Virginia Department of Health

 

GDForum ID: 2196

Description of Proposed Guidance Document Changes

The Project Review & Permit Procedures Manual is an amended guidance document for the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), Office of Drinking Water (ODW) arising from a comprehensive update covering preliminary engineering conferences and reports; waterworks business operation plans; project reviews; construction permits; new or nonconventional methods, processes, and equipment; general permits and standard specifications; operation permits; capacity evaluations of waterworks; and found transient noncommunity expedited permit procedures. It was first published as a Guidance Document, Version 4.0, on 12/31/2020 as WTR-2020-01(W) on Town Hall. Version 4.1 included revisions to reflect the amendments to the Waterworks Regulations, effective June 2021, but was never formally adopted. The instant version, which is Version 4.2 and is identified as Guidance Document ID ODW-2023-02, adds Chapter 10 to the existing nine chapters. In addition, Chapter 4 was reworked to reflect project review as a centralized task. The Project Review & Permit Procedures Manual provides guidance for the review and approval of plans and specifications for the construction of waterworks and the issuance of all permits, as prescribed in the Waterworks Regulations. It contains 10 chapters, each addressing a specific topic related to the work of ODW. The Project Review & Permit Procedures Manual introduces in Chapter 4 a new paradigm where project review is consolidated at the central office. Chapters 1 through 9 are based on the content from Version 4.0 of this guidance document, and have been edited, reformatted, and updated to reflect current business practices: • Chapter 1 – Introduction • Chapter 2 – Preliminary Engineering Conference and Report • Chapter 3 – Waterworks Business Operation Plan (WBOP) • Chapter 4 – Project Review • Chapter 5 – Construction Permit • Chapter 6 – New or Nonconventional Methods, Processes, and Equipment • Chapter 7 – General Permit & Standard Specifications • Chapter 8 – Operation Permit • Chapter 9 – Capacity Evaluation of Waterworks • Chapter 10 – Found Transient Noncommunity Expedited Permit Procedures VDH ODW is revising the project review program (PRP), described in Chapter 4, which historically was conducted primarily by each field office with minor support from the central office. This allowed consultants to interact directly with the field staff. Under the revised program, project review is conducted at the central office level with relatively less interaction and with review staff likely unfamiliar to waterworks owners and stakeholders. Under the proposed Project Review & Permit Procedures Manual, all of VDH ODW’s technical review of engineering plans and specifications for the construction of new and/or modified waterworks infrastructure, design exceptions, change orders, and addenda is conducted by a central project review program with minor support from the field offices. When applicable, final inspections of completed construction projects will be conducted by field office staff. This program change was piloted in early March 2021. The pilot results showed that a more uniform, efficient, and timely project review program is feasible. This new direction allows field office staff to focus on more “hands-on” activities with the regulated community. Other changes include edits to reflect amendments in 2021 to the Waterworks Regulations and updated ODW business practices.

 

Guidance Document(s) for this Comment Forum

Document ID	Document Title	Document in Effect	Proposed Document
WTR-2020-01 (W)	Project Review & Permit Procedures Manual	Document	To Be Deleted	Deleted on 7/14/2023
ODW-2023-02	Project Review & Permit Procedures Manual	n/a	Proposed Document

 

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