EPA alleged that the company initially failed to obtain permit coverage for its stormwater discharges and failed to prepare a stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWPPP). EPA also alleged that once the company obtained permit coverage, it discharged stormwater from the facility in violation of various terms and conditions of EPA’s “Multi-Sector General Permit for Stormwater Discharges Associated with Industrial Activity.”
Since the inspection, EPA said the company has come into compliance with the federal law. The company has written a compliant SWPPP, improved the design and implementation of control measures that minimize pollutant discharges, and began regularly performing the required facility inspections and outfall assessments.
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The CWA requires industrial facilities, such as recycling facilities, to have controls in place to minimize pollutants from being discharged with stormwater into nearby waterways. Each site must have a SWPPP that sets guidelines and best management practices that the company will follow to prevent runoff from being contaminated by pollutants.
Without on-site controls, runoff from recycling facilities can flow directly to the nearest waterway and can cause water quality impairments such as siltation of wetlands and rivers, beach closings, fishing restrictions, and habitat degradation. As stormwater flows over these sites, it can pick up pollutants, including sediment and other debris which can inhibit the receiving streams use.
Are You Required to Develop a SWPPP?
The Clean Water Act (Section 402(p)) requires that operators of “discharges associated with industrial activity” obtain a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. EPA regulations define the categories of industrial activity required to obtain NPDES permits and specify the application requirements for these permits. To regulate stormwater discharges from these industrial activities, EPA and authorized states issue NPDES permits.
Most industrial stormwater discharges are covered under general permits, as opposed to individual permits, although states and EPA can and do issue individual permits to some facilities based on site-specific or industry-specific concerns. General permits are used primarily because they avoid the need to issue multiple permits, and instead only require a single permit to cover a large number of industrial facilities performing similar types of activities. To be covered under a general permit, an eligible operator of an industry must read the general permit, typically develop a SWPPP, comply with any special eligibility provisions, and submit a notice of intent (NOI) or permit application to the permitting authority.
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Federal regulations require NPDES permit coverage for stormwater discharges from the following categories of industrial activity:
- Category One (i): Facilities subject to federal stormwater effluent discharge standards
- in 40 CFR Parts 405-471
- Category Two (ii): Heavy manufacturing (for example, paper mills, chemical plants, petroleum refineries, and steel mills and foundries)
- Category Three (iii): Coal and mineral mining, and oil and gas exploration and processing
- Category Four (iv): Hazardous waste treatment, storage, or disposal facilities
- Category Five (v): Landfills, land application sites, and open dumps with industrial wastes
- Category Six (vi): Metal scrapyards, salvage yards, automobile junkyards, and battery reclaimers
- Category Seven (vii): Steam electric power generating plants
- Category Eight (viii): Transportation facilities that have vehicle maintenance, equipment cleaning, or airport deicing operations
- Category Nine (ix): Treatment works treating domestic sewage with a design flow of 1 million gallons a day or more
- Category Eleven (xi): Light manufacturing (For example, food processing, printing and publishing, electronic and other electrical equipment manufacturing, and public warehousing and storage).
See tomorrow’s Advisor to find out what spill prevention control measures must be included in your SWPPP.