Municipal stormwater permit reissuance

• Draft Eastern WA Permit
  • Draft EWA Permit - redline version
• APPENDIX 1 Minimum Technical Requirements for Stormwater Management at New Development and Redevelopment Sites
  • EWA App 1 - redline version
• APPENDIX 2 Total Maximum Daily Load Requirements
• APPENDIX 3 Annual Report Questions for Cities, Towns and Counties
• APPENDIX 4 Annual Report Questions for Secondary Permittees
• APPENDIX 5 Annual Report Questions for New Permittees
• APPENDIX 6 Street Waste Disposal
• APPENDIX 7 IDDE Reporting Data and Format
  • IDDE Schema Redline version
• APPENDIX 8 Annual Contribution Amounts for Regional Monitoring to Stormwater Action Monitoring Collective Funds
• APPENDIX 9 Stormwater Discharge Monitoring
• APPENDIX 10 Equivalent Programs for Runoff Controls for New and Redevelopment and Construction Sites

• Draft Phase I Permit
  • Draft PH I Permit - Redline version
• APPENDIX 1. Minimum Technical Requirements for New Development and Redevelopment
  • pApp 1. Redline version
• APPENDIX 2. Total Maximum Daily Load Requirements
• APPENDIX 3. Annual Report Questions for Phase I Cities and Counties
• APPENDIX 4. Annual Report Questions for Secondary Permittees
• APPENDIX 5. Annual Report Questions for the Port of Seattle and the Port of Tacoma
• APPENDIX 6. Street Waste Disposal
• APPENDIX 7. Determining Construction Site Sediment Damage Potential
• APPENDIX 8. Businesses and Activities that are Potential Sources of Pollutants
• APPENDIX 9. Stormwater Discharge Monitoring
• APPENDIX 10. Equivalent Programs for Runoff Controls for New and Redevelopment and Construction Sites
• APPENDIX 11. Annual Contribution Amounts to Stormwater Action Monitoring Collective Funds
• APPENDIX 12. Stormwater Management for Existing Development
  • Redline version of App 12
• Appendix 13. Adaptive Management Requirements
• Appendix 14. IDDE Reporting Data and Format
  • Redline version of IDDE schema

• Draft WWA Phase II Permit
  • Draft WWA PH II - redline version
• APPENDIX 1. Minimum Technical Requirements for New Development and Redevelopment
  • Draft APP 1 - redline version
• APPENDIX 2. Total Maximum Daily Load Requirements
• APPENDIX 3. Annual Report Questions for Cities, Towns and Counties
• APPENDIX 4. Annual Report Questions for Secondary Permittees
• APPENDIX 5. Annual Report Questions for New Permittees
• APPENDIX 6. Street Waste Disposal
• APPENDIX 7. Determining Construction Site Damage Transport Potential
• APPENDIX 8. Businesses and activities that are potential sources of pollutants
• APPENDIX 9. Stormwater Discharge Monitoring
• APPENDIX 10. Equivalent programs for runoff controls for new and redevelopment and construction sites
• APPENDIX 11. Annual contribution amounts to Stormwater Action Monitoring Collective Funds
• APPENDIX 12. Stormwater Management for Existing Development
• Appendix 13. IDDE Reporting Data and Format
  • Redline version of IDDE schema
• Appendix 14 Stormwater Management Action Plan Requirements for New Permittees

Stormwater Management Action Planning (SMAP) Guidance

Phase II New Permittee Evaluation Criteria

• Bubble City Criteria 
• UGA/Petition Criteria

Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) Templates

• SWMP Effectiveness Study
• Status and Trends for Lower Columbia
• Operational BMP
• Structural BMP
• Education and Outreach

Stormwater Discharge Monitoring SOPs

We accepted comments online, by mail, and during our public hearings from Aug. 16, 2023, to Nov. 10, 2023.

Comments are available for viewing through our online comment form.

We hosted six informational workshops and hearings to provide information about the proposed changes, answer questions, and allow the public to offer formal testimony.

Eastern WA Permit and SWMMEW focus 

• EWA Permit Presentation
• SWMMEW Presentation

Virtual hearings
Sept. 18, 2023, 9 a.m.
Nov. 6, 2023, 1:30 p.m.

In-Person hearing
Oct. 3, 2023, 9:30 a.m.
Moses Lake Civic Center

Western WA Permit & SWMMWW focus

• Permit Presentation
• SWMMWW Presentation

Virtual hearings
Sept. 18, 2023, 1:30 p.m.
Nov. 6, 2023, 9 a.m.

In-Person hearing
Oct. 17, 2023, 9:30 a.m.
Lacey Community Center

As part of our Phase I and Western Washington Phase II Municipal Stormwater Permit reissuance process, we asked for feedback on preliminary draft language proposed for two specific permit sections:

1. Phase I Permit: Preliminary Draft - Structural Stormwater Controls Program (S5.C.7) (version updated to correct typos on page 12 and in Table 3).
2. Western WA Phase II Permit: Preliminary Draft — New section — Stormwater Controls for Priority Developed Areas.

We accepted comments Feb. 23 – March 23, 2023. We will use the informal comments we received to develop the proposed language for the formal draft permits, anticipated for public comment in Summer 2023.

View comments submitted Winter 2023.

We hosted a virtual workshop on March 6, 2023. A copy of the workshop presentation is available online.

From Oct. 17 – Dec. 2, 2022, we held an informal comment period on several preliminary draft proposals for the permits and stormwater management manuals, both eastern and western (SWMM).

We prepared several preliminary draft proposals for a 45-day informal comment period. Some of the preliminary drafts are excerpts of permit sections and not a complete representation of all the permit requirements.  

See comments submitted Fall 2022.

We held a virtual workshop on the preliminary draft sections and Stormwater Management Manual updates on Nov. 7, 2022.

• Eastern WA Permit Focus - Prelim Draft & Manual virtual workshop
  • EWA Permit focused presentation
  • EWA SWMM presentation
• Western WA Permit focus & SWMM Updates virtual workshop
  • WWA Permit focused presentation
  • WWA SWMM presentation

Preliminary Draft Permit Topics

1. Standard outfall reporting — mapping
   1. Template 1: GIS database (zip file will open)
   2. Template 2: GIS Shapefile (zip file will open)
   3. Template 3: Excel 
2. Tree retention — stormwater planning or monitoring & assessment
3. PCBs — Education and outreach, IDDE, O&M
4. Sweeping — O&M
5. EWA Effectiveness Studies — Monitoring & assessment
6. Controlling runoff – Appendix 1
   1. Western WA Preliminary Draft App. 1
   2. Eastern WA Preliminary Draft Permit Construction/Post-Construction and App 1

Visit the Stormwater manual page for preliminary drafts available for comment.

We hosted listening sessions on June 6 and June 13, 2022, to prepare for the 2024 reissuance of the municipal stormwater permits (Phase I, Western WA and Eastern WA Phase II) and concurrent updates to the stormwater management manuals (SWMM), both eastern and western.

The listening sessions provided an opportunity to:

• Present our preliminary plans for the scope of changes for the 2024 permits and SWMMs.
• Share early input we received from our stakeholders.
• Hear further input on the proposed scope of changes.

Listening session presentations

• Eastern WA Permit focus presentation
• Western WA Permit focus presentation
• View the SWMM presentation: An Overview of Ecology’s Plans for the (Next) Stormwater Manual Updates

Policy Advisory Committee Meetings were held May – December 2022, details are posted on our SSC PAC project page.

The Structural Stormwater Control (SSC) Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) — focused on recommendations regarding the Phase I SSC program requirements, and also provided recommendations on a retrofit approach for 2024 WWA Phase II Permit. 

PAC Membership:

1. Rod Swanson, Clark County
2. Blair Scott, King County
3. Maureen Meehan, Pierce County
4. Bill Leif, Snohomish County
5. Merita Trohimovich, City of Tacoma
6. Ingrid Wertz, City of Seattle
7. Sheena Pietzold, WDOT
8. Jane Dewel, Port of Seattle
9. Jenny Gaus, City of Kirkland
10. Larry Schaffner, Thurston County
11. Jason Quigley, Skagit County
12. Ken Gill, City of Shelton
13. Peter Holte, City of Redmond
14. Alyssa Barton, Puget Soundkeeper
15. Aaron Clark, Stewardship Partners

We accepted early input until Feb. 25, 2022. 

Early input ideas help inform the scope of significant issues to be addressed in our reissuance of the 2024 permits. 

View early input comments

Comments on the formal draft 2019 permits

We held a public comment period on formal draft documents from Aug. 15 to Nov. 14, 2018. View the comments we received during the comment period.

We held a total of seven hearings and workshops across the state, including two webinars. During the workshops, we explained the proposed changes to the permits and answered questions. In Western Washington, the workshops also included information regarding the draft stormwater manual. The public hearings provided an opportunity for the public to give formal comments on the draft permit.