In 1972, Congress passed the Clean Water Act which seeks to protect
and improve the quality of the nation's waters. Toward this end,
the Clean Water Act prohibits the discharge of any pollutants
to waters of the United States unless that discharge is authorized
by a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)
permit. Initial efforts under the NPDES program focused on reducing
pollutants in discharges of industrial process wastewater and
municipal sewage. As pollution control measures have been implemented,
it has become evident that diffuse sources or nonpoint sources
are also contributors of water quality degradation. In 1990,
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency published regulations
governing storm water discharges under the NPDES program. These
regulations established requirements for permitting storm water
discharges associated with certain types of industrial activities
and municipal areas with a population over 100,000.
The urbanized area of Pima County directly surrounding the City
of Tucson, as well as the City itself, have been issued municipal
storm water discharge permits. In order to assure that the quality
of storm water discharges from our municipal storm sewer system
is managed to the maximum extent practicable, Pima County has
developed a Storm Water Management Program that includes best
management practices, public education and storm water monitoring.
On December 5, 2002, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
delegated the NPDES permitting program to the Arizona Department
of Environmental Quality (ADEQ). The new State-run program is
called the Arizona
Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (AZPDES) program. The AZPDES storm
water program regulates industrial
and construction storm water discharge activities.
