NCS000397_Response to Public Comments_20200122

Response to Public Comments
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The following table summarizes all of the comments received in response to public notice of the Draft National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System (NPDES) Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) Permit and Draft Stormwater Management Plan
(SWMP) for the City of Newton, permit renewal number NCS000397. The public comment period occurred from December 4, 2019
through January 3, 2020. A total of 23 comments were received on the Draft Permit. No comments were received on the Draft
SWMP.

Table 1: Summary of Public Comments on Draft Permit No. NCS000397

Comment
No.
Draft
Permit
Section
Comment Received Response to Comment
1 1.6 Add “…submit a permit renewal application and
fees…no later than 180 days prior to expiration
date of this permit, unless permission for a later
date has been granted by the Division (not to
exceed the expiration date of this permit). [Ref. 40
CFR 122.2(d)]
No change to this existing permit condition. 40
CFR §122.21 provides that permit renewal
applications shall be submitted 180 days prior to
expiration of the existing permit. If necessary,
DEQ has the authority to grant permission to
submit an application later than that deadline, but
no later than the permit expiration date. DEQ has a
plan and process in place to audit, notice and
require a permit renewal application in accordance
with the 180-day period. Therefore, it is not
necessary to include the extension language as a
specific permit condition.
2 1.7.1 Correct reference: N.C.G.S. 143-214.7 215.1 No change to this existing permit condition. The
proposed change to the statute reference applies to
state stormwater programs under jurisdiction of the
Environmental Management Commission. The
existing reference is applicable to the federal
NPDES program.
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Comment
No.
Draft
Permit
Section
Comment Received Response to Comment
3 1.7.3 Add “Except as otherwise provided by law, Tthis
permit does not relieve the permittee from
responsibility for compliance with any applicable
federal, state or local law…”
No change to this existing permit condition. The
proposed addition does not effectively change the
permit condition.
4 3.2.5 Comment on “Provide a stormwater
hotline/helpline for public education and
outreach.” [Website to field questions]
No change to this existing permit condition. The
permit does not dictate how the permittee will
comply, but the permittee may opt to utilize a
website to field questions.
5 3.3 Remove, “The SWMP shall identify the specific
elements for implementing, documenting and
tracking a Public Involvement and Participation
Program that complies with State and local public
notice requirements and, at a minimum, shall…”
The proposed change eliminates duplicative permit
requirements and has been incorporated into the
final permit.
6 3.4.2 Change, “…legal authority to prohibit, detect, an
eliminateaddress illicit connections and
discharges…”
No change to this existing permit condition. The
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
program and federal guidance on permit
requirements is clear that illicit discharges shall be
eliminated. The term “address” is too vague to be
effectively enforced.
7 3.4.4 Add “Provide a mechanism for tracking and
documenting the date(s) an illicit discharge, illicit
connection or illegal dumping was observed or
identified …”
The terms observed and identified are duplicative;
and identified is more descriptive. The permit has
been changed to read “Provide a mechanism for
tracking and documenting the date(s) an illicit
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Comment
No.
Draft
Permit
Section
Comment Received Response to Comment
discharge, illicit connection or illegal dumping was
observed or identified …”.
8 3.4.5 Remove “Train municipal staff and contractors
who, as part of their normal job responsibilities,
may observe an illicit discharge, illicit connection,
illegal dumping or spills.…”
No change to this existing permit condition. MS4s
are not required to maintain municipal field staff.
Contractors are often hired to perform staff-type
duties that position them to observe illicit
discharges, connections, or dumping within the
municipal jurisdictional area. Therefore, the
permit requires these “staff” to be trained on
identification and reporting.
9 3.5.1 Change “Provide an ordinance or other regulatory
mechanism to require erosion and sediment
controls, as well as sanctions to ensure compliance,
to the extent allowable underconsistent with
applicable State, Tribal or local law.”
No change to this existing permit condition. The
proposed language is too vague to be effectively
enforced.
10 3.5.6 Change “Provide and promote a means for the
public to notify the appropriate authorities of
observed erosion and sedimentation
problemsissues.”
No change to this existing permit condition. The
proposed language is too vague to be effectively
enforced – an issue is a topic or problem for
discussion, whereas a problem is a harmful
situation to be dealt with. Observed erosion and
sedimentation problems can include failure to
follow an approved plan, deficient measures
installed on site, lack of maintenance, impacts to
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Comment
No.
Draft
Permit
Section
Comment Received Response to Comment
adjoining property and waters, etc. that must be
addressed.
11 3.6.2(a) Change “Require Federal, State, and local
government projects, which discharge to the MS4,
to comply with Post-Construction Program
requirements throughout the entire MS4 permitted
area…”
No change to this permit condition. The MS4 is
the system of conveyances owned/operated by a
local government. However, the MS4 permit
applies to the jurisdictional area of the local
government, not just the municipal collection
system. Private property, private drainage systems
and post-construction control measures can impact
the municipal jurisdictional area and MS4 without
discharging directly into the MS4.
12 3.6.5(b) Strike this requirement “An on-site domestic
wastewater treatment system component, if
applicable, which may be coordinated with local
county health department, to ensure proper
operation and maintenance of such systems.”
[Note: permittee has no legal responsibility for
septics]
No change to this permit condition. 15A NCAC
02H .1017(7) specifically requires an on-site
domestic wastewater treatment system component.
While a city or town may not have direct “legal
responsibility” for septic systems, they do have the
authority to require connection to a wastewater
collection and treatment system which would
eliminate on-site domestic wastewater treatment
systems within their jurisdictional area.
13 3.7.6 Delete duplicative “The permittee shall ensure that
municipal industrial facilities subject to NPDES
industrial permitting comply with those permit
requirements, provide routine pollution prevention
training to staff, perform routine inspections, and
Permit condition 3.7.6 has been revised to “The
permittee shall ensure that municipal industrial
facilities subject to NPDES industrial permitting
comply with those permit requirements, provide
routine pollution prevention training to staff,
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Comment
No.
Draft
Permit
Section
Comment Received Response to Comment
establish specific frequencies, schedules, and
documentation.”
perform routine inspections, and establish specific
frequencies, schedules, and documentation.”
Permit condition 3.7.1 has been changed to
“Municipal Facilities Operation and Maintenance
Program to manage facilities that are owned and
operated by the permittee and have the potential for
generating polluted stormwater runoff. The
permittee shall maintain a current inventory of
municipal facilities; perform facility inspections
and routine maintenance; establish specific
frequencies, schedules, and standard
documentation; provide staff training on general
stormwater awareness and implementing pollution
prevention and good housekeeping practices; and
shall ensure that municipal industrial facilities
subject to NPDES industrial stormwater permitting
comply with those permit requirements.”
14 3.8.1 Change “The permittee shall comply
withimplement BMPs toward the goal of achieving
the requirements of an approved TMDL…”
No change to this existing permit condition. The
proposed language is too vague to be effectively
enforced. The intent of this permit condition is to
make TMDL requirements enforceable under the
MS4 permit. This is particularly important where
MS4s rely upon other North Carolina stormwater
programs to meet NPDES permit requirements, as
allowed under state law [Ref. 15A NCAC
02H .1017].
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Comment
No.
Draft
Permit
Section
Comment Received Response to Comment
15 3.8.3(a) Change “… explanation as to how existing
programs, controls, partnerships, projects, and
strategies address impaired watersthe TMDL
pollutant(s) for the receiving waters in question.”
No change to this existing permit condition. All
pollutants of concern, including identified
pollutants contributing to impairment of surface
waters, are to be addressed under the MS4
program. Limiting the pollutants of concern to
only those parameters that have a TMDL weakens
the permit and effectiveness of any stormwater
management program.
16 3.8.3(b) Change “…annual reports shall include an
assessment of whether additional structural and/or
non-structural BMPs are necessary to address
impaired watersthe TMDL pollutant(s) for the
receiving waters in question.”
No change to this existing permit condition. All
pollutants of concern, including identified
pollutants contributing to impairment of surface
waters, are to be addressed under the MS4
program. Limiting the pollutants of concern to
only those parameters that have a TMDL weakens
the permit and effectiveness of any stormwater
management program.
17 3.8.3(c) Change “…the permittee’s SWMP shall be
updated to include appropriate BMPs to address
impaired watersthe TMDL pollutant(s) for the
receiving waters in question.”
No change to this existing permit condition. All
pollutants of concern, including identified
pollutants contributing to impairment of surface
waters, are to be addressed under the MS4
program. Limiting the pollutants of concern to
only those parameters that have a TMDL weakens
the permit and effectiveness of any stormwater
management program.
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Comment
No.
Draft
Permit
Section
Comment Received Response to Comment
18 5.5.1 Change “Documentation shall be kept on-file by
the permittee for a period of fivethree years from
the date of expiration of this permit…”
The draft permit language is unclear and has been
changed to: “Documentation shall be kept on file
by the permittee until issuance of the next permit
and shall be made available to the Division or
authorized representative upon request.”
19 5.5.2 Change “retain records of all monitoring
information… for a period of fivethree years from
the date of expiration of this permit”
The draft permit language is unclear and has been
changed to: “The permittee shall retain records of
all monitoring information, including all
calibration and maintenance records, and copies of
all reports required by this permit until issuance of
the next permit.”
20 6.1(a) Strike this requirement “The permittee shall
comply with standards or prohibitions established
under Section 307(a) of the Clean Water Act for
toxic pollutants within the time provided in the
regulations that establish these standards or
prohibitions, even if the permit has not yet been
modified to incorporate the requirement.” [Note:
Not applicable to MS4s]
No change to this existing permit condition. The
proposed removal of this existing permit condition
could be interpreted as to relieve the permittee of
the requirement to comply with water quality
standards that are not specifically in the permit.
21 6.12 Strike this requirement “The permittee shall at all
times properly operate and maintain all facilities
and systems of treatment and control (and related
appurtenances) which are owned and/or operated
by the permittee to achieve compliance with the
The last sentence of this permit requirement has
been deleted, as it pertains only to wastewater
discharges. Stormwater BMPs/SCMs are still
required to meet the other provisions of this
condition.
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Comment
No.
Draft
Permit
Section
Comment Received Response to Comment
conditions of this permit. Proper operation and
maintenance also includes adequate laboratory
controls and appropriate quality assurance
procedures as necessary. This provision requires
the operation of back-up or auxiliary facilities or
similar systems that are installed by a permittee
only when the operation is necessary to achieve
compliance with the conditions of the permit.”
22 Part 8,
No. 9
Change definition of Illicit Discharge to “Any
discharge to a MS4 that is not composed entirely of
stormwater except discharges pursuant to an
NPDES permit (other than the NPDES MS4
permit), and allowable non-stormwater discharges,
and discharges resulting from fire-fighting
activities.” [Note: already included in definition of
non-stormwater discharge]
The definition of Illicit Discharge has been updated
as proposed.
23 Part 8,
No. 26
Change definition of Waste Load Allocation
(WLA) to “A WLA is a TMDL pollutant reduction
target allocating a specific load reduction to
specific point source discharge(s) of the pollutant.
Some stormwater point source discharges are
assigned a WLA.”
The definition of Waste Load Allocation has been
updated as proposed.