WEF Comments on NPDES Permit for Stormwater from Construction

July 28, 2016

Laws & Regs

The Water Environment Federation (WEF; Alexandria, Va.) provided comments on the draft National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System General Permit for Stormwater Discharges from Construction Activities.

The proposed permit would renew the current 5-year permit that went into effect Feb. 16, 2012. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) made the draft permit available for a 45-day public comment period that ended May 26.

EPA specifically requested feedback on a number of updates and proposals presented in the permit, including the proposal to allow a group of Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPPs). The SWPPPs include such actions as requiring that authorized non-stormwater discharges not contain hazardous substances, increasing required site inspection frequencies for sites with snowmelt runoff, and increasing public access to the plans.

WEF offered comments that recognized the need to make SWPPPs available to the public and included suggestions addressing the challenges associated with implementation. WEF also expressed general concurrence that addressing potential toxics in source washdown waters was preferable and more cost effective than addressing toxins after they have entered waterways and stormwater systems, and it recommended inspection frequencies and final site stabilization timelines.

For more information, contact Chris French, WEF Director of Stormwater Programs, at cfrench@wef.org.

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