The Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s (CBF) Pennsylvania Office has called on the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to dramatically strengthen the stormwater permit governing major urban and suburban areas in the Commonwealth. This permit, known as the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit, is required by the federal Clean Water Act, and is a critical vehicle for achieving pollution reductions in the Chesapeake Bay.

“The draft permit proposed by DEP falls far short of the requirements of both Pennsylvania law and the federal Clean Water Act,” said Matthew Royer, CBF’s Pennsylvania attorney. “Not only is the permit long overdue, what has been proposed thus far fails to adequately reduce stormwater pollution to our local rivers and streams.”

Read the complete article in the January edition of Bay Bound, CBF’s monthly e-newsletter.

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EPA has issued a Federal Register Notice (PDF) seeking stakeholder input to help EPA shape a program to reduce stormwater impacts.  Input will be provided through both written comments and during a series of public listening sessions.  As described in the FR Notice, EPA seeks input on the following preliminary regulatory considerations:

• Expand the area subject to federal stormwater regulations
• Establish specific requirements to control stormwater discharges from new development and redevelopment
• Develop a single set of consistent stormwater requirements for all MS4s
• Require MS4s to address stormwater discharges in areas of existing development through retrofitting the sewer system or drainage area with improved stormwater control measures
• Explore specific stormwater provisions to protect sensitive areas

Written comments must be submitted on or before February 26, 2010 to the address specified in the Federal Register notice.

The public listening sessions will offer a chance for the public to provide input on regulatory actions that EPA is considering.  Brief oral comments (three minutes or less) will be accepted at the sessions, and written statements will be accepted.  The dates and locations of the listening sessions are as follows:

January 19, 2010, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at EPA Region 5 Office, 77 W. Jackson Blvd., Chicago, IL 60604

January 20, 2010, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at EPA Region 9 Office, 75 Hawthorne Street San Francisco, CA 94105

CLOSED - January 25, 2010, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at EPA Region 8 Office, 1595 Wynkoop Street Denver, CO 80202-1129

January 26, 2010, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at EPA Region 6 Office, 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 1200 Dallas, Texas 75202

January 28, 2010, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at EPA HQ Office, Ariel Rios Building 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20004

Interested individuals must register to attend by January 15, 2010. To register, click on the link above or visit www.epa.gov/npdes/training.  For individuals who cannot attend a specific listening session, EPA will make a conference call line available.  EPA encourages anyone who cannot attend one of the five listening sessions to sign up for the “virtual” listening session webcast below. However, if you would like to listen to a specific session via conference call, please contact Amber Marriott (amber.marriott@tetratech.com) for the conference call information.

Listening Session Webcast

EPA will hold a “virtual” listening session as a webcast on February 3, 2010 from 12:00 pm to 4:00 pm Eastern time. After a presentation from EPA, this webcast will allow members of the public to call in and give brief (3 minute) statements. Audience members will be able to listen to the webcast and all public statements using their computer speakers. Click here to register for the Listening Session Webcast.

MS4 Survey to Gather Data to Inform the Process

EPA also is proposing to disseminate a survey to owners, operators, developers, and contractors of developed sites, owners and operators of municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s), and states and U.S. territories, which is designed to inform this rulemaking to strengthen stormwater regulations.  EPA is proposing to require three separate questionnaires focusing on gathering data about current stormwater management practices, including those used at newly developed and redeveloped sites.  EPA’s proposed survey would gather data from three groups: 1) the owners, operators, developers, and contractors of newly and redeveloped sites; 2) the owners and operators of municipal separate storm sewer systems; and 3) states and territories.  The draft survey would require detailed information about stormwater management and control practices, local regulations, and baseline financial information.

On October 26, 2009, EPA signed a Federal Register notice announcing its intent to submit a Information Collection Request (ICR) for the three questionnaires to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).  EPA is requesting comments on the proposed Information Collection Request, including the associated burden estimate, but is NOT requesting completion of questionnaires at this time. The proposed ICR will be open for public comment for 60 days following publication in the Federal Register.

EPA has already issued policy statements in 2009 for federal projects including:

1. Requirements for stormwater sampling and monitoring during construction.

2. Requirements for treating stormwater VOLUME as a water quality pollutant.

These requirements have not yet been extended to private development at the state and local level, however many states and local agencies are drafting similar requirements.

For more information on this proposed rulemaking and these listening sessions, the potential rule and instructions for submitting written comments, go to http://www.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater/rulemaking

It’s going to be interesting to see how this process synchs with what’s happening at the State level (or not…)

What are your thoughts?

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From the Chesapeake Stormwater Network…

There are roughly 425 small MS4s in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Pennsylvania has the most with about 277, followed by Virginia (80), Maryland (60), New York (~40), and a handful in both Delaware and West Virginia. These small communities must develop local programs that meet six minimum management measures specified by EPA, and are issued five year Phase 2 stormwater permits.

As many as 80% of these communities are on schedule to have their permits renewed or reissued in the next two years-and the Pennsylvania draft Permit currently undergoing review will undoubtedly contain more stringent conditions.

It’s tough to be a stormwater manager in a small MS4. These small communities, often with less than 10,000 residents, have few staff, low funding and limited experience to administer these new stormwater programs. And, to be fair, the States and EPA who write the small MS4s permits, haven’t done a great job helping small communities with much technical assistance, hands on training and resources to launch their new stormwater programs (at least so far). Small communities have been pretty much left to their own devices to figure out how to comply with their new permits.

Last January, Tom Schueler from the Chesapeake Stormwater Network conducted a seminar on building effective stormwater programs for Pennsylvania communities. The seminar featured six short training modules for small MS4 stormwater managers. These modules present the basic small MS4 requirements and provide tips on how to build each program on a shoestring that other successful communities have used, These modules can be accessed below:

▪                Building a Phase 2 MS4 Stormwater Program on a Shoestring

▪                Minimum Management Measure 2: Stormwater Education

▪                Minimum Management Measure 3: Erosion and Sediment Control

▪                Minimum Management Measure 4: Post Construction Stormwater Management

▪                Minimum Management Measure 5: Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination

▪                 Minimum Management Measure 6: Municipal Good Housekeeping

Visit the Chesapeake Stormwater Network for more…

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