Rising Sun adopts emergency illicit‑discharge ordinance to meet MS4/NPDES requirements

The Town of Rising Sun on Tuesday adopted Ordinance 2022-04 as an emergency ordinance to create an illicit discharge detection and elimination (IDDE) program required by the town’s Phase II MS4 designation under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES).

Town Administrator (speaker 1) told commissioners the ordinance implements state and federal stormwater controls and must be adopted by Oct. 31 to comply with permit requirements. “The only thing that is supposed to go in the stormwater system is stormwater itself,” the administrator said, citing examples of prohibited discharges including grass clippings, used antifreeze and motor oil.

The ordinance adds a new article to chapter 13 (Stormwater Management Ordinance) that defines prohibited nonstormwater discharges, establishes inspection authority for the town, and creates enforcement mechanisms to address illicit discharges. The administrator said the policy is intended to protect public health and the general welfare by preventing pollutants from entering the municipal storm drainage system.

Moderator (speaker 2) moved to declare the ordinance an emergency measure; the motion was seconded and the body voted by voice. A subsequent motion to adopt the ordinance passed by voice vote; the presiding officer announced, “The ordinance has passed.” The transcript records affirmative “aye” responses but does not include a roll-call tally of individual votes.

The ordinance text, as summarized in the meeting packet, describes the town’s inspection authority for on‑property stormwater systems and directs the town to enforce state law on improper discharges. The meeting did not record an effective date beyond the emergency vote or details about penalty schedules; those provisions are in the ordinance text included in the meeting packet.

The commission moved on to the next agenda item following passage. No public comment or formal objections were recorded during the presentation or vote.

Next steps: the ordinance was adopted as an emergency measure; administrative steps for enforcement and public notification were not detailed at the meeting and were listed as part of the ordinance packet.