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July, 2025
Workshops can lead to increased MS4 compliance
 On a sunny day in May, 19 township supervisors, consultants, and staff took part in two MS4 for Townships workshops at the Watab Town Hall near St. Cloud, Minnesota. The MPCA provided the presenters and Watab Township provided the location, coffee, and donuts.
During two 2-hour workshops, participants learned the basics what the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) general permit requires for MS4-permitted townships in Minnesota. Presenters covered minimum control measures (MCMs) 1-6, the most common noncompliant permit items, and what to expect during a compliance audit. The workshops also included guest speakers. Julie Johnson (Watab Township) and Dan Heim (Le Sauk Township) spoke about what it is like going through the compliance audit process and how to make sure your municipality is ready for an audit.
Would you like to host an MS4 workshop in your community?
The MPCA Municipal Stormwater Unit is looking for opportunities to present workshops in communities across the state. If you would like to host an MS4 workshop, and you can help advertise the workshop to MS4s in your area, please contact Kevin Strauss at (507) 206-2624, or kevin.strauss@state.mn.us by July 30, 2025.
Stormwater manual teaches students about karst
In May of 2025, MPCA received a note of thanks from Gail Greene, a teacher from the Students for Research program. She contacted us behalf of students in her environmental awareness and water conservation class who had visited the stormwater manual while learning about karst.
One 8th grade student, Cheryl Brown, took special interest in the topic, and recommended two online resources for inclusion in the manual. We were impressed and agreed to host them. To find these links in the stormwater manual, see the "check it out" information box on the manual home page, or visit the introduction to karst page.
We will be hosting these resources in the manual until we retire the wiki platform in September and hope to highlight student engagement again after the new manual goes live.
Thanks for your interest and your inspiration, Cheryl! It’s great to hear that our manual was a helpful resource in your research.
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The NPDES/SDS Construction Stormwater General Permit requires sediment control best management practices (BMPs) to be established on all downgradient perimeters of sites and downgradient areas of the site that drain to any surface water, including curb and gutter systems. On road projects, if soils are excavated behind curbs and are then filled back in, perimeter controls are required along the top back of curb, if those soils will drain toward the curb and gutter.
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Installing sediment control logs, a common sediment control BMP for other downgradient areas, can prohibit grass growth and cause other issues. While the permit requires sediment controls in these areas, it does not specify which sediment controls you must use. Some other sediment control BMPs that have been effective at certain sites with low slopes behind curbs have been double erosion control blanket layers, blanket rolls behind the curb, blanket folds behind the curb, cuts behind the curb, and sod strips.
While these sediment controls have been effective on certain sites, they won’t work on all sites, and a more rigorous BMP may be required. Always remember to check BMPs during inspections and if they’re repeatedly failing, you need to install additional sediment controls.
Assess your winter maintenance practices and earn a Smart Salting certification
The MPCA Smart Salting Tool allows organizations to complete a detailed evaluation of their winter maintenance program and identify opportunities to improve practices that can save money and protect water resources. The winter maintenance assessment can be used to help meet a MS4 requirements for a chloride Waste Load Allocation (WLA). With submittal of the evaluations, the organization will earn a Level 2 Smart Salting Certification. Use of the tool is free and you can log in any time to create an account and get started.
For guidance on using the tool you can attend one of our twice-per-year Smart Salting Tool - level 2 - certification trainings. The next one is on July 15, 2025.
Learn more and register at:
Smart Salting Tool Training, Tuesday, July 15, 2025, from 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
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Industrial Stormwater General Permit sampling requirements
The Multi-Sector General Permit (MSGP) for industrial stormwater discharges was reissued on June 1, 2025. The e-services permit application for the MSGP is not available at this time. We hope to have the application e-service available in the coming months.
The new permit includes some updated sampling requirements as well as the restarting of benchmark monitoring/sampling for all permittees. Permittees are not expected to comply with the 2025-2030 sampling requirements or restart benchmark monitoring until they receive coverage under the 2025-2030 permit. For now, permittees are required to continue to stay in compliance with 2020-2025 permit conditions, including any sampling requirements. Please continue to sample for all parameters listed in your facility’s permit which have not met benchmarks, and report those on the stormwater monitoring reports. As stated in the new permit, facilities will not be required to begin the benchmark sampling requirements within that permit until the first full calendar quarter after a facility receives the permit.
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The MPCA Smart Salting Training Program is ready to work with your organization to schedule and host trainings for your staff and community. The MPCA has partnered with many organizations to offer trainings that helped cover some training costs. Going forward, MPCA Smart Salting trainings offered will rely on partners collaborating with MPCA to host and cover a portion of the costs for all trainings.
Hosting allows choice of:
- Date and time, within instructor’s availability
- Public or private
- Location (online or in-person)
Host responsibilities:
- covering a portion of training cost
- recruiting attendees
- providing a venue (if in-person)
Review our MPCA Smart Salting training page for available trainings.
Schedule trainings now for your choice of dates throughout the year by emailing smartsalting.pca@state.mn.us.
Consider hosting if you wish to train a majority of your staff, or groups of 12+. We encourage you to collaborate with other organizations to cover costs. The MPCA may be able to connect you with previous partners.
We appreciate your dedication to protecting Minnesota’s waters. With a partnership approach we’ll continue training those responsible for safe winter surfaces and optimizing water softeners with science-based information and research to reduce chloride pollution, prevent infrastructure damage, and save money.
We would not be where we are today without your partnership.
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