National Association of Conservation Districts

National Association of Conservation Districts

NACD's mission is to serve conservation districts by providing national leadership and a unified voice for natural resource conservation.

Stormwater Management

Storm Water Management - WAAccording to the 2000 National Water Quality Inventory (Inventory), a biennial summary of State surveys of water quality, approximately 40 percent of surveyed U.S. waterbodies are still impaired by pollution and do not meet water quality standards. A leading source of this impairment is polluted runoff. In fact, according to the Inventory, 13% of impaired rivers, 18%  of impaired lake acres and 32% of impaired estuaries are affected by urban/suburban stormwater runoff.

Phase I of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) stormwater program was promulgated in 1990 under the CWA. Phase I relies on National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit coverage to address stormwater runoff from: (1) “medium” and “large” municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s) generally serving populations of 100,000 or greater, (2) construction activity disturbing 5 acres of land or greater, and (3) ten categories of industrial activity.

The Stormwater Phase II Final Rule is the next step in EPA’s effort to preserve, protect, and improve the Nation’s water resources from polluted stormwater runoff. The Phase II program expands the Phase I program by requiring additional operators of MS4s in urbanized areas and operators of small construction sites (1-5 acres), through the use of NPDES permits, to implement programs and practices to control polluted stormwater runoff

- Above information cited from EPA Fact Sheet 833-F-00-001

Conservation districts across the nation have engaged in the state stormwater management programs, especially those already providing urban erosion and sediment control services. They are providing assistance to both the small construction sites and to operators of the smaller MS4s with their minimum control measures: public education and outreach, public participation/ involvement, illicit discharge detection and elimination, construction site runoff control, post-construction runoff control, and good housekeeping/pollution prevention for municipal operations. Many are promoting Low Impact Development practices as one of the tools for water quality and stormwater management.


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