Puget Sound Nutrient General Permit
Discharges of excess nutrients — particularly nitrogen — to the Puget Sound from public domestic wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are contributing to existing low oxygen levels in the Puget Sound and the rest of the Salish Sea. The Clean Water Act and federal rules require WWTPs that contribute to water quality impairments, by discharging excess nutrients, take action to prevent this pollution. The Puget Sound Nutrient General Permit is designed to address excess nutrients from the identified 58 domestic wastewater facilities discharging to the Washington Salish Sea.
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2025 permit reissuance
In February 2025, the Pollution Control Hearings Board (PCHB) invalidated the Puget Sound Nutrient General Permit "insofar as it is mandatory" and remanded the permit back to Ecology for further action. In April 2025, we sent a letter to permittees terminating their coverage and providing an overview of possible next steps.
We consider the general permit to be an appropriate tool for our long-term strategy to reduce nitrogen discharges and improve water quality in the Sound. So, we are proposing to reissue the permit with changes to allow facilities to opt in and apply for permit coverage. If a facility does not opt in to the general permit, Ecology will incorporate nutrient reduction requirements into the facility's individual permit, which will have a separate formal public process.
We invite comments on the draft general permit document beginning at 9 a.m. on June 18, 2025. By request, we are extending the comment period to 11:59 p.m. on Aug. 27, 2025. A formal announcement was published in the Washington State Register on June 18, 2025. We also published a news release announcing the comment period.
- Draft general permit
- Redline version of the draft permit
- Fact sheet for the draft 2025 General Permit
- Proposed Application for Coverage: Notice of Intent (NOI)
Public involvement
Written comments may be submitted online or through the mail. Spoken comments may be submitted at a public hearing. Written comments will receive the same consideration as spoken testimony.
Ways to comment
- Submit comments online (preferred)
- By U.S. mail (postmarked by Aug. 27, 2025)
William Weaver
WA Department of Ecology
PO Box 47696
Olympia, WA 98504-7696 - At our public hearings, listed below
Public meetings and hearing
In July we held two public meetings to explain the changes to the draft general permit and to answer questions prior to the formal public hearing. The public informational presentation is available for viewing as a PDF. The public hearing began immediately following the presentation on July 22, 2025 and concluded when public testimony was finished. During the hearing, the public was invited to give spoken testimony and share any written comments.
- Informational Presentation and Q&A
10 a.m. – Tuesday, July 1, 2025
- Informational Presentation, Q&A, and Public Hearing
5:30 p.m. – Tuesday, July 22, 2025
Next steps
After the comment period closes, we will review and consider all comments received. Then, we will publish a Response to Comments as an appendix to the fact sheet and make a final decision on permit issuance. We expect to make a decision on the final general permit in Fall/Winter 2025.
Timeline
June 18 to Aug. 27, 2025: Formal public comment period on the draft general permit
July 1, 2025: Online informational presentation
July 22, 2025: Online informational presentation and public hearing
Fall/Winter 2025: Ecology makes a decision on issuing the final general permit
Winter 2025-26: Final permit will be effective 30 days after issuance, voluntary permit application period
The Permit covers 58 wastewater facilities that discharge to Puget Sound. Seven of those facilities are dominant loaders contributing over 80% of the nutrients.
Brief history of the general permit
We held a public process to decide if we should use a general permit or individual permits to control nutrients. In January 2020, with support, we announced our decision to move forward with developing a draft Nutrient General Permit. During 2020, we worked with the General Permit Advisory Committee to develop recommendations for permit conditions. We held public reviews of a preliminary draft, then in Summer 2021 we developed a formal draft, held another comment period, and finalized the permit in December 2021. Several parties appealed the permit (see "Appeals of the general permit" below).
More permit information
Tricia Miller
tricia.miller@ecy.wa.gov
206-594-0167
Mail forms to:
Washington State Department of Ecology
Attn: WQ Puget Sound Nutrient Permit Coordinator
Northwest Region Office
PO Box 330316
Shoreline, WA 98133-9716
Carey Cholski
carey.cholski@ecy.wa.gov
360-407-6279
Mail forms to:
Washington State Department of Ecology
Attn: WQ Puget Sound Nutrient Permit Coordinator
Southwest Regional Office
P.O. Box 47775
Olympia WA 98504-7775
Related links
Contact information
William Weaver, Ph.D., P.E.
Senior Environmental Engineer
william.weaver@ecy.wa.gov
360-870-7424