NCG250000_FACT SHEET to Notice_20200715

DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
DIVISION OF ENERGY, MINERAL, AND LAND RESOURCES
FACT SHEET
GENERAL PERMIT NCG250000
NATIONAL POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM
PERMIT TO DISCHARGE STORMWATER
Permit No. NCG250000 Date: July 10, 2020
1. PERMIT COVERAGE
Industrial Point source conveyance of stormwater runoff from construction activities
Activities Covered including clearing, grading, and excavation activities that that meet all three
of the following criteria:
• result in the disturbance of land greater than or equal to one acre, or
that are part of a common plan of development of that size or
greater:
• are not subject to the North Carolina Sedimentation Pollution Control
Act of 1973 (SPCA); and
• are subject to the Clean Water Act (i.e., activities that meet the
definition of point source under 40 CFR 122.2 and are not excluded
from the Clean Water Act under 40 CFR 122.3.)
For example, activities that could be subject to the NCG25 permit include,
but are not limited to, industrial mulching operations and federal projects
subject to North Carolina's NPDES Industrial Stormwater Program under
the Clean Water Act. This permit does not cover exempt agricultural
stormwater runoff under 40 CFR 122.2 and 122.3.
Characteristics of Stormwater discharged from construction activities can contain sediment
Discharged eroded from the site of land disturbance activity. Suspended sediment is the
Stormwater primary constituent in construction stormwater and is commonly measured
as total suspended solids (TSS) and/or turbidity:
• Total suspended solids (TSS) is a measure of the suspended material in
water. The measure of TSS in stormwater allows for an estimation of
sediment transport, which can have significant effects in downstream
receiving waters.
• Turbidity, expressed as Nephelometric Turbidity Units (NTU), is a
measure of the ability of light to penetrate the water. Turbidity is a
function of the suspended solids in water. It has been demonstrated to
adversely affect aquatic species, such as the ability of small
macroinvertebrates to survive or reproduce as well as affecting fish
populations directly and indirectly.
Also, potential for contamination during construction activity exists from
fluids (fuels, lubricants, hydraulic fluids, coolants, etc.) from construction
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NCG250000 Fact Sheet - NC DEQ
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Geographic
Area(s) Covered
Receiving Waters
equipment or machinery. Materials stored on the construction site such as
chemicals, explosives, etc., could also enter the stormwater runoff discharge.
Discharges covered by this general permit are located at any place within
the political boundary of the State of North Carolina. Discharges located on
the Cherokee Indian Tribal Reservation are subject to permitting by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency and are not covered by this general
permit.
Receiving waters include all surface waters of North Carolina or municipal
separate storm sewer systems conveying stormwater to surface waters.
2. MAJOR CHANGES PROPOSED
The proposed NCG25 is a new general permit category for North Carolina. The
requirements therein are very similar to the requirements contained in NCG01. However,
for the NCG25, the Division will always be the authority to approve the E&SC Plan and the
verbiage in the NCG25 reflects this difference. The changes to the NCG01 permit that the
NCG25 permit is based from can be summarized as follows:
• In the Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) part of the NCG25 permit (Part
II), DEMLR staff have incorporated requirements from applicable state statutes (G.S.
113A-50 through 69) and administrative code (15A NCAC 04A and 0413) into the design
and construction standards for construction sites. All of the state requirements that
have been brought into the permit are referenced accordingly.
• The SWPPP and Self -Inspection, Recordkeeping and Reporting parts of the permit have
undergone a major reorganization to increase clarity and understanding for our
permittees and the public as well as local government and state staff who implement
the Sediment Program.
• Many of the permit requirements have been organized into tables as a preferred
alternative to the lengthy paragraphs that characterize the current version of the
permit.
• The permitting process for the NCG250000 has been updated from the old NCG010000
and improved to require permittees to complete an on-line Notice of Intent form, which
will result in a project -specific issuance of a Certificate of Coverage to the permittee for
each individual project.
3. STORMWATER POLLUTION PREVENTION PLAN
In North Carolina, the approved Erosion and Sedimentation Control (E&SC) Plan shall
meet all of the applicable requirements of this permit, the Sedimentation Pollution Control
Act of 1973 and 15A NCAC 04B .0101-.0132. The approved E&SC Plan shall be considered
the Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) for construction activities that are
covered under this permit and as such the implementation of the E&SC Plan throughout the
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duration of coverage shall be a condition of the permit. Recommendations for preparing
the E&SC Plan, as well as for designing, constructing, and maintaining the erosion and
sedimentation control practices are contained in the North Carolina Erosion and Sediment
Control Planning and Design Manual.
In the draft NCG25 permit, DEMLR made significant updates to Part II: Stormwater
Pollution Prevention Plan of the original NCG01 permit. Part II of the permit now includes
both the federal and the state requirements related to SWPPP/E&SC Plans. DEMLR staff
have worked to organize those requirements into a format that can be easily understood by
the permittees. When state requirements from 15A NCAC 04A and 04B were pulled into
the NCG25 permit, references to the applicable state law or rule were provided.
A brief summary of each section within Part II is provided below.
a. Required Components of the Erosion and Sedimentation Control Plan
The other NC General Permits include a list of items that shall be provided to create a
complete SWPPP. For the sake of consistency and clarity, DEMLR wished to provide a
similar list in the NCG25 permit. This list is based on a checklist that is provided on the
NC DEMLR Sediment Program Forms web site, with a number of updates and
improvements in organization. After this permit is finalized, the Sediment Program will
update their checklist so that it is consistent with the permit.
b. Design and Construction Standards for Erosion and Sediment Control Measures
This section of Part II includes the existing requirement for sediment basin outlet
structures that withdraw water from the surface. The other design and construction
standards in this section, are taken from 15A NCAC 04B .0106 through .0109, which is
referenced accordingly. Some of the topics that are covered include including topics
such as calculation methods, slope angles, stormwater outlets and stormwater
conveyances.
c. Additional Design and Construction Standards in High Quality Water (HQW) Zones
All of the requirements in this section are taken from proposed updates to the 15A
NCAC 04B .0124 that were created with a diverse team of stakeholders. The
administrative code is in the process of being updated to the language included in the
permit. DEMLR did not use the current language because it will become out of date
during the life cycle of the permit and the requirements in the current administrative
code are such that it is difficult to evaluate compliance (i.e., basins must remove 70% of
the 40 micron particles). The proposed updates to the administrative code reflected in
the permit language make it much easier for permittees to demonstrate compliance.
d. Construction Activity Buffers
All of the requirements in this section are taken from 15A NCAC 04B .0125 and are
referenced accordingly. In addition, recommended buffer widths from the NC Erosion
and Sedimentation Design Manual are included as Section D, Item 3 for ease of
reference for the permittees. This item of the permit is not proposed to be enforceable.
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e. Ground Stabilization
This section of Part II is very similar to the provisions in current NCG01 permit for
ground stabilization. A more detailed specification that includes separate provisions for
temporary versus permanent stabilization has been provided by pulling information
from the existing Definitions section of the permit with editing done for clarification.
The "Required Timeframes for Ground Stabilization" table has been carried over from
the previous permit with some editing done for clarification. Also, a footnote has been
added to the table to indicate that the more stringent requirements associated with
permanent stabilization do not need to be met until 21 days after the final ground
disturbance associated with any phase of grading.
f. Materials Handling
This section of Part II is very similar to the provisions in current NCG01 permit for
materials handling. Some of the wording has been updated and the information has
been organized for better ease of understanding.
g. Operation and Maintenance
This section of Part II is intended to clarify some provisions in the current NCG01
permit and to integrate the state requirements for operation and maintenance and the
turbidity standard into the permitting of construction activities. The topics in the
current NCG01 permit that appear in this section are: plan deviations, corrective
actions, bypass and upsets. In this section, DEMLR has clarified that bypasses occur
when the design storm has not been exceeded and upsets occur when the design storm
has been exceeded. Item 4 of this section provides for bypasses of sediment basins for
maintenance. Item 7 clarifies that the NC turbidity standard is not met unless the E&SC
plan is compliant with all federal and state requirements.
4. SELF -INSPECTION, RECORDKEEPING, AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
This permit specifies self -inspection, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements for
construction sites. The requirements have not changed, but DEMLR has reorganized the
existing requirements and clarified the language for ease of understanding.
a. Self -Inspection and Recordkeeping
As before, the renewal permit specifies qualitative (visual) monitoring of the following:
• Rain gauge
• maintained in good working order
• E&SC Measures
• Stormwater discharge outfalls (SDOs)
• Perimeter of site
• Streams or wetlands onsite or offsite (where accessible)
• Ground stabilization measures
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The draft permit maintains specific directions to the permittee about how records of
the above self -inspections shall be kept.
b. Reporting
In addition, the draft permit sets forth reporting requirements for the following
incidents that may occur on a construction site with required response timelines:
• Visible sediment deposition in a stream or wetland
• Oil spills and release of hazardous substances per Item 1(b)-(c) above
• Anticipated bypasses [40 CFR 122.41(m)(3)]
• Unanticipated bypasses [40 CFR 122.41(m)(3)]
• Noncompliance [40 CFR 122.41(1)(7)]
S. BASIS FOR CONTROLS
The conditions of this general permit have been designed using best professional judgment
to achieve water quality protection through compliance with the technology -based
standards of the Clean Water Act (Best Available Technology [BAT] and Best Conventional
Pollutant Control Technology [BCT]). Based on a consideration of the appropriate factors
for BAT and BCT requirements, and a consideration of the factors discussed below in this
fact sheet for controlling pollutants in stormwater discharges associated with construction
activities, this permit retains a set of requirements for developing and implementing
stormwater pollution prevention plans, and specific requirements for self -inspection,
recordkeeping and reporting for construction activities.
The permit conditions reflect the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) and North
Carolina's pollution prevention approach to stormwater permitting. The quality of the
stormwater discharge associated with an industrial activity will depend on the availability
of pollutant sources. This renewal permit still reflects the Division's position that
implementation of Best Management Practices (BMPs) and traditional stormwater
management practices which control the source of pollutants meets the definition of BAT
and BCT. The permit conditions are not numeric effluent limitations, but rather are
designed to be flexible requirements for developing and implementing site specific plans to
minimize and control pollutants in the stormwater discharges associated with the
industrial activity.
Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 122.44(k)(2) authorizes the use of BMPs in
lieu of numeric effluent limitations in NPDES permits when the agency finds numeric
effluent limitations to be infeasible. The agency may also impose BMP requirements which
are "reasonably necessary" to carry out the purposes of the Act under the authority of 40
CFR 122.44(k)(3). The conditions of the renewal permit are retained under the authority
of both of these regulatory provisions. The pollution prevention requirements (BMP
requirements) in this permit operate as limitations on effluent discharges that reflect the
application of BAT/BCT. The basis is that the BMPs identified require the use of source
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control technologies which, in the context of these general permits, are the best available of
the technologies economically achievable (or the equivalent BCT finding).
All facilities covered by this general permit must prepare, retain, implement, and (at a
minimum of annually) update a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SPPP). The term
"pollution prevention" distinguishes this source reduction approach from traditional
pollution control measures that typically rely on end -of -pipe treatment to remove
pollutants in the discharges. The plan requirements are based primarily on traditional
stormwater management, pollution prevention and BMP concepts, providing a flexible
basis for developing site -specific measures to minimize and control the amounts of
pollutants that would otherwise contaminate the stormwater runoff.
The pollution prevention approach adopted in the SPPP in this renewal permit still focuses
on two major objectives: 1) to identify sources of pollution potentially affecting the quality
of stormwater discharges associated with industrial activity from the facility; and 2) to
describe and ensure that practices are implemented to minimize and control pollutants in
stormwater discharges associated with industrial activity from the facility and to ensure
compliance with the terms and conditions of the permit.
There has been no significant change to this rationale since the previous General
Permit NCG010000 (that are the basis of the requirements in the NCG250000
permit).
7. REQUESTED VARIANCES OR ALTERNATIVES TO REQUIRED STANDARDS
There are no requested variances or alternatives to required standards. Facilities
requesting variances to required standards will not be covered under this General Permit
but will instead be required to seek coverage under an individual permit.
B. THE ADMINISTRATIVE RECORD
The public notice containing the NCG25 draft renewal permit and fact sheet are available at
the NC Stormwater Program's Public Notice web site:
https://deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/energy-mineral-and-land-
resources/stormwater/stormwater-program/stormwater-public.
9. STATE CONTACT
Additional information about the draft permit may be obtained at the above address
between the hours of 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM Monday through Friday by contacting:
Annette Lucas at [phone].
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10. SCHEDULE OF PERMIT ISSUANCE
Draft Permit Public Notice - Statewide Notice to publish July 15, 2020;
Draft available on-line by July 15, 2020;
Comment Period Ends August 14, 2020
Permit Scheduled to Issue - No later than September 30, 2020;
Effective October 1, 2020
11. PROCEDURE FOR THE FORMULATION OF FINAL DETERMINATIONS
a. Comment Period
The Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources proposes to issue an NPDES
General Permit for the above described stormwater discharges subject to the outlined
effluent limitations, management practices, and special conditions. These
determinations are open to comment from the public.
Interested persons are invited to submit written comments on the permit applications
or on the Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources' proposed determinations to
the following address:
Stormwater Program
Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources
1612 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1612
Attn: Annette Lucas
All comments received within thirty (30) days following the date of public notice are
considered in the formulation of final determinations.
b. Public Meeting
The Director of the Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources may hold a public
meeting if there is a significant degree of public interest in a proposed permit or group
of permits. Public notice of such a meeting will be circulated in newspapers in the
geographical area of the discharge and to those on the Division of Energy, Mineral, and
Land Resources' mailing list at least thirty (30) days prior to the meeting.
c. Appeal Hearing
An applicant whose permit is denied, or is granted subject to conditions he deems
unacceptable, shall have the right to a hearing before the Commission upon making
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written demand to the Office of Administrative Hearing (OAH) within 30 days following
issuance or denial of the permit.
d. Issuance of a Permit When no Hearing is Held
If no public meeting or appeal hearing is held, after review of the comments received,
and if the Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources determinations are
substantially unchanged, the permit will be issued and become effective on the first day
of the month following the issuance date. This will be the final action of the Division of
Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources.
If a public meeting or appeal hearing is not held, but there have been substantial
changes, public notice of the Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources revised
determinations will be made. Following a 30-day comment period, the permit will be
issued and will become effective on the first day of the month following the issuance
date. This will be the final action of the Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources
unless a public meeting or appeal hearing is granted.
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