2020 MS4 Annual Report Meeting

Date: May 27, 2021

Presenters:

Pinar Balci, PhD, Assistant Commissioner

S. Shree Dorestant, DM, SWMP Coordinator

Bureau of Environmental Planning and Analysis

Department of Environmental Protection

Stormwater Management Program (SWMP) Reporting

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Stormwater runoff occurs when rain, snow, sleet, and other precipitation land on impervious surfaces like rooftops, parking lots, streets, sidewalks.

Stormwater Runoff in NYC

Approximately 63% of NYC is impervious area

Eventually, this stormwater runoff will reach a catch basin and enter the sewer system.

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NYC Sewer Systems

New York City has two types of sewer systems

Combined Sewer System – both wastewater and stormwater are carried by a single pipe to a wastewater resource recovery facility (WRRF).

Separate Storm Sewer System- wastewater is carried by one pipe to the WRRF and stormwater is carried by a separate pipe directly to local waterbodies.

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NYC MS4

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The City estimates the MS4 area to be:

49.5% impervious,

4.1% semi-pervious,

45.0% pervious, and

1.4% open waters.

The MS4 serves much of Staten Island, South Brooklyn, Southeast Queens, and many City-owned parks.

An estimated 30 - 40% of NYC is served by the City’s MS4.

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Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Permit (MS4 Permit)

• Effective Date: August 1, 2015

• Duration: renewal every 5 years

• Issued By: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) as part of the NYS Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (SPDES).

• Permit Intent: to require the City to implement measures to reduce pollution in stormwater runoff.

• Permit Requirement: develop a Stormwater Management Program (SWMP).

o NYC submitted SWMP Plan to NYSDEC on August 1, 2018.

o NYC received approval of SWMP Plan on March 14, 2019.

Stormwater Management Program (SWMP) Plan

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Chapter 1: Legal

Authority and Program

Administration

Chapter 2: Public

Education and Outreach

Chapter 3: Public

Involvement and

Participation

Chapter 4: Mapping

Chapter 5: Illicit

Discharge Detection and

Elimination

Chapter 6: Construction

and Post-Construction

Chapter 7: Pollution

Prevention/Good

Housekeeping

Chapter 8: Industrial and Commercial Stormwater

Sources

Chapter 9: Control of

Floatable and Settleable Trash

and Debris

Chapter 10: Monitoring and

Assessment Program

Chapter 11: Special

Conditions for Impaired Waters

Chapter 12: Recordkeeping and Reporting

Legal Authority and Program Administration

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There are 14 City Agencies with responsibilities under the MS4 Permit.

DEP coordinates program administration.

Planned Activities:

• MS4 Permit Renewal (2020 – 2025)

o The 2015 MS4 Permit expired on July 31, 2020. As

required by regulations (6 NYCRR 750-1.16(a)) and the

permit (Part IV.O), the City submitted its permit renewal

application 180 days prior to the expiration date.

o The 2015 permit remains in effect pending final issuance

of the renewal permit. Throughout 2020, the City

continued to implement the approved SWMP while

negotiating the renewal permit with NYSDEC.

Agencies with MS4 Permit ObligationsDepartment of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS)Department of City Planning (DCP)Department of Design and Construction (DDC)Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)Department of Buildings (DOB)Department of Correction (DOC)Department of Education (DOE)Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH)Department of Transportation (DOT)Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR)Department of Sanitation (DSNY)Fire Department (FDNY)Police Department (NYPD)Small Business Services (SBS)

CollaboratorsNYC Law Department (LAW)Economic Development Corporation (EDC)Mayor’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB)Mayor’s Office of Recovery and Resiliency (ORR)

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Program Highlights:

• Implemented 15 programs that included over 700 events with more than 18,000 participants.

o Visitor Center at Newtown Creek – Sewer Exhibit

o Professional Learning Opportunities

o Winter Jam

o Training and Outreach Strategies

o “Trash It, Don’t Flush It” and Grease Outreach

Planned Activities:

• Continue implementing various initiatives.

• Implement new stewardship program, “Harbor Protectors,” to include catch basin cleaning, rain garden care, and shoreline cleanup.

Public Education and Outreach

9Winter Jam – Enviroscape (Taken Pre-COVID-19)

10 Public Education and Outreach

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DEP – Professional Learning Opportunities (virtual and in-person).

Wastewater Resource Recovery in NYC, Professional Learning Opportunity – 2020 (Taken Pre-COVID-19)

Public Involvement and Participation

During 2020, the City shifted most of its meetings to virtual platforms due to constraints imposed by COVID-19.

Program Highlights:

• DEP hosted, in partnership with other City agencies:

o Outreach meetings for the public and key stakeholders on the to-be-proposed Unified Stormwater Rule (USWR).

o Community Right-to-Know Workshops held citywide during the beginning of the year (i.e., January and February).

Planned Activities:

• Continue engagement with local stakeholder groups and active participation in community events, as feasible.

• Continue expanding partnerships and providing educational information and webinars for construction and post-construction stormwater controls.

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The interactive map has been updated and is available to the public at:www.nyc.gov/dep/ms4map.

Program Highlights: • Submitted MS4 Map and published update by

the due date of August 1, 2020.

Planned Activities:• Update map every five years from EDP.

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Mapping

Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination

Program Highlights:

• Detected 641 illicit discharges citywide.

• Eliminated 630 illicit discharges citywide.

o The numbers above represent all types of illicit discharges, including illegal connections,

illegal dumping, spills, etc.

• Inventoried approximately 4% of MS4 outfalls in Outfall Reconnaissance inventory (ORI)

through the Shoreline Survey.

• Continued Alley Creek drone pilot project.

• Started Microbial Source Tracking (MST) study as a demo with the USGS.

Planned Activities:

• Complete drone survey that incorporates the lessons learned in 2019-2020.

• Continue partnership with the USGS for a Microbial Source Tracking Study for Alley Creek.

Shoreline Survey

Sentinel Monitoring

Emergency Response

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311

Harbor Survey

Municipal Facilities

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DEP uses a drone to identify temperature

differences in Alley Creek.

Alley Creek Drone Flyover

Construction/Post-Construction

Program Highlights: • Reviewed 96 SWPPPs• 16 SWPPPS approved with post-construction

stormwater management facilities• 22 SWPPPs approved without post-construction

stormwater management facilities• Issued 16 Stormwater Construction Permits, 15

activePlanned Activities:

• Program expected to expand to include projects that disturb 20,000 sf or more of soil or create 5000 sf or more of impervious surface.

• Continue outreach efforts to construction community.• Publish draft of the Unified Stormwater Rule (USWR)

for public review via CAPA rulemaking process.15

Stormwater Construction Inspectors look at temporary stabilization in ROW.

Construction Inspections

Program Highlights:• Assessed 69 municipal facilities and one off-

site operation (winter pavement maintenance).

• Trained over 6,000 municipal employees on PP/GH.

• Evaluated 54 planned municipal upgrade projects for potential GI opportunities.

• Completed construction of 2 GI projects during planned municipal upgrades.

Planned Activities:• Continue to assess sites, refine inventory and

offer trainings.

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Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping for Municipal Operations and Facilities

NYPD cleaning stormwater assets

The City evaluated 54 Green

Infrastructure opportunities on

municipal properties in the MS4 area.

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Randall’s Island – 5 borough parking lot

Program Highlights:

• Inspected 5 permitted facilities

• Assessed 873 unpermitted facilities

o In the process of referring 88 unpermitted facilities to NYSDEC for SPDES coverage (MSGP coverage including possible “no exposure” waiver or an individual SPDES permit).

o 526 inventory listings deemed inactive or no industrial activity was observed – continued to see high business turnover; 259 in inventory did not meet criteria for SPDES permitting referral.

Planned Activities:

• Continue assessment of unpermitted facilities and inspection of

permitted facilities.

• Finalize SPDES assessment report referrals in early 2021. 19

Industrial/Commercial Stormwater Sources

Inspectors assessing unpermitted site observing COVID-19 protocols.

Control of Floatable and Settleable Trash and DebrisProgram Highlights:

• Key programs: swept over 250,000 miles of street (including arterial

highways), inspected over 12,000 catch basins, cleaned more than 6,000

catch basins, maintained 23 in-water floatables containment facilities.

• New regulations on plastic bags and alternative side parking went into

effect.

• Commenced loading rate study.

Planned Activities:

• Continue its key floatables control programs, including public education

and outreach, street sweeping, catch basin inspections, catch basin

cleaning, and boom and net controls.

• Continue selecting monitoring locations and begin collecting data for

Loading Rate Study.

20Loading Rate Study – Basket Installation

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The City commenced the Loading Rate

Study by fabricating and installing

monitoring equipment at selected locations.

Monitoring and Assessment of Controls

Program Highlights: • Collected a total of 18 water quality samples during

qualifying rain events.Planned Activities:• Continue tracking the weather to identify qualifying storm

events. • As conditions permit, DEP will continue collecting

samples for the MS4 Monitoring Program.Program Updates:• The City determined that it would extend sampling

beyond two years to continue striving to collect the originally stated 64 total samples for the program.

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MS4 Outfall in Staten Island

Outfall Borough Land UseTotal

Samples 2019

Total Samples

2020Flow Meter Data

HP-640 Bronx Mixed 3 3 Yes

HP-627 Bronx Open Space 3 2 Yes

TI-604 Queens Highway 3 2 Yes

TI-633 Queens High-Density Residential 3 3 Yes

TI-658 Queens Low-Density Residential 3 3 Yes

NCQ-632 Queens Industrial 3 3 Yes

OH-607* Brooklyn Industrial 1 0 No

OB-722 Staten Island Low-Density Residential 3 2 Yes

Monitoring and Assessment of Controls

Number of Samples Collected at Sampling Locations

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*OH-607 is no longer an active monitoring location and the City will not collect flow data from this site

Special Conditions for Impaired Waters

Coney Island Creek:

In 2020, Coney Island Creek was the only waterbody that met MS4 Permit requirements for additional/enhanced controls.

Additional Controls:

The City implemented additional programs to address the pathogens and floatables in Coney Island Creek.

• Pet Waste Management

• Catch Basin Marking

• Monitoring and Source Tracking

• Public Education and Outreach

• Green Infrastructure

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Coney Island Creek

Related Initiatives

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NYC Green Infrastructure Program has evolved over the

years, with a goal of reducing CSOs into the waterbodies of

NYC by using GI technologies to manage stormwater from

impervious surfaces.

The Rockaway Median Project is designed to construct

GI/Low Impact Development (LID) best management practices

to minimize major street and local area flooding using the

existing assets (i.e., medians) along the length of Beach 67th

Street in Far Rockaway, Queens, New York.

Southeast Queens and Cloudburst Pilot Projects DEP is

currently in design phases for two cloudburst pilot projects in

Southeast Queens.

Corporate Commons Three Green Roof Construction, Staten Island©Brooklyn Grange Rooftop Farm

Jamaica Bay CSO Long Term Control Plan (LTCP) has been developed in an effort to better understand and identify cost-

effective and implementable projects to reduce CSO impacts to meet water quality standards (WQS) within Jamaica Bay and

its tributaries. The plan is currently under review with DEC.

Related Initiatives

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Rendering of Rockaway

Median Project.

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• Goal: Align on-site stormwater requirements across MS4 and CSS areas and create framework for multi-purpose practices.

• The 'Rule' unifies several stormwater related goals/rules across city and state agencies including:

o Water Quality, MS4 areas – retain and/or treat stormwater to reduce pollutants in runoff

o Water Quality, CSS areas – retain and/or detain stormwater to reduce CSO volume and occurrence

o Sewer Operations – detain or remove stormwater to maintain optimal stormwater quantity and flow rates in the sewer system

o Building/Site Drainage – adequately convey on-site stormwater to reduce local flooding

o Increase in Green Space – align with goals of 2019 Climate Mobilization Act

Unified Stormwater Rule (USWR)

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Admiral’s Row Green Roof – BrooklynPhoto Credit – Steiner Studios

Unified Stormwater Rule (USWR)

• March 2020: Interagency technical workshops completed.

• August 2020: City Council Hearing and Passage of Intro No. 1851 – authorizing legislation.

• May 2021: Interagency review.

• Summer 2021: Draft Rule and Draft NYC Stormwater Manual Available for Public Review and

Comment through the Citywide Administrative Procedure Act (CAPA) Process.

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For more information, visit our website: nyc.gov/dep/ms4If you have questions or feedback, please contact the MS4 Team at:

ms4@dep.nyc.gov