1. Regulations: Stormwater Management Regulations are a key component of EPA’s Clean Water Act.

2. Overriding Goal: Protect the quality of U.S. waterways by reducing the discharge of sediment, oil and chemicals into storm drains, surface water and groundwater.

3. Who is regulated? Three (3) main types of construction are now required to comply with these regulations:

• Commercial Construction

• Residential Construction

• DOT Roadwork and Highway Projects

4. Did you know?

• Approximately 70% of all storm drains lead directly to open waterways, without treatment.

• 46% of all impaired rivers and lakes in the U.S. are polluted due to uncontrolled stormwater runoff.

• A one quart oil spill causes a two acre oil slick.

• In construction activities - Phase II of the regulations went into effect in March 2003 and requires that construction sites that disturb 1 acre or more of land must have an EPA issued NPDES Construction Stormwater Permit in place before construction can begin.

• The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program controls water pollution by regulating point sources and non-point sources that discharge pollutants into waters of the United States.

• In 2001, a major retail chain was fined $1 million by the EPA for stormwater violations.

• If not properly managed, erosion from a one-acre construction site could discharge as much as 20 to 150 tons of sediment in one year.

6. Key Stormwater Acronyms and phrases:

• SWPPP - A “Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan” is an erosion, sediment and waste chemical control plan. All regulated entities must file a SWPPP with the EPA to be granted a stormwater permit.

• BMP - “Best Management Practices” include operating procedures and products to control site runoff, spills, leaks and drainage from raw material storage. When filing a SWPPP, a detailed description of BMPs planned for use at the site is required.

• MEP - “Maximum Extent Practicable” - Stormwater permits require that the discharge of pollutants into storm drains be reduced to the “maximum extent practicable”.

• NPDES - “National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System” - This is the technical name for EPA’s stormwater management regulations. Regulated entities must comply with NPDES, 40 CFR 122.26 (1999).

• Non-Point Source Pollution - This term is synonymous with “stormwater runoff”. Unlike stormwater pollution, “point source pollution” can be easily attributed to a single source, such as a catastrophic leak from a storage tank. “Non-point source pollution” (stormwater runoff) has many contributors, e.g., oil leaks from vehicles in parking lots, sediment from multiple sources, a chemical or oil sheen from drums, tanks, equipment or raw materials stored outdoors.

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