Introduction
The City’s stormwater management priorities were established in 1995 under the first NPDES Municipal Stormwater Permit and remain essential elements of the SWMP today.
The City’s priorities include the following:
Protect the health, safety and welfare of the public;
Manage stormwater to minimize flooding and erosion;
Manage stormwater to minimize contact with contaminants;
Mitigate the impacts of increased runoff due to urbanization;
Manage runoff from developed properties and those being developed
Correct or mitigate existing water quality problems; and
Restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the receiving waters in the City to protect beneficial uses.
The Permit regulates the discharge of stormwater to surface waters and groundwater’s of the state from Tacoma’s Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4). The Permit is designed to protect and improve the water quality of receiving waters by requiring the City of Tacoma (City) to implement a variety of stormwater management activities.
Permits are required by federal and state laws and regulations.
Federal Laws and Regulations
The Clean Water Act is a United Stated federal law that regulates the discharges of pollutants into waterbodies. The objective of the Clean Water Act is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Nation’s waters.
The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of general and permanent rules and regulations developed by federal government of the United States. Title 40 contains environmental regulations promulgated by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Subchapter D is dedicated to Water Programs and includes Part 122 – EPA Administered Permit Programs: The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System. 40 CFR 122.26 applies to stormwater discharges.
State Laws and Regulations
In Washington, the Washington State Department of Ecology maintains responsibility of implementation of enforcement of the NPDES Permits (and thus the Clean Water Act and 40 CFR 122). Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 90.48 – Water Pollution Control is the state law similar to the federal Clean Water Act. Similar to the CFR, Washington State maintains the Washington Administrative Code. The NPDES Permits are codified under WAC 173-226.
The Annual Report to be submitted by March 31, 2023 has a reporting period of January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023.
The 2019‑2024 Permit includes the following significant changes from the previous Permit:
Begin to collect size and material for all known MS4 outfalls during normal course of business and complete mapping of all known connections from the MS4 to a privately- owned stormwater system (S5.C.2.b.i,ii.);
Update the City Stormwater Management Manual (SWMM), requirements and technical standards to include requirements equivalent to the 2019 Ecology SWMM for Western Washington (S5.C.5.b.) and the 2019 Permit;
Implement a Stormwater Planning program to inform and assist in the development of policies and strategies as water quality management tools to protect receiving waters (S5.C.6). The requirements of this new section will include convening an interdisciplinary team, coordination with long-range plan updates and continued requirements for low impact development codes (S6.C.6.a,b.);
Achieve 300 Structural Stormwater Control (SSC) Program Points for completing actions and activities that address impacts that are not adequately controlled by the other required actions of the SWMP. SSC Program Points are calculated as prescribed in the Permit Appendix 12. (S5.C.7);
Provide data for all illicit discharges, spills and illicit connections to include all the information specified in Appendix 14 of the Permit (S5.C.9.g.); and
Update Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans for City facilities to include more detailed and site-specific information. Updates are required to be completed by December 31, 2022. (S5.C.10.g)
Follow social marketing practices and methods to develop a behavior change campaign that is tailored to the Permittee’s community (S5.C.11.a.ii).
To comply with the Permit and document updates to the City’s SWMP, the SWMP Plan has been revised. The SWMP Plan included a public participation process and internal review to provide valuable input and oversight to the program. The revised SWMP Plan guides the City’s activities during the permit term from August 1, 2019 through July 31, 2024.
The City will continue to provide annual reports to Ecology to document its Stormwater Management Program. Environmental Services (ES) Environmental Programs Group is responsible for preparing the annual report and ensuring overall NPDES permit compliance.
Secondary Permittees within the City of Tacoma
Metro Parks Tacoma, Tacoma Community College and Port of Tacoma are Secondary Permittees under the Permit with independent coverage for discharges from small municipal separate storm sewers contained on their property. Secondary Permittees have different requirements under the Permits and are required to provide their own plans including public education and outreach, public involvement and participation, illicit discharge detection and elimination, construction site runoff controls, good housekeeping and source control requirements for operations and maintenance activities. The City will continue to coordinate SWMP activities with Secondary Permittees.
Tacoma’s Stormwater Management Utility
The City’s SWMP Plan is administered by the Environmental Services Science and Engineering Division, however, the Permit applies to all departments and divisions of the City. ES coordinates with all departments and divisions throughout the City to ensure that all permit requirements are implemented. Staffing and budget are designed to meet the SWMP Plan goals and objectives. Work includes:
Inspecting business activities and educating businesses about BMPs to reduce stormwater impacts;
Collecting and evaluating stormwater and sediment quality monitoring data;
Implementing a source control and illicit discharge screening program throughout the City’s nine watersheds;
Mapping, maintaining and cleaning the City’s stormwater system that includes approximately 500 miles of storm pipe, 10,000 manholes, over 19,000 catch basins, four pump stations, and over 500 stormwater treatment and flow control facilities;
Managing the City’s tree canopy cover and open spaces to maximize stormwater benefits;
Rehabilitating and replacing aging infrastructure and improving the storm system with capital projects to address identified flooding, flow control and water quality issues;
Providing public education to target audiences ranging from school-age children and homeowners to property managers and builders about the impacts of polluted runoff and practices to reduce those impacts;
Coordinating Tacoma's SWMP Plan activities regionally through watershed councils, Lead Entities, NPDES permitee committees and other groups;
Permitting and inspecting new and redevelopment construction projects to ensure compliance with stormwater requirements including erosion control, maximizing onsite management, use of LID, stormwater treatment, flow control, wetlands protection and ongoing maintenance; and
Providing staff training to ensure the City activities and operations minimize impacts to stormwater and receiving waters.