Annual MS4 Report completed!
On June 16, 2003 Jefferson Lab’s MS4 (Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System) Permit was issued. This Permit allows the Lab to discharge storm water into site channels that leave the property and enter larger streams and channels, eventually flowing to either the Chesapeake Bay or the James River.
Under this permit, Jefferson Lab has recommitted to keeping the storm water from our site free of pollution. To do this, Minimum Control Measures (MCMs) and Best Management Practices (BMPs) to implement the Permit have been developed and were recently fine tuned to better meet Jefferson Lab’s operational needs. An example of one MCM is getting the Lab community involved with identifying and reporting storm water concerns, such as spills, that they may encounter. The BMP associated with this goal is having staff contact ext. 7400 (Facilities Management) for cleanup or special actions involving storm water drainage channels and structures or ext. 4444 for emergencies such as chemical spills, where the Chemical Assistance Team will be notified.
In June, EH&S Reporting successfully completed and turned in the second annual MS4 report. The permittee evaluated the Lab’s storm water management program and found that, for Permit Year 2:
- Jefferson Lab complied with the general terms of the permit.-- to minimize our contribution of pollution to storm water.
- Though not all 'measurable' goals were met, the Lab, including Facilities Management, RadCon, and EH&S Reporting, reached or made good progress at reaching them during Permit Year 2
- One important goal that was achieved was the reduction in the use of pesticides and herbicides due to strict performance conditions outlined in the affected subcontracts.
Jefferson Lab complied with all permit conditions that enabled the discharge of storm water from the site’s small municipal separate storm sewer system. Satisfying the permit requirements is consistent with Jefferson Lab’s philosophy and practice of implementing environmental stewardship.
For more information, email Linda Even (lle@jlab.org) or call her at ext. 7308.