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AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY

Meeting Date:

04/13/2026

Meeting Type:

Work Session

Staff Contact/Dept:

Meghan Murphy/Environmental Services Division

S P R I N G F I E L D
C I T Y C O U N C I L

Staff Phone No:

541-744-3385

Estimated Time:

20 Minutes

Council Goals:

Mandate

ITEM TITLE:

MS4 Phase II Stormwater Permit Renewal

ACTION REQUESTED:

Staff seeks to update Council on the status of the City’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit renewal.

ISSUE STATEMENT:

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) released a Public Review Draft of the renewed MS4 Phase II General Permit on February 18, 2026. If implemented as proposed, staff expects impacts to the City’s stormwater programs.

DISCUSSION/FINANCIAL IMPACT:

The City of Springfield operates under an MS4 Phase II General Permit (Permit) issued by the DEQ in 2021, as required under the Federal Clean Water Act. The Permit authorizes municipalities to discharge stormwater to surface waters of the state, including the Willamette and McKenzie rivers. Based on community size, permits are either Phase II (population 50,000 to 100,000, or proximity to urbanized areas) or Phase I (populations greater than 100,000).

MS4 permits are issued for five-year terms and may be administratively extended at the discretion of DEQ. Springfield’s current permit has been administratively extended since February 28, 2024. Over the past two years, DEQ has been developing an updated MS4 Phase II General Permit. Springfield submitted comments on the registrant draft in September (Attachment 1); DEQ released the Public Review Draft (Draft Permit) on February 18, 2026 (Attachment 2). The Draft Permit reflects only minor revisions and does not address the City’s comments.

MS4 permits are an important tool for protecting water quality and aquatic habitat. However, the Draft Permit includes new provisions previously required only of larger Phase I communities, such as adaptive management assessments, a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) and waterway impairment pollutant evaluation, and development of a detailed winter operations and maintenance program.

Other requirements exceed those of current Phase I permittees, such as conducting a detailed outreach survey and preparing a technical memorandum linking treatment standards to pollutant removal efficiency for green stormwater infrastructure. The Draft Permit also requires an industrial site screening and the creation of a list of facilities that may require industrial stormwater permits, which is a program under the exclusive responsibility of DEQ, not municipalities.

If implemented as proposed, the Draft Permit will have considerable operational and financial impacts on the City. Anticipated effects over the permit term include additional staffing, increased program funding, and increases to stormwater user fees. Staff are preparing formal comments for submission to DEQ by the April 24, 2026 deadline. DEQ will then review public comments received and is expected to issue the final renewed Permit by July 1, 2026.

Attachments

1. Registrant Draft MS4 Permit Comment Letter

2. Public Review Draft MS4 Phase II General Permit

3. MS4 Phase II Stormwater Permit Renewal Presentation