EPA says MS4 permits may be released mid-month

At a meeting with legislators on Dec. 2, officials from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that it expects to release revised MS4 permits as early as mid-January.
 
The draft National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) general permit for stormwater discharges from small municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4) in Massachusetts came out in September 2014, and the MMA submitted comments reflecting concerns about the cost and administrative burden that new requirements would place on municipalities.
 
The federal Clean Water Act requires that the MS4 permit be re-evaluated every five years to ensure that it continues to protect the environment. The previous permit was issued in 2003.
 
EPA officials said the revised permits would take into account the feedback received during the public comment period.
 
At the December meeting, hosted by Rep. Carolyn Dykema and Sen. Jamie Eldridge, EPA Region 1 Administrator Kurt Spaulding stressed that the new permits will help communities meet water quality standards and deal with the impacts of climate change.
 
The new permits will require public education and outreach for various audiences, public participation and engagement, illicit discharge detection and elimination, and management of stormwater runoff.
 
Reps. Jeffrey Roy and William “Smitty” Pignatelli raised concerns about the impact and cost to municipalities. The state’s Water Infrastructure Finance Commission estimated that the EPA’s MS4 regulations could cost cities and towns $18 billion over the next 20 years.
 
Charlton Town Administrator Robin Craver, chair of the MMA’s Policy Committee on Energy and the Environment, gave a municipal perspective of the impact of the regulations and spoke about stormwater coalitions and how they can provide assistance to municipalities to comply with regulations.
 
Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Martin Suuberg said that Massachusetts is one of three states that does not have delegated authority over stormwater. Delegation would allow the DEP to be the stormwater permit-issuing authority, rather than the EPA.
 
On Nov. 6, the DEP announced the formation of an advisory committee to evaluate the possibility of seeking authorization from the EPA to oversee and implement the NPDES program. The advisory committee plans to meet several more times before issuing a report.
 
The MMA’s Energy and the Environment Committee supports the idea of the Baker administration examining whether to seek authorization from the EPA to implement the NPDES program.