Bishop’s Lodge announced in late August that it asked the EPA to pause action on the resort’s application for a permit to discharge treated wastewater into Little Tesuque Creek.
That followed public outcry against the plan that erupted in June when the Bishop Lodge’s wastewater plan became widely known.
The luxury hotel’s new plan indicates that it will proceed with obtaining a New Mexico Environment Department groundwater permit.
According to a statement from the NMED and a posting on the EPA website, the permit the resort seeks would cover both above ground use of treated wastewater for onsite irrigation and disposal via a new onsite leach field.
If that permit is issued, it could quote “negate the need” for a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for surface discharge into Little Tesuque Creek.
But the posting and statement also allows for the possibility that Bishop’s Lodge might yet decide to move forward with the Little Tesquue Creek discharge plan.
If that’s the case, no decision would be made about that surface water permit until the EPA first opens a new 60-day public comment period.
That new opportunity for public comment would, in that case, be in response to a revised NPDES draft permit reflecting the flow path passing through state lands, including the village of Tesuque and tribal lands of Tesuque, Pojoaque, and San Ildefonso pueblos, prior to entering the Rio Grande.
The EPA posting states that during a new comment period that would emerge under that scenario, it would also consult with the affected pueblo leadership.
As for Bishop’s Lodge now-amended plan to secure a permit for on-site irrigation and a new leach field, the state’s Groundwater Quality Bureau states that it will aim to post that new draft permit for public notice on the NMED website this Friday, September 20.
