OREGON STORMWATER PERMITTING PROGRAM

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2006 ACWA Stormwater Summit
April 12, 2006 EUGENE, OR

• OREGON STORMWATER PERMITTING PROGRAM
• Current Issues Plans
• Annette Liebe
• Oregon Department of Environmental Quality
• [phone]

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Overview
SHORT-TERM PRIORITIES

• Industrial Stormwater Permit bundle
• August, 2006 adoption
• Construction Stormwater Permit implementation
• Public Notice requirements and update agreements
  with our Agents
• Increased focus on MS4 Permits
• Phase II MS4 permits - issuance
• Phase I MS4 permit - administration

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Oregons General Industrial NPDES Stormwater
Permits
WHAT ARE THESE PERMITS?

• 1200-Z Statewide multi-sector industrial permit
  certain SIC codes (exp. 6/07)
• 1200-A Sand gravel mining operations DOGAMI
  administers most (exp. 6/07)
• 1200-COLS Industries that discharge to the
  Columbia Slough (exp. 12/04)
• 1300-J Stormwater wastewater from bulk
  petroleum tank facilities (exp.12/04)

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Oregons General Industrial NPDES Stormwater
Permits
STATUS PLANS FOR REVISIONS

• Schedule for Permit renewals / revisions in a
  lawsuit settlement
• February 28, 2006 Permits on public notice
• August, 2006 Adopt permits at EQC
• Brief history of lawsuit settlement

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Oregons General Industrial NPDES Stormwater
Permits
PROPOSED REVISIONS POLICY ISSUES

• Settlement conditions that DEQ was obligated to
  propose in public comment drafts
• 35-day Public notice on permit applications
  plans
• Increase in sampling frequency and locations
• Benchmarks ( goals) convert to enforceable
  limits if 2-year average exceeds benchmark value
• Sampling waiver eliminated
• Deadline for comments is April 14th, 500 p.m.
• DEQ obtained early input from ACWA and other
  stakeholders on the proposed revisions

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Oregon Construction Stormwater General Permit
SUMMARY OF MAJOR PERMIT CHANGES

• 1200-C permit adopted Dec. 22, 2005
• What are major new requirements?
• Prohibition on causing violation of in-stream WQ
  standards
• 14-day public notice on applications plans for
  sites gt 5 acres
• Dischargers to waterbodies impaired for turbidity
  sedimentation will
• Monitor for turbidity meet 160 NTU benchmark,
  OR
• Install additional specified control measures

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Oregon Construction Stormwater General Permit
IMPLEMENTATION CONSIDERATIONS

• Public notice comment on applications and
  plans effective June 1, 2006
• Working with DEQ regional offices and local
  agents to ensure a timely registration process
  given the 14 day public comment period
• Working to minimize customer service concerns
• Timeline for approval of the plan and coverage
  under the permit likely to take between 23-28
  business days.

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Oregons Municipal Stormwater Permitting Program
(MS4s)
SHORT-TERM MS4 PRIORITIES

• Internal coordination and consistency in Phase I
  permit oversight
• Develop workplan for review of Phase II
  applications
• Litigation
• LUBA appeal
• Multnomah County Circuit Court

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Oregons Municipal Stormwater Permitting Program
(MS4s)
LITIGATION

• LUBA appeal Brief yet to be filed, but we
  expect the arguments to focus on Goal 6, which
  says All waste and process discharges from
  future development, when combined with such
  discharges from existing development shall not
  threaten to violate or violated applicable state
  or federal environmental quality statutes, rules,
  or standards.
• Likely arguments
• DEQ should have made land use goal findings
  before issuing the permits
• Goal 6 requires numeric effluent limits and
  prohibits DEQ from issuing a permit that requires
  stormwater effluent to be reduced to the maximum
  extent practicable.

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Oregons Municipal Stormwater Permitting Program
(MS4s)
LITIGATION

• Multnomah County Circuit Court
• Petitioners seek to have court rule that
• Permits must have effluent limits or other
  protections sufficient to ensure that water
  quality standards are not exceeded
• Permits fail to protect beneficial uses
• Permits do not require permittees to control
  discharges to the maximum extent practicable.
• Permits do not comply with statewide Land Use
  Goals.

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Oregons Municipal Stormwater Permitting Program
(MS4s)
LONG-TERM OPPORTUNITIES

• Partnering with more local governments
• Construction permit agent agreements
• Timely review and feedback on MS4 permit
  submittals
• Potential request for additional resources
• Re-examining DEQs regulatory approach to
  stormwater.