Carroll County has settled alleged violations of regulations designed to protect AmericaÂs waterways from polluted storm water runoff, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced. In an administrative consent agreement with EPA, Carroll County has agreed to pay a $40,000 civil penalty to settle alleged Clean Water Act violations of the CountyÂs general CWA national pollution discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit for stormwater discharges from the CountyÂs municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4).
EPAÂs stormwater regulations were intended to control pollution from diffuse sources, such as runoff from agricultural sites, urban areas, construction sites, land disposal and resource extraction, which were not considered point sources of pollution but nevertheless contributed to water quality impairment. Runoff from these diffuse sources flow into stormwater collection systems, which discharge into rivers and streams without first going through a publically owned sewage treatment plant. EPAÂs stormwater regulations require municipalities to obtain NPDES permits for their MS4s, and to develop a stormwater control program for their stormwater collection systems in order to reduce the pollutants entering the collection systems. For more information about EPA=s storm water program, visit http://www.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater
EPA cited Carroll County for several failures in the administration of its stormwater collection system program. EPA found that