NPDES: A Primer

A recent article in the Post by one of our favorite reporters, Miranda Spivack, focused on the story of how one school system, the Montgomery County Public School system (MCPS), Maryland, was ‘surprised’ that they now have to follow one law. As an outlaw agency they are not used to obeying any laws. So this is a new one on them. They appear flummoxed. What to do? Well of course the first thing to do, get an extra $500,000 from the Montgomery County County Council. Unclear what they will be doing with that money, but the MCPS higher-ups can always use an extra $0.5MILLION in taxpayer dollars. And the council, as we know, is always happy to oblige. Will we see follow-up? Let’s ‘wait’ and see.

What law do they have to follow? They have to conform to the NPDES Permit issued by the EPA under the Clean Water Act of 1972. The permit regulates the discharge of pollutants.

What is NPDES? NDPES stands for ‘National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System.’ That means that, thanks to the Clean Water Act of 1972 (33 U.S.C. §1251 et seq.), MCPS has to make sure that the runoff they create with their acres and acres of asphalt parking lots, access roads, buildings, and artificial turf fields, meets the NPDES Permit. Because every time it rains, water flows across artificial surfaces like synthetic turf and asphalt, carrying pollutants with it, into our county streams, which as we all know, flow into rivers, the Chesapeake Bay, and the oceans of our planet.

If you aren’t sure how this works, take 2 pitchers of water. Pour one onto your grass lawn. Pour the other one onto a piece of plastic stretched across the sidewalk. Notice how the grass immediately absorbs the water? And what happens to the water you poured over the plastic? Absorbed? Nope. That’s runoff. To make this experiment more realistic, sprinkle some carcinogen-laden tire crumbs over the experiment area. Oh wait, that's for another story...

The Clean Water Act allows the Federal government to regulate the discharge of pollutants in these United States. That includes Montgomery County, Maryland. And no, folks, adding ‘solar panels’ and ‘encouraging recycling’ doesn’t do much to mitigate pollutant runoff.

According to the EPA website, “The CWA requires anyone who wants to discharge pollutants to first obtain an NPDES permit, or else that discharge will be considered illegal.” Yes, folks, “illegal.” That is not a word that MCPS usually hears. So let’s hope, for the very first time, they will comply with the law. I guess there’s a first for everything.

This is from the EPA website:

Water pollution degrades surface waters making them unsafe for drinking, fishing, swimming, and other activities. As authorized by the Clean Water Act, the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program controls water pollution by regulating point sources that discharge pollutants into waters of the United States. Point sources are discrete conveyances such as pipes or man-made ditches. Individual homes that are connected to a municipal system, use a septic system, or do not have a surface discharge do not need an NPDES permit; however, industrial, municipal, and other facilities must obtain permits if their discharges go directly to surface waters. In most cases, the NPDES permit program is administered by authorized states. Since its introduction in 1972, the NPDES permit program is responsible for significant improvements to our Nation's water quality.

Do you have tips on artificial turf and its environmental effects? Email them to artificialturftips@yahoo.com.