Metro Water Services’ National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program will be formally recognized as the Best Phase 1 Organization by the Stormwater Congress at the Water Environment Federation’s Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference (WEFTEC) in Chicago, Illinois on September 23, 2019. The 2019 Water Environment Federation (WEF) National Municipal Stormwater and Green Infrastructure Awards Program selected Nashville’s NPDES program for the award and categorized the program as Gold Level in Innovation and Gold Level in Project Management.
Metro Water Services’ NPDES program implements specific pollution prevention programs designed to improve the quality of Metro’s waterways, particularly as it relates to improving the quality of discharges from Metro’s Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4). The NPDES program maintains MS4 permit compliance, while simultaneously achieving water quality improvements in every Metro stream. It is Metro’s long-term goal to reduce pollutant loadings from the MS4 as much as possible so as to remove from the federal 303(d) list a majority of the streams that are indicated as being impaired by MS4 runoff. The Clean Water Act Section 303(d) is a list of waterways that are impaired and threatened by pollution.
Nashville’s NPDES program works with developers, construction sites, commercial businesses, and residents to educate about, inspect for compliance, and enforce Stormwater Management regulations.
About the Award
The National Municipal Stormwater and Green Infrastructure Awards program, developed and introduced in 2015 by the Water Environment Federation through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), was established to recognize high-performing regulated MS4s. Award winners meet and exceed regulatory requirements in innovative ways that are effective and cost-efficient.