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Regulatory Alert (RA 00-5)

Member Pipeline - Regulatory - Alert (RA 00-5)

To:

Members & Affiliates
Wet Weather Issues Committee
Legal Affairs Committee

From:

National Office

Date:

February 7, 2000

Subject:

EPA Releases SSO Papers on Satellite Collection Systems and Watershed Management

Reference:

RA 00-5

On January 21, 2000 EPA circulated two papers, NPDES Permit Requirements - Municipal Satellite Sanitary Sewer Collection Systems, and SSO NPRM (Notice of Proposed Rulemaking) — Draft Watershed Language that provide a preview of some of the new regulatory language that EPA will propose in May 2000 to address sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs). The papers were prepared based in part on recommendations made by the SSO Federal Advisory Subcommittee on October 18-20, 1999, and will be part of the draft regulations expected in late May 2000.

The satellite collection system paper outlines proposed regulations that would require all owners or operators of a municipal satellite collection system to submit an NPDES permit application, unless the Regional collection system's NPDES permit requires the implementation of permit conditions throughout the municipal satellite collection system. Permits for municipal satellite collection systems would contain the standard permit conditions for reporting, record keeping, public notification, and Capacity, Maintenance, Operation, and Management (CMOM) programs and the prohibition on SSO discharges. The NPDES authority would have discretion on whether NPDES permits are individual permits, co-permits, or general permits. The paper differs from AMSA's preferred approach which would rely first on alternative mechanisms to permits, and defer to the use of NPDES permits only if the alternative mechanisms were not implemented after a set amount of time or were not working effectively.

EPA's draft watershed language outlines the Agency's perspective of how watershed-based decision-making would allow for adjustments to long-term schedules related to CMOM activities. The language states that “CMOM programs can reflect watershed considerations in two general ways: 1) CMOM activities may be prioritized based on risk; and 2) other water quality improvement projects in the permittee's capital improvement plan (e.g. addressing deficiencies with treatment plants, combined sewer systems, replacing septic systems with sanitary sewer collection systems; assuming responsibility for inadequate privately owned treatment works and collection systems; storm water control; restoration or protection of aquatic habitat or flow regimes) may be considered when developing schedules for long-term measures.” It is currently unclear as to whether and how the watershed paper will be incorporated into the draft regulation.

EPA is not requesting comments from members of the SSO Subcommittee (or the public) at this time on these two new papers. EPA's two new papers supplement four papers that outline draft proposed regulatory language recommended by the SSO Federal Advisory Subcommittee, including: 1) Capacity, Maintenance, Operation, and Management (CMOM) Programs; 2) Prohibition on Municipal Sanitary Sewer System Discharges; 3) Record Keeping, Reporting and Public Notification; and 4) Remote Treatment Facilities. These papers had been discussed and modified during the SSO Federal Advisory Subcommittee meetings of October 18-20, 1999 in Williamsburg, Virginia (see AMSA Regulatory Alert RA 99-20). The package of draft SSO papers will be discussed during AMSA's Winter Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico in both the Wet Weather Issues and Legal Affairs Committees.

For more information, please contact Greg Schaner at 202/296-9836, or by email at gschaner@amsa-cleanwater.org.

Attachments:

  • SSO NRPM - Draft Watershed Language (PDF format)
  • NPDES Permit Requirements — Municipal Satellite Sanitary Sewer Collection Systems (PDF format)
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