Virginia Law

A. The following are causes for terminating a permit during the permit's term or for denying an individual permit or coverage under a general permit renewal application after notice and opportunity for a hearing by the department.

1. The permittee has violated any regulation of the board or order of the department, any order of the VESMP authority, any provision of the State Water Control Law or this chapter, or any order of a court, where such violation results in the unreasonable degradation of properties, water quality, stream channels, and other natural resources, or the violation is representative of a pattern of serious or repeated violations that in the opinion of the department, demonstrates the permittee's disregard for or inability to comply with applicable laws, regulations, permit conditions, orders, rules, or requirements;

2. Noncompliance by the permittee with any condition of the permit;

3. The permittee's failure to disclose fully all relevant material facts, or the permittee's misrepresentation of any relevant material facts in applying for a permit or in any other report or document required under the State Water Control Law or this chapter;

4. A determination that the permitted activity endangers human health or the environment and can only be regulated to acceptable levels by permit modification or termination;

5. A change in any condition that requires either a temporary or permanent reduction or elimination of any discharge controlled by the permit;

6. The activity for which the permit was issued causes unreasonable degradation of properties, water quality, stream channels, and other natural resources; or

7. There exists a material change in the basis on which the permit was issued that requires either a temporary or a permanent reduction or elimination of any discharge or land-disturbing activity controlled by the permit necessary to prevent unreasonable degradation of properties, water quality, stream channels, and other natural resources.

B. The department shall follow the applicable procedures in this chapter in terminating any permit under this section, except that if the entire discharge is permanently terminated by elimination of the flow or by connection to a POTW or a PVOTW (but not by land application or disposal into a well), the department may terminate the permit by notice to the permittee. Termination by notice shall be effective 30 days after notice is sent, unless the permittee objects within that time. If the permittee objects during that period, the department shall follow the applicable procedures for termination under 9VAC25-875-1210 D. Expedited permit termination procedures are not available to permittees that are subject to pending state or federal enforcement actions, including citizen suits brought under state or federal law. If requesting expedited permit termination procedures, a permittee must certify that it is not subject to any pending state or federal enforcement actions, including citizen suits brought under state or federal law.

C. Permittees that wish to terminate their permit must submit a notice of termination (NOT) to the department. If requesting expedited permit termination procedures, a permittee must certify in the NOT that it is not subject to any pending state or federal enforcement actions, including citizen suits brought under state or federal law. As of the start date in Table 1 of 9VAC25-31-1020, all NOTs submitted in compliance with this subsection shall be submitted electronically by the permittee to the department in compliance with this subsection and 40 CFR Part 3 (including, in all cases, 40 CFR Part 3 Subpart D), 9VAC25-875-940, and Part XI (9VAC25-31-950 et seq.) of the Virginia Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (VPDES) Permit Regulation. Part XI of 9VAC25-31 is not intended to undo existing requirements for electronic reporting. Prior to this date, and independent of Part XI of 9VAC25-31, the permittee may be required to report electronically if specified by a particular permit.