MS4 permits expected in coming weeks

March 2, 2016

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials say revised permits for stormwater discharges from small municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4) are expected shortly.
 
Following the September 2014 release of the draft National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) general permit for MS4s in Massachusetts, the MMA expressed concerns about the cost that the new requirements would place on municipalities.
 
The federal Clean Water Act requires that the MS4 permit be re-evaluated every five years to ensure that it continues to protect the environment. The previous permit was issued in 2003.
 
The EPA says the new permits will help communities meet water quality standards and deal with the impacts of climate change. Draft permit requirements include illicit discharge detection and elimination, new requirements for signage and outfall testing and management of stormwater runoff.
 
The MMA has been participating in an NPDES Delegation Advisory Committee, formed by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, to explore the possibility of the DEP taking delegated authority over NPDES programs. Authorization would allow the DEP to be the stormwater permit-issuing authority, rather than the EPA.
 
The advisory committee has met three times so far and has discussed staffing needs, cost, funding and implementation.
 
Forty-seven states have obtained authorization from the EPA to administer the NPDES program. The DEP has reached out to other delegated states in New England to get more information about the advantages and disadvantages of delegation and the process moving forward.
 
The MMA’s Policy Committee on Energy and the Environment has not yet taken a position on the issue of NPDES delegation.

from the website of Massachusetts Municipal Association

Jeff Bennett