(1) Waters shall be verified as being impaired if they meet the requirements for the Planning List in Part II and the additional requirements of Rules 62-303.420-.480, F.A.C. A waterbody that fails to meet the minimum criteria for surface waters established in Fl. Admin. Code R. 62-302.500; any of its designated uses, as described in this part; or applicable water quality criteria, as described in this part, shall be determined to be impaired.
    (2) Additional data and information collected after the development of the Planning List will be considered when assessing waters on the Planning List, provided it meets the requirements of this chapter. In cases where additional data are needed for waters on the Planning List to meet the data sufficiency requirements for the Verified List, it is the Department’s goal to collect this additional data as part of its watershed management approach, with the data collected during either the same cycle that the water is initially listed on the Planning List (within 1 year) or during the subsequent cycle.
    (3) Unless information presented to the Department demonstrates otherwise, data more than 7.5 years old at the time the water segment is assessed are not representative of current conditions and shall not be used except to evaluate historical trends. Any determinations by the Department to use data older than 7.5 years shall be documented, and the documentation shall include the basis for the decision.
Rulemaking Authority 403.061, 403.067 FS. Law Implemented 403.062, 403.067 FS. History-New 6-10-02, Amended 12-11-06, 2-17-16.