <br />many potential outcomes to the re-examination of the strategy, including a new set of reduction targets <br />for Stage II of the rules, an alternate method of evaluating the aquatic life use in the upper portion of <br />the lake, an alternative water quality standard for the upper lake, or a new regulatory classification of <br />the upper reservoir. The Clean Water Act provides a process for evaluating such potential outcomes, <br />including not only evaluations of water quality and aquatic life, but also the social and economic impacts <br />of any such outcome. This process, called a Use Attainability Analysis (UAA), is comprehensive and takes <br />years to complete. The Consensus Principles provide a goal of completing the re-examination before <br />Stage II takes effect. The multi-year nature of the re-examination assuming a UAA process makes this a <br />time-sensitive need for the regulated Falls Lake communities. <br />:~~f2p1. DEermme~mvtia#monitonng <br />=~andadvaneed technical analyses - <br />-~:_ are~eeded to reexamine #ha <br />~, ~=',nptr~ent management strategy <br />Steps to a Re-examination of <br />Falls Lake <br />~i, <br />The local governments do not currently have the in-house expertise to design or undertake this type of <br />study. The UNRBA is the appropriate framework for collaboration to undertake this task. Technical staff <br />of the member governments believes the guidance of a national firm that has completed these types of <br />studies and has experts in Limnology, Environmental Science, and Environmental Law is needed now to <br />accomplish Step 1 ofthe re-examination. UNRBA, through a special technical committee, can develop <br />the needed scope to accomplish Step 1. This partnership can continue through proposal review and <br />contracting with one or multiple contractors. <br />The path forward will be complex and expensive, and will require additional funding to complete. <br />However, given the costs faced by the UNRBA member governments to implement the rules, particularly <br />Stage II, the potential benefits to completing a comprehensive re-examination of Falls Lake far outweigh <br />the costs of the rules themselves. Given the long history of local government collaboration in the Upper <br />Neuse Basin, a re-examination presents another opportunity to undertake a project that provides a <br />collective benefit to all UNRBA member governments. <br />