Welcome to the Industrial Stormwater Program, March 2018 Newsletter! 

In this issue:

• 2020 permit reissuance: dates and updates
• New industrial stormwater workshop!
• New staff to the industrial stormwater program:
• From the manager’s desk: what does 25 years of collaboration and cooperation look like?
• Sampling requirements: are you finished with monitoring?
• Annual Report deadline reminder!

2020 permit reissuance: dates and updates

Industrial stormwater program staff have officially begun the work of reissuing the 2020 general permit.  Here are key dates for the reissuance process:

Key 2018-2020 dates:

• January – July 2018: Review existing permit language; sampling and other permit requirements. Draft list of suggested changes, compare EPA and Minnesota’s permits
• Fall 2018: Draft changes
• Winter 2018: finalize draft permit language
• February 2019: Public notice draft permit
• March - May 2019: Review, respond to comments
• May 31, 2019: Finalize permit language
• June 30, 2019:  MPCA commissioner approval
• July 5 - October 5, 2019: Permittees apply for coverage. Permittees must apply 180 days before April 5, 2020
• April 5, 2020: “New” permit is reissued and effective

We’ve been tracking suggested changes to the 2020 permit since the 2015 permit became effective.  We continue to spend considerable time deliberating over these suggestions and will involve key stakeholders in the process. Watch for related updates on our home page and within our Permit Development and Program History page, just as we did during the last permit cycle.

Here is the current sampling of suggested changes:

Applicability:

• Add Sector AD.  Consider requiring location-specific facilities that don’t have a regulated primary SIC code or narrative activity with potential/actual environmental concerns to get permit coverage. Note: this is not meant to require entirely new sectors or industries to get permit coverage

Sampling:

• Consider having an “I’m done sampling” form or similar requirement for sampling “closure”
• Clarify hardness dependent adjustment language: permit doesn’t specify # of samples required to collect
• Consider lowering aluminum benchmark value to EPA’s 0.75mg/L for aquatic life reasons

General requirements:

• Training requirements similar to construction stormwater's permit
• Coal tar sealant; additional restrictions being considered
• BMP repair timelines
• Vehicle tracking: additional requirements being considered
• Update anti-degradation requirements to be consistent with updated rules, other stormwater programs
• Consider increased salt management requirements

Sector-specific:

• Clarify vehicle wash water activities where inconsistently worded in “sector chapters”
• Construction stormwater (CSW) activities for sand & gravel facilities and landfills: consider allowing 1+ acre activities and add CSW-like language, so that a separate CSW permit is not required

If you have any suggested changes, additions, or language you would like to see added or removed, please contact program coordinator/permit writer Melissa Wenzel: melissa.wenzel@state.mn.us, 651-757-2816.  Emails are preferred for written documentation purposes.  

New industrial stormwater workshop!

The MPCA and the University of Minnesota have created a brand new “develop your annual training program” workshop. This 2.5-hour course will help you develop an in-house industrial stormwater training program for your staff that focuses on the permit’s annual training requirements. Instructors provide an individualized, hands-on experience that uses your facility SWPPP and helps provide facility-specific training suggestions. Spring 2018 industrial stormwater training schedule: April 18, 2018, White Bear Lake: Regulations, SWPPPs, Sampling and Monitoring “overview” workshop May 3, 2018, Chanhassen: Develop your Annual Training Program Workshop May 16, 2018, White Bear Lake: Develop your Annual Training Program Workshop For additional information or to register for any of these workshops, please visit the U of M Erosion and Stormwater Management Certification Program’s website. You can also view, download and fill out their printable registration form. You can also call the program: 612-625-9733 or 800-646-2282, or  send them an email: erosion@umn.edu.

New staff to the industrial stormwater program:

The MPCA would like to introduce two new industrial stormwater staff members to you:

Tanya Maurice is the new supervisor of for the industrial stormwater program. Tanya has been with the agency since 2007. She has worked in various programs including stormwater, hazardous waste, and with the Small Business Environmental Assistance Program. Her contact info: Tanya.maurice@state.mn.us or 651-757-2555.

Melanie Preczewski is the program’s new administrative staff. She has worked at the state since 2001, and with the MPCA since 2006. She had worked for almost 10 years in compliance and enforcement prior to switching to business systems within the agency. Her duties with the Industrial Stormwater program will mainly be working with facilities’ SWMR submittals.  Her contact info: Melanie.preczewski@state.mn.us or 651-757-2085.

Welcome Tanya and Melanie to the industrial stormwater program!!

From the manager’s desk: what does 25 years of collaboration and cooperation look like?

The U.S. Congress handed Minnesota businesses and industries a great challenge in 1987 when it added comprehensive stormwater discharge requirements to the federal Clean Water Act. The move was a formal realization that controlling traditional wastewater discharges would not be enough to achieve our nation’s water quality goals – more work was ahead.

Stormwater was adding sediment, nutrients, metals and organics into our surface waters and harming the environment. Reducing pollution from stormwater would be especially complicated because of the nondescript and dispersed nature of the sources but it was time to get to work.

In Minnesota, the significance of the task ahead moved MPCA Commissioner Chuck Williams to call for cooperation in a 1992 letter announcing the state’s new industrial stormwater program. He explained the simple concept of preventing contaminants from contacting stormwater and the ultimate goal of cleaner water. Commissioner Williams promised a low regulatory oversight program that set the tone for years to come.

Today, more than 25 years later, we see success in several measures: the on-going cooperation and diligent work of permitted businesses and industries to achieve the shared goals of a healthier environment; the work of many dedicated MPCA staff who emphasize collaboration and assistance to achieve compliance; and, the use of enforcement only to address the most egregious non-compliance problems.

Of the more than 4,000 Minnesota facilities affected by the stormwater regulations, 1,400 have active permits. Permit holders work every day to plan, implement best management practices, conduct training, inspections, sampling, corrective actions, record-keeping and reporting. MPCA staff provide nationally-recognized assistance and resources that achieve increased compliance and ultimately cleaner water. Our fact sheets, checklists and YouTube videos are valuable tools, and the online Stormwater Manual Wiki keeps the collaborations alive as we share the best ideas to guide stormwater managers through the maze of regulations, Best Management Practice designs, models/techniques and terminology.

Successful stormwater controls reduce a significant source of pollution to Minnesota waters and help achieve water quality goals. The cooperative system we built together is driving water quality improvements and expanding swimming and fishing opportunities for all to enjoy. We are proud of the progress made during the past 25 years in large part because it was rooted in collaboration and cooperation.

--Jeff Stollenwerk, Industrial Stormwater Section Manager

Sampling requirements: are you finished with monitoring?

To determine your current monitoring status, you can use the monitoring results worksheet. Remember to calculate your average with actual monitoring results; do not include No Flows.

Once your averaged results of the four most recent quarters for a monitoring parameter falls below its permit benchmark value, you are finished with stormwater monitoring for that parameter for the remainder of the current Industrial Stormwater permit cycle.

If you are finished monitoring for some, but not all parameters, continue monitoring and submitting the results on the SWMR.  Report the monitoring results and indicate ‘Done < Benchmark’, or similar wording, as in the example below. 

If you are finished monitoring for all the parameters listed on your facility SWMR form, you can stop submitting SWMRs to MPCA. File a copy of the monitoring results worksheet, or other documentation you are using, with your facility SWPPP.

If you have any questions about the stormwater sampling requirements, don’t hesitate to contact program staff at iswprogram.pca@state.mn.us or call us at: 651-757-2119 or 800-657-3804 (non-metro only).

Annual Report deadline reminder!

The general industrial stormwater annual report is due by March 31, 2018. Two of the most common questions we get regarding annual reports are about impaired waters: Question: “I see there’s a 2018 draft list of impaired waters.  Does that impact me and my monitoring requirements?”  Answer: No.  The list is a draft and must be approved by EPA before we’ll know whether there are new impairments. Once it is final, that will be the time to re-assess your future sampling requirements. We will provide updated information on our website and in a future newsletter. Question:  “How do I determine whether my facility is within one mile of an impaired water?” Answer: The easiest way is to use the TMDL Maps link located on our web site. This map is regularly updated with the latest TMDL impaired waters. This link will bring you to “Step 5” of the application process. Once on this page, click on the “TMDL Maps” link. This will open the official TMDL map you can use to determine whether or not your facility is within one mile of an impaired water. Call or email technical staff if you have any questions:  iswprogram.pca@state.mn.us or call us at: 651-757-2119 or 800-657-3804 (non-metro only).

Program contact Information:

Website: www.pca.state.mn.us/industrialstormwater

Monitoring Forms/Permit Information Access: http://cf.pca.state.mn.us/water/stormwater/isw/search.cfm

Email the Program: iswprogram.pca@state.mn.us 

Call the Stormwater Hotline: Call 651-757-2119 or 800-657-3804 (non-metro only) 

Permit Compliance/No Exposure:

• Melissa Wenzel, 651-757-2816
  
• Mary West, 651-757-2818
  
• Dave Bodovinitz, 507-206-2654
  

Engineering Questions: Brian Schweiss, 651-757-2709