What is the Individual Permit for Storm Water?

The Permit - NPDES No. NM0030759 - was issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6, on September 30, 2010 to Los Alamos National Security, LLC and the U.S. Department of Energy (the Permittees). The Individual Permit became effective on November 1, 2010.

The Permit contains nonnumeric technology-based effluent limitations, coupled with a comprehensive, coordinated inspection and monitoring program, to minimize pollutants in the Permittees’ storm water discharges associated with historical industrial activities from specified SWMUs and AOCs. The Permittees are required to implement site-specific control measures (including best management practices [BMPs]) to address the nonnumeric technology-based effluent limits, as necessary, to minimize pollutants in their storm water discharges.

The Permit establishes target action levels (TALs) that are equivalent to New Mexico State water-quality criteria. These TALs are used as benchmarks to determine the effectiveness of control measures implemented under the Permit. That is, confirmation monitoring sample results for an SMA are compared with applicable TALs. If one or more confirmation monitoring result exceeds a TAL, the Permittees must take corrective action. The Permit requires that the Permittees either certify to EPA completion of corrective action at each Site by a specific deadline or seek to place individual Sites into alternative compliance, whereby completion of corrective action will be accomplished on a case-by-case basis pursuant to an individually tailored compliance schedule determined by EPA.