Who Is Involved in Genesee County’s Phase II Program?

The short answer is EVERYONE!

Residents, Businesses, Municipalities, Teachers, and Kids! Explore here.

The long answer is very long!

Genesee County's communities are involved in the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit program. An MS4 is a system of drainage including roads, storm drains, pipes, ditches, and more. The water in these drainage systems is not sewage and therefore is untreated before discharging into local freshwater. The goal of the program is to reduce the number of pollutants discharged to the surface waters of Michigan. During wet weather, MS4s are especially susceptible to transporting pollutants to creeks, rivers, and lakes.

Stormwater discharges from a regulated MS4 is an urbanized area are subject to regulation under the NPDES. MS4 permittees generally include cities, townships, villages, county agencies, universities, and school districts. The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) have compiled maps delineating each urbanized area in Michigan. These maps are used to determine which MS4s are in an urbanized area and if they require coverage by an MS4 permit. A map of the Flint, MI urbanized area (census 2010) is available here.

Many of Genesee County's communities are impacted by the permit program and have partnered together with the Genesee County Drain Commissioner’s office. Refer to our Partners and Core Permit Requirements pages to learn more.