Industrial Permit Overview

The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program is authorized by Section 402 of the Clean Water Act. NPDES permits are issued by the State of Indiana through the implementation of a memorandum of agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The purpose of the NPDES permit is to control the point source discharge of pollutants into the waters of the State such that the quality of the water of the State is maintained.

The following definitions are contained in Title 327 of the Indiana Administrative Code, Article 5, Rule 1.5:

• Point Source:
  • Any discernible, confined and discrete conveyance, including, but not limited to, any pipe, ditch, channel, tunnel, conduit, well, discrete fissure, container, rolling stock, concentrated animal feeding operation, landfill leachate collection system, vessel, or other floating craft from which pollutants are or may be discharged.
• Pollutant:
  • Includes, but is not necessarily limited to: dredged spoil, incinerator residue, filter backwash, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, solid wastes, toxic wastes, hazardous substances, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discarded equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt, and other industrial, municipal, and agricultural waste discharged into water.
• Waters of the State:
  • Such accumulations of water, surface and underground, natural and artificial, public and private, or parts thereof, which are wholly or partially within, flow through, or border upon Indiana. The term does not include any exempt isolated wetland; private pond, or an off-stream pond, reservoir, wetland, or other facility built for reduction or control of pollution or cooling of water before discharge. The term includes all waters of the United States, as defined in Section 502(7) of the federal Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1362(7)), that are located in Indiana.
    • If a facility discharges pollutants from any point source into waters of the state of Indiana, then the operator of that facility must apply for a NPDES permit from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM). The Industrial Permits Section issues permits covering discharges from all industries. Discharges from sewage treatment facilities are covered by the Municipal NPDES Permit Section while industrial facilities discharging wastewater into non- pretreatment program municipal sewage treatment systems are covered by the Industrial Permits Section.

Overview of the NPDES Permit

The NPDES permit controls point source discharges of pollutants into the Waters of the State through the establishment of effluent limitations and operating requirements. Generally, a NPDES permit is developed in the following manner:

1. Identification of all pollutants known or believed to be present in the effluent. Review of all existing information in the application and the IDEM files such as effluent quality data, current permit conditions, inspections, construction permits, and compliance status.
2. Determining applicability of U.S. EPA technology-based effluent guidelines for a discharger and the limits based on the guidelines. If U.S. EPA guidelines don't exist, development of effluent limits based on best professional judgement of the technology representing the best available treatment.
3. Determining water quality-based effluent limits for pollutants required by U.S. EPA guidelines as well as any additional pollutants believed to be present in the effluent. Water quality- based effluent limits take into account characteristics of the receiving stream such as the low flow value and hardness of the stream at the point of discharge.
4. The permit is drafted with the effluent limits based on either the technology-based limits or water quality-based effluent limits, whichever are more stringent.
5. The permit may contain a time schedule for the permittee to achieve compliance with effluent limits that were either not included in the previous permit or are more stringent than the effluent limits in the previous permit. This schedule of compliance must be requested and sufficiently justified by the permittee. This schedule of compliance is included in the permit only if it is determined that the permittee is unable to meet the limits at the time of permit issuance. If the permit applicant is a new facility or an existing facility that is recommencing its discharge, they are not allowed a schedule of compliance.

Prior to issuance, the permit is placed on public notice for a minimum of 30 days to receive comments from the public and the permittee. During the public notice period, any interested party, including the permittee, may request that a public hearing be held to allow those in attendance to present oral and written comments to the IDEM regarding the conditions of the permit.

The IDEM must respond to all oral and written comments prior to or in conjunction with the issuance of the final permit. If permit conditions are significantly changed in response to the comments, the permit may be placed on public notice for another 30-day period with the opportunity for a public hearing. There is no limit on the number of times that a permit may need to be public noticed prior to issuance.

After permit conditions are finalized, the permit is issued. Any affected party may request an adjudication of the permit including a stay of any contested permit condition within 18 days of permit issuance. If adjudication is not requested within 18 days, the permit becomes effective. The permit can be effective for no more than five years unless the permittee applies for a renewal of their NPDES permit prior to the expiration date of their existing permit in which case the existing permit is automatically extended until the effective date of a new permit.