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EPA Issues Storm Water General Permit for Construction Activities

Release Date: 7/10/1998
Contact Information: For more information contact the Office of External Affairs at (214) 665-2200.

     The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 6 reissued the General Permit for Storm Water Discharge from Construction Activity July 6, 1998.

     Regulated sites which were covered by the previous permit and filed for an extension by Sept. 9, 1997, have until Oct. 4, 1998, to submit a Notice of Intent to obtain coverage under this new permit. Sites currently without a permit must submit applications immediately. However, they have until Oct. 4, 1998, to update their storm water pollution prevention plans.

     This National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems (NPDES) construction general permit was originally issued in 1992 and is required by the Clean Water Act. It is designed to protect waterways from pollution and silt damage caused by rainwater runoff from construction sites.

     Our nation’s surface water quality has improved significantly since EPA began its storm water program in 1990. In 1992 almost half of the country’s water quality problems were caused by urban storm water runoff which can contain sediments, illegal toxins, oil and grease, and other pollutants. This untreated runoff goes through storm sewers into waterways.

     This construction permit regulates sites where at least five acres are disturbed and smaller areas that are part of larger developments which will cause at least five acres to be disturbed. The permit covers sites in New Mexico, Texas and most tribal lands in Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. Oil and gas construction sites in Oklahoma also are covered under this permit.

     Applications for construction which begins after July 6, 1998, will be required to include certification that storm water discharges will not affect endangered species or their habitats. Guidelines to help developers in this process are included in the permit.

     The other major change from the previous permit is a requirement that the permit number, or a copy of the Notice of Intent to obtain a permit, be posted at construction sites along with a brief description of the project. The permit also includes performance objectives for a site’s storm water pollution prevention plan.

     Additional information is available by calling the EPA Region 6 Storm Water Hotline at 1-800-245-6510 or by accessing the storm water web site at www.epa.gov/region6/sw/.