New stormwater permit on tap

Months of discussions between industry, environmental groups and state and federal governments have resulted in changes to stormwater runoff permits that will impact industry in Georgia.

The revised permit being proposed, in the public input phase until May 8, would lead to tighter monitoring regulations on industrial stormwater release.

It also calls for better public access to stormwater pollution prevention plans.

If approved, the permit will be active for five years.

The negotiations come in the wake of the Southern Environmental Law Center's appeal of a previous version of the permit that was issued in March 2005.

Jim Grode, staff attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center, said the primary concerns raised by the law center and environmental organizations were monitoring streams for the release of fecal coliform, a bacterium found in human and animal waste, and increasing public access to industrial stormwater pollution prevention plans.

The new permit addresses both areas adequately, Grode said.

The tighter monitoring provisions will primarily affect the poultry processing industry, while new reporting requirements will affect all industries, Grode said.

Deborah Sheppard, executive director of the Altamaha Riverkeeper, said the months of negotiations – from August 2005 to February 2006 – kept the dispute out of the courtroom.

Sheppard's organization was one of several environmental groups involved in the proceedings.

"If we didn't do the settlement, then the environmental perspective would literally be in a legal case against the industrial perspective," Sheppard said.