Author: tandrews

Construction Overview

Stormwater discharges from construction activities can significantly impact water quality. As stormwater flows over a construction site, it can pick up pollutants like sediment, debris, and chemicals and transport them to nearby storm sewer systems or directly into rivers, lakes, or coastal waters.

The NPDES stormwater program requires permits for discharges from construction activities that disturb one or more acres, and discharges from smaller sites that are part of a larger common plan of development or sale. Construction stormwater permits include effluent limits for erosion and sediment control, pollution prevention, and site stabilization from the Construction and Development Effluent Guidelines and Standards regulations.

Depending on the location of the construction site, either the state (if it has been authorized to implement the NPDES stormwater program) or EPA will administer the permit. In areas where EPA is the permitting authority, operators of regulated construction sites are generally permitted under EPA’s 2012 Construction General Permit (CGP).

• Authorization Status for EPA’s Construction and Industrial Stormwater Programs – Visit this page to find out whether EPA or your state is the permitting authority for industrial activities.

http://www.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater-discharges-construction-activities#overview

On September 24, 2015, Administrator Gina McCarthy signed the final National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Electronic Reporting Rule for publication in the Federal Register.  The publication of this rule is the latest step in an extensive multi-year outreach effort with EPA’s state, tribal and territorial partners.  This rule will replace most paper-based Clean Water Act (CWA) NPDES permitting and compliance monitoring reporting requirements with electronic reporting.

This action will save time and resources for permittees, states, tribes, territories, and the U.S. Government while increasing data accuracy, improving compliance, and supporting EPA’s goal of providing better protection of the nation’s waters. This regulation will help provide greater clarity on who is and who is not in compliance and enhances transparency by providing a timelier, complete, more accurate, and nationally-consistent set of data about the NPDES program. This final rule will likely be published in the Federal Register sometime in October.

• Discharge Monitoring Reports (DMRs);
• Notices of Intent to discharge in compliance with a general permit; and
• Program reports.

Authorized NPDES programs will also electronically submit NPDES program data to EPA to ensure that there is consistent and complete reporting nationwide, and to expedite the collection and processing of the data, thereby making it more accurate and timely.  Importantly, while the rule changes the method by which information is provided (i.e., electronic rather than paper-based), it does not increase the amount of information required from NPDES regulated entities facilities under existing regulations.

EPA offered many opportunities for authorized state programs to provide comments and input during the development of this final rule. EPA will continue to work in partnership with these states to help make an orderly and measured transition from paper to electronic reporting. In particular, EPA will work closely with states to provide technical and financial support, as available, to develop or enhance state electronic reporting capabilities.

http://www.epa.gov/compliance/final-national-pollutant-discharge-elimination-system-npdes-electronic-reporting-rule