Storm Water Phase II

NPDES II Will Impact Many New Hampshire Municipalities

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a "Final Rule" enacting Phase II of its National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Storm Water Program (NPDES II or Phase II). This rule will affect nearly all municipalities to some degree, and have a major impact on others. This article will provide an overview of the three areas of NPDES II coverage:

• Industrial Activities.
• Regulated Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4s).
• Construction Activities.

The information below provides basic information to municipal officials about Phase II requirements.

Industrial Activities

The Industrial Activities rules will impact nearly all highway departments. These include municipal garages, truck and vehicle washing, salt and sand storage, and wastewater treatment plants. It will also include some recycling centers and refuse transfer stations.

Municipalities will need a No Exposure Waiver or permit for each activity. To obtain a waiver, the agency must show that the materials "are not exposed to storm water" during storage or handling operations. Some municipalities will have to construct new or modify existing facilities. For example, water from salt handling, from vehicle repair, and from washing will often have to drain through pollutant interceptors. To get a permit will likely require a commitment to achieve a No Exposure Waiver. The deadline for applications is March 2003.

An MS4, or "municipal separate storm sewer system" means

1. All components and the system of components of a road drainage system. It includes roads and streets, catch basins, curbs, gutters, ditches, culverts, man-made channels, and storm drains.
2. Such facilities owned or operated by a governmental entity, including municipalities, states, universities, local sewer systems, hospitals, military bases, and prisons.

Phase II regulates all MS4s located in "urbanized areas" (UAs) as defined by the Bureau of the Census. These UAs cover the entire cities of Dover, Manchester, Nashua, Portsmouth, Rochester, and Somersworth. They cover parts of

EPA might add municipalities to this list, or modify the current areas. It must designate regulated MS4s by December 9, 2002.

Each regulated MS4 will have to develop a Storm Water Management Program (SWMP). That program must contain six "minimum control measures." Each is summarized below.

1. Public Education and Outreach. Inform citizens about the impacts polluted storm water runoff can have on water quality.
2. Public Participation/Involvement. Encourage citizen participation in program development and implementation.
3. Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination. Develop and implement a plan to detect and eliminate illicit discharges to the storm sewer system.
4. Construction Site Runoff Control. Develop, implement, and enforce an erosion and sediment control program for construction activities that disturb one or more acres of land.
5. Post-Construction Runoff Control. Develop, implement, and enforce a program to address discharges from new development and redevelopment areas.
6. Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping, Develop and implement a program to prevent and reduce pollutant runoff from municipal operations.

The EPA describes specific requirements in a separate Fact Sheet for each measure. They are available on the EPA webpage:

Municipal officials without web access can request them from the UNH T² Center.

Waiver options are available for small MS4s that meet specific criteria. EPA provides that criteria in its Fact Sheet 2.1.

Since the final rule covers all small MS4s in a UA, several governments and/or agencies could have overlapping jurisdiction. An example is where a state road is within a designated area of a town or city. Another example is in Durham where the University of New Hampshire is within the designated area for the town. In such instances, the EPA encourages the parties to form a unified SWMP. The deadline for an initial application is March 2003. SWMP implementation is due about 5 years later.

Operators of a construction site must obtain a permit if they disturb one or more acres of land. If part of a larger development, areas less than one acre are also regulated. The "construction site operator" is the party or parties with operational control of plans and specifications or of day-to-day activities. (See EPA Fact Sheet 3.0)

If a municipality is a new construction operator, it must obtain one. Construction activity does not include routine maintenance of roads and ditches.

As noted above, regulated MS4 municipalities must control construction site and post-construction site runoff. Their planning regulations should require construction operators to obtain permits. These regulations should also address post-construction discharges.

Assistance to NH Municipalities

During this calendar year, representatives of various agencies have met periodically. Their objective is to determine needed assistance and to develop plans to provide it. Several city public works officials have clarified the needs and concerns. The participating agencies, in bold type below, and their likely roles follow.

NH Office of State Planning (NHOSP). NHOSP can provide guidance to municipal planners, and model ordinances and regulations for NPDES II compliance.

NH Department of Environmental Services (NHDES). Although the EPA will enforce Phase II in New Hampshire, many NHDES regulations apply. That is, compliance with state regulations will fulfill some specific NPDES II requirements. Moreover, its staff has considerable expertise in storm water management practices.

Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). The NRCS and county conservation districts have a number of erosion and sediment control experts. Municipalities can request services through their county conservation district.

NH Department of Transportation (NHDOT). The state is a regulated MS4 within the designated UAs. They will coordinate their SWMPs with affected municipalities.

UNH Technology Transfer Center. The UNH T² Center provides technical and management information to improve local road maintenance. Many workshops and newsletter articles contain information directly related to Phase II. It is developing a Drainage Maintenance System (DrainMS) aimed at helping municipalities prepare and execute Phase II SWMPs.

The Environmental Protection Agency, Boston (EPA Boston) is the permitting and enforcement agency for New Hampshire. To provide information to municipalities, it will hold a workshop and tradeshow on November 30 in Manchester. Several of the above agencies are co-sponsors. The event will include workshops covering each of the Phase II areas.

Private engineers and vendors can also assist with engineering studies, equipment, and construction. Thirty or more firms will exhibit at the November 30 tradeshow.

Finally, municipal officials can assist each other. PW.Net is one way to communicate with peers. That dialogue will also help the agencies to plan assistance. For example, it will help the UNH T² Center define future workshops and newsletter articles.