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Region 9 of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) issued a May 17th report titled:

Evolution of Stormwater Permitting and Program Implementation Approaches – Workshop Report Recommendations for Program Improvement (“Report”)

Region 9 of EPA is based in San Francisco, California, and encompasses several western states.

The Report describes a workshop that was held by EPA in partnership with the State of California and the federal agency’s headquarters to facilitate discussions regarding stormwater permit efficiency and effectiveness. The workshop is stated to have engaged 29 national experts from EPA, state Clean Water Act permitting agencies, local stormwater programs, national associations, consulting firms, and nonprofit organizations.

The Report states that sessions from the workshop focused on:

• Stormwater program implementation requirements and permits
• Minimum control measures
• Water quality based control requirements

A follow-on workshop in March 2018 assessed stormwater program:

• Monitoring
• Evaluation
• Tracking
• Reporting provisions

The Report is intended to “provide a synthesis of participant ideas and contributions along with other existing research to identify the most impactful opportunities for strengthening MS4 permits and program implementation.”

The recommended program and permit improvements include:

• Cross-Cutting Recommendations for Capacity Building and Program Support
• Cross-Cutting Permitting Recommendations
• Making Public Outreach and Involvement Work for the Program
• Tailoring IDDE to Fit Local Needs
• Tailoring Industrial/Commercial Programs to Fit Local Needs and Align with Industrial Permits
• Improving Programs to Address Public Agency Activities and Municipal Housekeeping
• Streamlining and Strengthening Local Post-Construction-Related Practices
• Supporting Water-Quality-Based and TMDL-Based Requirements

Three appendices include:

• Workshop Attendees
• Workshop Agenda
• Pre-Workshop Questionnaire Results

A copy of the Report can be found here.