National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)

Since the passage of the Clean Water Act (CWA), the quality of our Nation's waters has improved dramatically.  Despite this progress, however, degraded waterbodies still exist.  According to the 2000 National Water Quality 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 an effort to preserve, protect, and improve the Nation's water resources from polluted stormwater runoff, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been implementing the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) since 1990.  the effort began by regulating stormwater discharges from medium to large municipal storm systems that serve populations greater than 100,000; construction activity that disturbs over 5 acres of land area; and ten different categories of industrial activity.  In 1997 this effort expanded to include small municipal storm systems. 

 

Central Point is part of the NPDES Phase II program and implements a stormwater management program to reduce pollutants to the greatest extent practicable by implementing activities in partnership with Rogue Valley Sewer Services and other Rogue Valley Phase II communities.  Our program is required to include activities organized under six categories: public education and outreach; public participation/involvement; illicit discharge detection and elimination; construction site runoff control; post construction runoff control; and pollution prevention/good housekeeping.