What is NPDES Phase II?      

After the Cuyahoga River caught on fire in 1969, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recognized that the degraded quality of U.S. waterways due to pollution was in need of some serious attention.  In 1977, they passed the Clean Water Act, which regulated the emission of pollutants from specific locations, or point sources,  (i.e. industrial pipes) into waters of the U.S.  

While the quality of our nation’s waters began to improve drastically with the regulation of point source pollutants, polluted water bodies still existed.  As was discovered, preventing pollution from point sources was not enough to ensure clean water.  This is because many pollutants enter our waterways indirectly as run-off from impervious surfaces.  When these nonpoint pollutants flow through our stormwater systems and out into our rivers and lakes they degrade the quality of our waterways.  According to the 1996 National Water Quality Inventory, a biennial summary of State surveys of water quality, approximately 40% percent of surveyed U.S. water bodies are still impaired by pollution and do not meet water quality standards. The EPA proclaimed, “13% of impaired rivers, 21% of impaired lake acres and 45% of impaired estuaries are affected by urban/suburban storm water runoff”.  

The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES Phase I) was formulated in 1990 under the Clean Water Act to address this issue of polluted runoff, or nonpoint source pollution. Nonpoint source pollution is defined as pollution that comes from many different sources over a large area, and it is generated when rain or snow melt collects impurities as it travels to a body of water.

NPDES Phase I was designed to regulate stormwater runoff discharges on construction sites that disturb five (5) or more acres of property Under the Phase I program the EPA required operators of “medium” and “large” (populations 100,000 or greater) Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems, or MS4s, to implement a stormwater management program.  In 1999 The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) expanded the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Storm Water Program by designating additional sources of storm water for regulation to protect water quality.  This new, expanded program is NPDES Phase II.  

The new Phase II regulations strengthen the ability of government to regulate sources of nonpoint source pollution, the leading cause of water quality degradation in the United States.  Phase II affects two classes of facilities for automatic coverage on a nationwide basis: small municipalities and small construction sites.  The OEPA was required to issue permits December 8, 2002, and regulated entities were required to submit permit applications and management plans by March 10, 2003.  Phase II requires permit coverage for construction activities that disturb greater than one (1) acre. The Phase II Rule automatically covers all small MS4s in urbanized areas, or “UA’s”, as designated by the Bureau of Census, as well as small MS4s located outside a UA serving a jurisdiction of with a population of at least 10,000 people and a population density of at least 1,000 people per square mile.  Addition areas can be designated on a case-by-case basis located outside the UA’s.

 According to the 1990 census, portions of South Russell Village, Bainbridge Township, and Russell Township were designated as part of the Cleveland Urbanized Area, or UA (if a portion of a township is designated, Phase II applied to the entire township).  The results of the 2000 census included Chester Township as an urbanized area.  New census will reveal any additions to the current list of UA’s affecting Geauga County.  The NPDES permitting authority can determine at any time on a case-by-case basis any additional areas to be designated as an “urbanized area”, possibly determined on a watershed level crossing township lines.

 The small construction sites segment of the NPDES Phase II regulations affects all townships in Geauga County.  Upon implementation of the regulations, sites greater than one acre began being regulated.  Zoning in Geauga County allows for very few sites of less that one-acre due to septic system requirements.  This will increase the amount of sites currently regulated (at 5 or more acres disturbance) significantly.

Whether the nonpoint source pollution is sediment runoff from a construction site, or pesticide runoff from a cornfield, it impairs the quality of our waterways and thus the habitat and the resources within that habitat that many animals rely on for survival. 

Ohio EPA NPDES Phase II Construction Stormwater General Permit

Ohio EPA NPDES Phase II Small MS4 Stormwater Permit

What  Does Phase II Mean For Geauga County?

So what do these rules mean for Geauga County? With this extended focus on urban sources of water pollution comes the added provisions of NPDES Phase II.  Small municipalities (any MS4 not already covered in the Phase I program) or designated UAs will be required to develop a stormwater program that implements six minimum control measures based on a Best Management Practices (BMP) approach.  These measures include: 1) Public Education and Outreach, 2) Public Participation and Involvement, 3) Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination, 4) Construction Site Runoff Control, 5) Post-Construction Runoff Control, and 6) Pollution Prevention and Good Housekeeping.

All construction occurring in townships in Geauga County will be affected by the small construction sites segment of the NPDES Phase II Regulations.  Upon implementation sites greater than one acre will be regulated for erosion and sediment control.  Zoning in Geauga County allows for very few sites of less than one acre due to septic system requirements.  This will increase the amount of sites currently regulated (at 5 or more acres of disturbance) significantly, and hopefully reduce the amount of sediment as a form of nonpoint source pollution that enters our streams and rivers.