Urban stormwater management in the City of Santa Cruz

Stakeholders

• California State Water Resources Control Board
• Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

Regulatory Background

Legislation has been developed by multiple regulatory agencies to reduce the level of pollutants and contaminants entering the Monterey Bay and bodies of water within the San Lorenzo River watershed.

Federal

Clean Water Act, Section 402: National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) - The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is required to manage a permit system regulating point sources of water pollution. This system requires industrial and municipal agencies to obtain an NPDES permit before discharging point source pollution into local bodies of water. In addition to regulating pollutant discharge, the permit requires municipal separate storm water systems (MS4s) to develop a Storm Water Management Plan (SWMP) for their region .

• Phase I (1990) requires cities and certain counties with populations of 100,000 or more to acquire NPDES permits for their storm water discharges. Phase I MS4s are covered by individual permits .
• Phase II (1999) requires regulated MS4s for cities and certain counties with populations under 100,000 to acquire NPDES permits for their storm water discharges. Phase II MS4s are covered by a general permit .

Endangered Species Act (ESA) - The ESA prohibits the impairment of habitats that contain endangered or threatened species . The San Lorenzo River maintains a population of steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss), which is listed as threatened under the ESA .

State

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB)

CalTrans Program

The California Department of Transportation (CalTrans) is the governing agency responsible for the management, maintenance, construction, and design of the State highway system, including freeways, bridges, tunnels, CalTrans' facilities, and associated properties. CalTrans is subject to the permitting requirements defined by the Clean Water Act, Section 402(p) NPDES program. Though storm water discharges were originally regulated by individual permits, the State Water Board issued a State-wide permit (CalTrans MS4 Permit Order No. 99-06-DWQ) which regulated all discharges from Caltrans MS4s, construction activities, and maintenance facilities .

Construction Storm Water Program

This program requires all construction projects greater than or equal to one acre, as well as projects under one acre that are connected to a larger construction plan, to obtain a General Permit for Discharges of Storm Water Associated with Construction Activity (Construction General Permit Order 2009-0009-DWQ). This permit requires the development and implementation of a Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP), which applies BMPs for runoff associated with the construction project, a visual monitoring program for pollutants (or "non-visual" chemical monitoring program if there are failures of BMPs), and a site map(s) illustrating the construction site perimeter, storm water collection and discharge points, existing and proposed buildings, lots, roadways, general topography both before and after construction, and drainage patterns across the project .

Industrial Storm Water Program

This program requires certain industrial facilities to obtain a General Permit for discharges associated with the facilities industrial activities (Industrial Storm Water General Permit Order 97-03-DWQ). The facilities under jurisdiction of this permit include: manufacturing facilities; oil and gas/mining facilities; hazardous waste, treatment, storage, or disposal facilities; landfills, land application sites, and open dumps; recycling facilities; steam electric power generating facilities; transportation facilities; sewage or wastewater treatment works; manufacturing facilities where industrial materials, equipment, or activities are exposed to storm water; and facilities subject to storm water effluent limitations guidelines, new source performance standards, or toxic pollutant effluent standards . This permit requires management measures that will achieve best available technology (BAT) that is economically achievable and best conventional pollutant control technology (BCT). This permit also requires the development and implementation of a SWPPP .

Municipal Storm Water Program

This program regulates storm water discharge from MS4s, which convey untreated runoff containing pollutants from urbanized areas and areas with impervious surface cover to local bodies of water. MS4 permits are issued in two phases (Phase I and Phase II), depending on the size of the MS4 (see Federal Regulations section above). The EPA works with State and Regional water management agencies to administer the NPDES permitting program for municipalities. Some of the requirements of the NPDES permits include the creation of a SWMP, BMPs, and measures to reduce pollutants entering waterways to the maximum extent practicable (MEP) .

Regional

Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board

Local

Santa Cruz County Code

Chapter 7.79: Runoff and Pollution Control

Timeline

• 1972 Federal Clean Water Act is the basic regulatory structure for determining allowable levels and discharges of pollutants from point sources to waters of the United States. Section 402 designates the EPA as the agency responsible for implementation of the NPDES program. Discharges are considered illegal without obtaining a NPEDS permit.

Links

• City of Santa Cruz Storm Water Management Plan

Disclaimer

This page may contain student work completed as part of assigned coursework. It may not be accurate. It does not necessary reflect the opinion or policy of CSUMB, its staff, or students.