EPA's 2017 construction stormwater permit takes effect

Dive Brief:

The U.S. Office of Management and Budget approved the Environmental Protection Agency's 2017 Construction Stormwater Permit, effective Feb. 16, 2017, according to The National Law Review.
The prior version of the permit was issued in 2012 and expired on Feb. 15, allowing the EPA to add new requirements including a ban on non-stormwater discharges containing hazardous elements, changes to technology-based effluent erosion-control constraints and new requirements for permitting. The permit also requires joint and shared liability for compliance.
The five-year permit authorizes stormwater discharges related to construction projects disrupting one or more acres as well as discharges on smaller sites within a larger development plan. Applicable in the District of Columbia, Idaho, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New Mexico, the permit could be a model for other states' stormwater discharge requirements under the federal CWA.

Dive Insight:

Stormwater discharge requirements have long been a point of contention for industry groups like the National Association of Home Builders, which have claimed the regulations complicate projects by making it difficult to secure the proper permits while adding cost and extending timelines. In February, the NAHB filed a petition to review the permit's reach, to which the federal government has yet to issue a response, according to The National Law Review.

Still, the fate of the permit and other similar regulations could be in flux under the guidance of the Trump administration. President Donald Trump, who appealed to those in the industry by campaigning on promises of loosened regulations, has already repealed the Department of Labor's Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Act and is expected to sign legislation headed to his desk overturning the Volks rule that extended OSHA's recordkeeping enforcement authority from six months to five years.

Industry observers have their eye on whether Congress will also attempt to repeal the OSHA's electronic recordkeeping rule as well as the final silica rule handed down last March.

A May 2016 report from the NAHB found that regulatory costs account for roughly 24.3% of a home's selling price. While that figure was roughly on par with 2011 projections, home prices rose nearly 30% during that time. The costs focus on lot development as well as building permitting and implementing worker safety rules.

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