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Contact
Information
Telephone
(845) 677-8011 ext 3
Fax
(845) 677-8354
Address
2715 Rt 44, Suite 3
Millbrook, NY 12545
E-mail
Info
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Stormwater
is water from rain or melting snow that does not soak into the ground, but runs
off. It flows
from rooftops, over paved areas, bare soil and sloped lawns, while picking up a
variety of materials on the way. As it flows, stormwater runoff collects
and transports soil, pet waste, salt, pesticides, fertilizer, oil, debris and
other potential pollutants. The quality of runoff is affected by a variety
of factors and depends on the season, local weather, geography and activities
across the landscape. Polluted runoff, also called nonpoint source
pollution, degrades our lakes, streams, wetlands and Hudson River.
We have been
working with the farming community for a number of years to develop best
management practices, such as nutrient management programs, to help them keep
their runoff from entering streams and lakes, but now new Phase II stormwater
regulations passed down from the United States Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC)
are forcing municipalities to take a hard look at stormwater management.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has a number
of pages in its web site that help to explain Phase II and what is required, as
well as provide resources to help with compliance. We find these most
informative.
·
DEC Stormwater Main Page
·
Phase II Stormwater Requirements—Also
gives a list and map of MS4s
·
General Permits and Information
for Construction as well as MS4s
The Federal Environmental Protection Agency also has a great deal of
information.
· Their
Stormwater Main Page
A series of
Fact Sheets
that clearly and concisely outline Phase II and its requirements.
Phase II? I Didn’t Even Know There Was A Phase I !”
Phase I and II are part of the EPA’s effort to enforce the Clean Water Act.
In 1990, Phase I was instituted and used the National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System (NPDES) permit system to manage municipal separate storm
sewer systems (MS4)
that serve 100,000 people or more, runoff from construction sites five acres in
size or larger, and ten specific industrial operations. Phase II is the
next step, which expands the program to do two things: require smaller
construction sites to implement programs and management practices to prevent
polluted stormwater runoff, as well as require smaller MS4s to be regulated and
implement six minimum control measures for the management of stormwater.
[ Home ] [ MS4 ] [ Phase II ] [ Construction ] [ Stormwater Publication ]
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