Dewatering and Remediation General Permit (DRGP)

The Final National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit for Dewatering and Remediation Activity Discharges – the DRGP (2022 DRGP) in Massachusetts (MAG910000) and New Hampshire (NHG910000), federal facilities in Vermont (VTG910000), and Indian country lands in Connecticut (CTG910000) and Rhode Island (RIG910000) was signed and became effective on August 2, 2022. Note: The effective date of the Massachusetts DRGP for the State is August 31, 2022.

EPA Region 1's Dewatering and Remediation General Permit (DRGP) combines the Dewatering General Permit (DGP) and Remediation General Permit (RGP) for sites located in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, federal facilities in Vermont, and sites located on Indian country lands in Connecticut and Rhode Island. The DRGP provides NPDES coverage for discharges that are a result of four types of dewatering and remediation activities: 1) Site remediation; 2) Site dewatering; 3) Infrastructure dewatering/remediation; and 4) Material dewatering for four types of wastewaters: 1) Groundwater; 2) Stormwater; 3) Potable water; and 4) Surface water.

The 2022 DRGP establishes electronic Notice of Intent (NOI), Change (CNOI), and Notice of Termination (NOT) requirements through EPA's NPDES e-reporting tool (NeT), effluent limitations and requirements, standard and special conditions, and best management practice (BMP) requirements for sites that discharge 1.0 million gallons per day or less.

ALERT: The electronic NOI, NOC and NOT are available through CDX. If you are unable to complete the required forms electronically, please contact little.shauna@epa.gov to request this waiver to apply.

NOIs are required as follows:

Existing discharges covered under the DGP that expired on May 20, 2020 or the RGP that expired on April 8, 2022 that have been administratively continued must reapply no later than 90 days following the DRGP effective date. All DGP and RGP permits will be automatically terminated as of March 31, 2023.

New discharges may apply at any time, but EPA strongly suggests applying 30 days prior to the date discharges are likely to begin.

Emergency discharges may begin at any time, provided the notification requirements are met, including submitting an NOI no more than 30 days following the start of emergency discharges.

Copies of the DRGP and related documents are available through links below.

You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA's PDF page to learn more about PDF, and for a link to the free Acrobat Reader.

• Notice of Final Agency Action (pdf) (159 K)
• Dewatering and Remediation General Permit (pdf) (585 K)
  • ATTACHMENTS
    • Attachment 1: Definitions and Acronyms (pdf) (154 K)
    • Attachment 2: Standard Conditions and Regulatory Definitions (pdf) (299 K)
    • Attachment 3: Whole Effluent Toxicity Testing Protocols (pdf) (280 K)
  • APPENDICES
    • Appendix A: Endangered Species Act Eligibility Criteria (pdf) (599 K)
    • Appendix B: Essential Fish Habitat Designations (pdf) (102 K)
    • Appendix C: National Historic Preservation Act Review and Requirements (pdf) (155 K)
    • Appendix D: Environmental Justice Disclosure and Notification Requirements (pdf) (154 K)
    • Appendix E: Case-by-Case Limitations (TBELs/WQBELs) (pdf) (181 K)
    • Appendix F: Calculation Methodology for Case-by-Case WQBELs (pdf) (199 K)
    • Appendix G: Limitations for Discharges to Impaired Waters (pdf) (134 K)
    • Appendix H: Notices of Intent (NOI), Change (CNOI), and Termination (NOT)
      • Electronic Notice of Intent
        • Select "Groundwater remediation, dewatering and hydrostatic testing"
      • Electronic Signature Agreement (Send to EPA to request waiver to apply using a paper application) (pdf) (197 K)
    • Appendix I: Sufficiently Sensitive Test Methods (pdf) (182 K)
    • Appendix J: Discharge Monitoring Reports (pdf) (185 K)
• Dewatering and Remediation General Permit Fact Sheet (pdf) (840 K)

Helpful Information and Links

• EPA Central Data Exchange
• EPA NPDES e-Reporting Tool (NeT Homepage - OECA ICIS)
• Expired EPA Region 1 Dewatering General Permit
• Expired Remediation General Permits

EPA Contacts

Technical Questions and Notifications: Shauna Little (little.shauna@epa.gov); telephone: 617-918-1989

State Contacts

Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection
Cathy Coniaris (catherine.coniaris@mass.gov); telephone: 617-348-4026

New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services
Hayley Franz (hayley.franz@des.nh.gov); telephone: 603-271-0671

Teresa Ptak (teresa.ptak@des.nh.gov); telephone: 603-271-1497