West Virginia State Overview

The state of West Virginia and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection’s were granted delegated authority by the EPA to administer their own “State-Specific” National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permitting Program for wastewater and stormwater discharges associated with construction activity, industrial activity as well as Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) activity. Because the EPA and The Clean Water Act (CWA) required a program for addressing the pollution caused by stormwater discharges, the West Virginia DEP instituted the Division of Waste and Water Management (DWWM) whose objective is, “to preserve, protect, and enhance the State’s watersheds for the benefit and safety of all its citizens through implementation of programs controlling hazardous waste, solid waste and surface and groundwater pollution, from any source.”