The
Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) of 1972 (33
U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) as amended by the
Clean Water Act
(CWA) of 1977 set the basic structure for regulating the discharge of
pollutants to our Nation’s waters. The CWA gave the
Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) authority to set effluent standards for all point-source industries,
including the offshore oil and gas extraction industry. It is unlawful to
discharge any pollutants unless a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (NPDES) permit is obtained.
The NPDES permits for projects in Alaska are issued by
EPA Region X. The EPA has
issued general NPDES permits for oil and gas activities in the Cook Inlet
and for the Arctic (Beaufort Sea and Chukchi Sea). An individual permit
has been issued for the Northstar development project. Information on
EPA NPDES permits for Alaska is available on the EPA website.
NPDES permits require monitoring discharges, collecting
and analyzing samples, record keeping and reporting to the EPA. The EPA
maintains a
compliance website with information on inspections and enforcement
actions.
Because there is so little OCS activity in Alaska, the
Alaska Region does not have a formal agreement with EPA for conducting
NPDES compliance inspections. If an inspector identifies any potential
NPDES non-compliance during inspections of an OCS activity the Alaska
Region will notify EPA.
