Notice of Opportunity for Public Comment on the Revised Statewide Industrial Permit: – The State Water Resources Control Board has released the second draft of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit for the Discharge of Storm Water associated with Industrial Activities. If adopted, it will replace the current Industrial General Permit (IGP). The State Water Board will accept written comments on the proposed IGP until 12:00 noon on October 22, 2012, and will conduct a public hearing to accept oral comments on October 17, 2012. The Permit generally requires coverage for facilities within the following categories of Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Codes:

• Facilities Subject to Storm Water Effluent Limitations Guidelines, New Source Performance Standards, or Toxic Pollutant Effluent Standards (40 Code of Federal Regulations Subchapter N);
• Manufacturing Facilities (SICs 20XX through 39XX and 4221 through 4225);
• Oil And Gas/Mining Facilities (SICs 10XX through 14XX);
• Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage, or Disposal Facilities;
• Landfills, Land Application Sites, and Open Dumps;
• Recycling Facilities: (SICs 5015 and 5093);
• Steam Electric Power Generating Facilities;
• Transportation Facilities: SICs 40XX through 45XX (except 4221-25) and 5171 that have vehicle maintenance shops, equipment cleaning operations, or airport deicing operations); and
• Sewage or Wastewater Treatment Works.

If you are already covered under the IGP or if any of these SIC Codes describe your operations, changes proposed by the State Water Board may affect you. The proposed changes to the IGP, which is expected to be re-issued in 2013, may require increased effort and costs on the part of the owners and operators.  For example, mandatory facilities will be required to comply with the following:

• Increase the sampling numbers and sampling costs;
• Require that paperwork, including the SWPPP and monitoring records, be reviewed and approved by a certified professional;
• Comply with enforceable Numeric Action Levels instead of using benchmark levels as guidance; and
• Implement additional operational changes and possibly install structural or treatment controls if Numeric Action Levels are exceeded.

Because these changes could significantly increase operational costs, industrial facility owners and operators should be aware of them now. Following the conclusion of the comprehensive effort to solicit feedback on the revised draft, the State Water Board has tentatively scheduled a final adoption hearing for early 2013. We encourage you to become familiar with, and to provide input on, these proposed changes while the Permit is still in draft form. For more information on the draft permit, and how to submit comments, please go the following state website:
http://waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/stormwater/industrial.shtml