Clean Water Act discharge permit · NPDES MD0021555
BACK RIVER WWTP, Baltimore County, MD: NPDES MD0021555 discharge permit, effluent exceedances, inspections, penalties
- EffectivePermit status
- MajorDischarger class
- 21Pollutants under a numeric limit
- 9Pollutants with an effluent exceedance
BACK RIVER WWTP holds NPDES permit MD0021555, which discharges to Back River, Bear Creek & Severstal Steel, Llc. EPA’s file records it issued February 12, 2018 and expiring March 31, 2023. The status and dates are as EPA’s permit file stood when Velarion loaded it (September 15, 2026); EPA’s free Detailed Facility Report on ECHO carries the permit’s current standing.
Identity
| Facility as filed | BACK RIVER WWTP |
|---|---|
| Permittee as filed | BACK RIVER WWTP |
| NPDES ID | MD0021555 |
| Permit status | Effective |
| Permit type | Individual permit |
| Discharger class | Major discharger |
| Facility type | Publicly owned treatment works |
| Program | Publicly owned treatment works |
| Issued | February 12, 2018 |
| Expiration date | March 31, 2023 |
| Issuing agency | Maryland Department of The Environment |
| Address | Baltimore County, MD 21224 |
| Receiving water | BACK RIVER, BEAR CREEK & SEVERSTAL STEEL, LLC |
| Receiving water impaired | 303(D) Listed |
| Subwatershed | Back River-Hawk Cove-Chesapeake Bay (HUC 020600030703) |
| Other EPA IDs (FRS) | RCRA handler MDD990686040; ICIS-AIR source MD0000002400500812 |
Cited to the EPA ICIS-NPDES permit file (ECHO download); cross-program IDs from EPA’s FRS facility-registry crosswalk.
Effluent limits and exceedances
- 22Pollutants on file
- 21Under a numeric limit
- 22With a violation of any kind
- 9With an effluent exceedance
An effluent exceedance is a discharge monitoring report value over the permit’s numeric limit (EPA’s violation code E90). A violation of any kind also counts a report not filed. Each row is EPA’s own count for that pollutant.
| Pollutant or measure | Limits | Violations, any kind | Effluent exceedances | Latest exceedance | Largest exceedance, as filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phosphorus, total [as P] | 11 | 308 | 130 | February 28, 2026 | 890% over the limit |
| Solids, total suspended | 12 | 80 | 56 | March 31, 2022 | 640% over the limit |
| Nitrogen, total [as N] | 9 | 89 | 36 | May 31, 2022 | 125% over the limit |
| BOD, 5-day, 20 deg. C | 12 | 45 | 33 | April 30, 2022 | 1,453% over the limit |
| Nitrogen, ammonia total [as N] | 12 | 22 | 16 | June 30, 2021 | 115% over the limit |
| Chlorine, total residual | 2 | 21 | 6 | February 28, 2026 | 809% over the limit |
| pH | 4 | 11 | 5 | December 31, 2024 | |
| E. coli | 2 | 8 | 5 | October 31, 2021 | 171% over the limit |
| Toxicity, Chronic | 2 | 7 | 4 | June 30, 2026 | 125% over the limit |
| Polychlorinated biphenyls [PCB] pg/L | 4 | 88 | 0 | ||
| Oxygen, dissolved [DO] | 4 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Flow, in conduit or thru treatment plant | 4 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Phosphate, ortho [as P] | 3 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Flow, total | 3 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Chromium, hexavalent tot recoverable | 2 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Nitrogen, organic total [as N] | 3 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Nitrite + Nitrate total [as N] | 3 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Toxicity, Acute | 2 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Lead, total [as Pb] | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Cyanide, free [amenable to chlorination] | 2 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Chlordane [tech mix. and metabolites] | 2 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Endrin | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Cited to the EPA ICIS-NPDES limits and effluent violations files (ECHO download); up to 60 rows shown, most exceedances first.
Inspections, violations and enforcement
- 0Single-event violations
EPA’s single-event violation file, as loaded, holds no violation for NPDES MD0021555.
Velarion’s copy of EPA’s ICIS-NPDES files does not include the inspections, formal enforcement actions and informal enforcement actions files, so this page shows none of them. EPA’s free Detailed Facility Report on ECHO lists this permit’s inspections, enforcement actions and penalties.
Cited to the EPA ICIS-NPDES violation, inspection and enforcement files (ECHO download); up to 50 rows of each shown, newest first.
Watch this permit
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EPA publishes a free Detailed Facility Report for every permit on ECHO: its compliance status quarter by quarter, its inspections, and its enforcement actions and penalties. EPA also sends free notices of new inspections and enforcement actions through ECHO Notify; enter NPDES ID MD0021555 there.
Nearby on the register
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Figures from EPA’s ICIS-NPDES download, loaded September 15, 2026.