About Stormwater Permitting

Background and Regulatory Authority

In an effort to preserve, protect, and improve the nation's water resources from polluted stormwater runoff, the RIDEM has developed a Stormwater Program as required by the Clean Water Act (CWA) and RI State Law.

RIDEM’s Stormwater Program addresses requirements from EPA’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), and Underground Injection Control (UIC) program under the Clean Water Act, as well as the requirements of the Freshwater Wetlands Regulations, the Water Quality Regulations, the RIPDES Regulations, the Groundwater Discharge Regulations and the RI Stormwater Management, Design, and Installation Rules. The permitting mechanisms are designed to meet the above regulations and laws in order to prevent and minimize stormwater runoff from washing harmful pollutants into groundwater, wetlands, coastal waters, and surface waters such as streams, rivers, lakes, and ponds.

To provide some clarity, potential sources of polluted stormwater runoff are grouped and permitted into 3 categories: municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s), construction activities, and industrial activities.

Primary Resources