Next Round of NPDES MS4 Phase I Permits
Vacation Pictures to
Ireland 2010
Scott I. McClelland
Vice President
October 18, 2012
Phase I MS4 Permits ‐ Elements of the Permit
• Authorized Discharges
• Stormwater Pollution Prevention and Management Programs
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Structural Controls
New Development
Roadways
Flood Control Projects
Municipal TSD
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Pesticides, Herbicides
Illicit Discharges
Industrial and High Risk
Construction Site Runoff
• Monitoring Requirements
• Reporting Requirements (Annual)
• Stormwater Discharge Compliance and Water Quality Standards (New in 2011)
Dingle
Phase II MS4 Permits ‐ Elements of the Permit
• Operator Information
• Sharing Responsibility
• Minimum Control Measures:
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Public Education and Outreach
Public Involvement
Illicit Discharge Elimination
Construction Site Runoff
Post‐Construction Management
Good Housekeeping
• Biennial Reporting
Dingle
Peninsula
Changes to the MS4 Program in EPA
(MS4 Permit Improvement Guide – April 2010)
• Guidance document for NPDES MS4 Phase II permit writers but suggested for Phase I too
• Guide contains:
– “examples of permit conditions”
– “recommendations … to tailor the language…”
• Key Principles:
– Permit provisions “should be clear, specific, measureable and enforceable”
– Permits “should contain a performance standard for post‐
construction based on the objective of maintaining or restoring stable hydrology… or another mechanism as effective.”
• “Should” is becoming “Must.”
Changes to the MS4 Program in EPA
(The Hanlon Memo)
• November 12, 2010 Memo: Hanlon to Water Management Division Directors for all Regions
• Revisions to 2002 Memo on “Establishing TMDL Wasteload Allocations (WLAs) for Storm Water Sources & Permit Requirements Based on Those WLAs”
• EPA “recommends” and “encourages”:
– Include numeric effluent limitations where feasible and numeric benchmarks for BMPs with associated monitoring for estimating BMP effectiveness
– Disaggregate stormwater sources in WLA
– Use surrogate for pollutant parameters for TMDLs
– Designate additional sources for regulation
New Elements in Some MS4 Permits
• Written Standard Operating Procedures (in Florida) – Approval by State
– Should be done all together
– Beware of over‐commitment
• Annual Financial and Staffing Analysis
– 40 CFR §122.42(c)(5): Annual Report must include “Annual expenditures and budget for year following each annual report…”
– New requirement is detailed expenditures and fiscal analysis
– Beware of detail
Ring of Berre
New Elements in MS4 Permits
• Post‐Construction or Permanent Control Measures
• Example provision:
– “Within x months, the permittee must require that stormwater discharges from such new development and redevelopment sites be managed such that post‐development hydrology does not exceed the pre‐development hydrology … at the site.” – Suggests options such as:
• Prevent 1st inch from a 24‐hour storm
• Prevent offsite discharge of all events less than 95th percentile storm
• Note lack of phrase “water quality”
• Post‐construction controls must be site specific, not “one size fits all”
New Elements in MS4 Permits
• Significantly increased monitoring
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BMP effectiveness
High risk industry
TMDL
Long‐term trend
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Event Mean Concentration (EMC)
Biological
Field Screening
Wet weather and dry weather
• BMP Effectiveness and EMC monitoring is very expensive and required significant staff and data (3 samples are not enough to statistically prove anything)
• Instead of “shotgun approach” to monitoring
– Pick and choose from list
– Focus on monitoring that will improve your program
TMDL’s in MS4 Permits
Florida
• For Adopted BMAPs – Comply with Requirements
• For BMAPs to be Adopted within 2‐years of Issuance
– Participate in BMAP
– Comply with Requirements
• For TMDLs by FDEP or EPA but no BMAP
– 4‐year Process To Implementation (Expanded in Next Few Slides)
• Fecal Coliform TMDLs ‐ Bacteria Pollution Control Plan (BPCP)
– ID and Track Sources
– Pet Waste Ordinance
– Educational Programs
– Structural/Nonstructural BMPs
BMAP = Basin Management Action Plan; a TMDL Implementation Plan
TMDL’s in MS4 Permits
• Tennessee
– Permittee responsible for implementing pollutant reduction to meet WLA of TMDL.
– For adopted TMDLs, 12 months to select BMPs; 24 months to implement
– For new TMDLs, 6 months to identify and 12 months to implement BMPs
Southern
• Georgia
– Identify TMDLs
– Describe BMP implementation plan; no schedule identified
– Permittee can demonstrate no cause or contribution
Coastline of
Ireland
Field Screening
• Florida
– No required field screening as most of state is coastal.
– IDDE of some type required but proposed by Permittee.
• Tennessee
– Field screening similar to NPDES Phase 1 Application required.
– Grid system to be employed.
• Georgia
• Field screening required but defined by permittee.
Cliffs of
Moher
Low Impact Development & Green Infrastructure
• Florida (already has state stormwater rule)
– Conduct review of codes/regulations
– Focus on: reduction of impervious surfaces, swales, LID principles, reduction of flow and volume, natural hydrology
• Tennessee (no state stormwater rule)
– SWMP must include for “permanent stormwater management”: runoff reduction or off‐site mitigation
– Code and ordinance review: green roofs, rain gardens, curb extensions, planter gardens, permeable and porous pavements, waters harvesting
• Georgia
– LID & GI encouraged
– Study, then use as feasible
Summary
Waterfall Near
Kilearney
• Newest NPDES MS4 Permits:
– Guidance provisions inserted as if they were regulations.
– Post‐construction Stormwater Control (prior to Federal Stormwater Regulations)
– Implementation of TMDLs
• While new provisions might improve water quality:
– What is regulatory or statutory authority?
– Is there a more effective alternative that achieves the same goal?
– Are you out of compliance upon acceptance of the permit?
Questions?
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Best!”