Discharge Monitoring Report
A Discharge Monitoring Report (DMR) is a United States regulatory term for a periodic water pollution report prepared by industries, municipalities and other facilities discharging to surface waters.[1]: 8–14 The facilities collect wastewater samples, conduct chemical and/or biological tests of the samples, and submit reports to a state agency or the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). All point source dischargers to ”Waters of the U.S.” must obtain a National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit from the appropriate agency, and many permittees are required to file DMRs.[2]
NPDES permits and DMR reporting process
For permits other than stormwater permits, the agencies issue effluent limitations for specific pollutants, pursuant to the Clean Water Act (CWA). The basis for these limitations depends on the type of discharging facility, the discharge characteristics and status of the specific surface water body receiving the discharge.
- National technology-based standards apply to many industries (these standards are called "effluent guidelines"),[1]: 5-14–5-22 and to municipal sewage treatment plants.[3]
- Some dischargers are subject to water quality-based effluent limitations, derived from water quality standards for the adjacent water body.
- For pollutants not covered by the above circumstances, the agency may set technology-based limitations based on its "best professional judgment" (BPJ).[1]: 5-44–5-49
Most NPDES permits require facilities to submit monthly DMRs, but some permits require seasonal or semi-annual reporting.[1]: 8–5 Facilities may collect and analyze samples more frequently, e.g. weekly, and summarize the results for the prescribed reporting period. Permits typically require reporting of wastewater flow and the results of one or more chemical tests corresponding to the effluent limitations. Typical monitoring parameters include pH, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), total suspended solids (TSS), nutrients (nitrates and phosphorus), various toxic pollutants, temperature, etc. Some permits also require aquatic biomonitoring of the receiving waterbody.[4][1]: 8–12
Accessing DMR Data
The CWA defines DMR data as publicly available information (except for data that would reveal trade secrets).[5] EPA houses DMR data in its Integrated Compliance Information System (ICIS). The NPDES e-reporting Tool Discharge Monitoring Report (NetDMR) is an EPA web-based tool that allows NPDES permittees to electronically sign and submit their discharge monitoring reports to EPA via a secure internet connection (NetDMR is the new tool that replaced the previous Permit Compliance System (PCS)). Information from ICIS database is available through EPA's "Envirofacts" website and "Enforcement and Compliance History Online" (ECHO).[6][7] The Agency provides a DMR "Pollutant Loading Tool" to help users determine who is discharging, what pollutants they are discharging and how much, and where they are discharging.[8] EPA also allows users to search its Facility Registry System, to compare a facility's compliance with air, water and solid waste permits and regulations.[9]
See also
- Water quality
- Category:Water quality indicators
- Total maximum daily load
Notes
- ^ a b c d e NPDES Permit Writers' Manual (Report). Washington, D.C.: United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 2010. EPA-833-K-10-001.
- ^ Note: Some permittees, notably stormwater dischargers (e.g., construction site operators and municipal separate storm sewer systems), may not be required to file DMRs. These facilities prepare stormwater pollution prevention plans and may be required to submit other reports, which vary from state to state. See EPA, "Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans for Construction Activities." (Accessed 2016-03-17.)
- ^ EPA. "Secondary Treatment Regulation." Code of Federal Regulations, 40 CFR 133.
- ^ "Whole Effluent Toxicity (WET)". National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES). EPA. 2017-10-10.
- ^ United States. Clean Water Act, section 308(b), 33 U.S.C. § 1318(b).
- ^ "Envirofacts". EPA. Retrieved 2018-08-14.
- ^ "Enforcement and Compliance History Online (ECHO)". EPA. 2018-11-14.
- ^ "Water Pollution Search". Enforcement and Compliance History Online. EPA. 2018-08-01.
- ^ "Facility Registry Service". EPA. 2018-08-03.
- v
- t
- e
decisions
- Missouri v. Holland (1920)
- Sierra Club v. Morton (1972)
- Vermont Yankee v. NRDC (1978)
- Hughes v. Oklahoma (1979)
- Lujan v. National Wildlife Federation (1990)
- Friends of the Earth v. Laidlaw Environmental Services (2000)
- BP P.L.C. v. Mayor and City Council of Baltimore (2021)
federal legislation,
treaties,
and lower court
decisions
- Yellowstone National Park Protection Act (1872)
- Forest Service Organic Administration Act (1897)
- Rivers and Harbors Act (1899)
- Lacey Act (1900)
- Weeks Act (1911)
- North Pacific Fur Seal Convention of 1911 (1911)
- Weeks–McLean Act (1913)
- Migratory Bird Treaty Act (1918)
- Clarke–McNary Act (1924)
- Oil Pollution Act (1924)
- McSweeney-McNary Act (1928)
- Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act (1934)
- Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act (1954)
- Air Pollution Control Act (1955)
- Fish and Wildlife Act (1956)
- Oil Pollution Act (1961)
- Clean Air Act (1963, 1970, 1977, 1990)
- Scenic Hudson Preservation Conference v. Federal Power Commission (2nd Cir. Court of Appeals, 1965)
- Solid Waste Disposal Act (1965)
- Endangered Species Act (1969)
- Environmental Quality Improvement Act (1970)
- National Environmental Policy Act (1970)
- Clean Water Act (1972, 1977, 1987, 2014)
- Coastal Zone Management Act (1972)
- Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (1972)
- Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act (1972)
- Noise Control Act (1972)
- Endangered Species Act (1973)
- Oil Pollution Act (1973)
- Safe Drinking Water Act (1974, 1986, 1996)
- Water Resources Development Act (1974, 1976, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2007, 2014, 2016, 2022)
- Federal Noxious Weed Act (1975)
- Hazardous Materials Transportation Act (1975)
- Magnuson–Stevens Act (1976)
- Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (1976)
- Toxic Substances Control Act (1976)
- Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (1977)
- Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (1978)
- CERCLA (Superfund) (1980)
- Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (1986)
- Emergency Wetlands Resources Act (1986)
- Global Change Research Act (1990)
- National Environmental Education Act (1990)
- Oil Pollution Act (1990)
- Alien Species Prevention and Enforcement Act of 1992
- Food Quality Protection Act (1996)
- Energy Policy Act (2005)
- Energy Independence and Security Act (2007)
- Coalition for Responsible Regulation, Inc. v. EPA (D.C. Cir. Court of Appeals, 2012)
- Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act (2016)
- America's Water Infrastructure Act (2018)
- Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (2021)
- Louisiana v. Biden (5th Cir. Court of Appeals, 2022)
- CHIPS and Science Act (2022)
- Inflation Reduction Act (2022)
and concepts
- Best available technology
- Citizen suit
- Clean Power Plan
- Corporate average fuel economy
- Discharge Monitoring Report
- Effluent guidelines
- Environmental crime
- Environmental impact statement
- Environmental justice
- Executive Order 13432 (2007)
- Executive Order 13990 (2022)
- LDV Rule (2010)
- Maximum contaminant level
- National Ambient Air Quality Standards
- National Climate Assessment
- National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants
- National Priorities List
- New Source Performance Standards
- New Source Review
- Not-To-Exceed (NTE)
- PACE financing
- Presidential Climate Action Plan
- Renewable Fuel Standard
- Right to know
- Section 608 Certification
- Significant New Alternatives Policy
- State of the Climate
- Tailoring Rule (2010)
- Total maximum daily load
- Toxicity category rating
- Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action