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EPA ISSUES ACTION AGAINST HAWAII DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Release Date: 9/9/1999
Contact Information: Lois Grunwald, U.S. EPA, 415-744-1588

     Department violated stormwater requirements

     SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced it has ordered the Hawaii Department of Transportation to comply with federal storm water discharge requirements.

     The EPA found that since 1994, the Department of Transportation has not been sufficiently reducing pollutants in storm water runoff from its facilities on the island of Oahu, including the island's roadways. Pollution from storm water runoff is a major source of pollution in Hawaii's coastal waters, streams and lagoons.  Runoff from roadways includes sediments, nitrogen, phosphorus, metals such as copper, lead and zinc, and petroleum residues, pesticides, and herbicides.

     "Storm water runoff is one of the largest remaining sources of pollution of our oceans and waterways," said Alexis Strauss, EPA's Water Division director. "Every storm dumps pollution into waterways and undermines our collective efforts to keep our waters clean. We expect Hawaii DOT to fully comply with the Clean Water Act."

        Under the Clean Water Act, state transportation agencies must develop and implement a storm water management program to reduce pollutants in storm water runoff from their facilities in large urban areas. The Hawaii Department of Health issued a federal National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit establishing these requirements to the Department of Transportation for its Oahu facilities in August 1994.

     The Department of Transportation's NPDES permit expired September 6 of this year and has not yet been renewed. In the interim, any storm runoff from Department of Transportation facilities will violate the federal Clean Water Act.

     The EPA order requires the Department of Transportation to continue to implement its existing storm water management program until a new NPDES permit is approved; submit an application for an NPDES permit within 30 days; and to take steps to further prevent contamination of storm water.