How the individual functions of each Division of Water Quality program apply to regulating and funding a wastewater treatment system discharging into a surface waterbody

The NJPDES Program protects New Jersey's ground and surface water quality by assuring the proper treatment and discharge of wastewater (and its residuals) and stormwater from various types of facilities and activities. To accomplish this, permits are issued limiting the mass and/or concentration of pollutants which may be discharged into ground water, streams, rivers, and the ocean. The types of regulated facilities can range from very small users such as campgrounds, schools, and shopping centers to larger industrial and municipal wastewater dischargers.

Before a new wastewater treatment plant can be constructed, its proposed discharge must be authorized under a NJPDES permit. The permit will contain discharge pollutant limits sufficient to safeguard the integrity of the receiving waterbody. The limits also provide an engineer with the information needed to determine how to design a new treatment plant, or upgrade an existing one.

After a discharger has obtained a NJPDES permit, it is necessary to obtain a Treatment Works Approval for a new treatment plant (it is sometimes necessary to obtain a Treatment Works Approval to upgrade an existing treatment plant if additional treatment facilities must be constructed to meet new permit conditions). Treatment Works Approvals are a type of construction permit wherein the division evaluates the proposed treatment plant's design and its ability to meet the effluent standards specified in the NJPDES permit. Treatment Works Approvals also include assessing the design of new sewer lines and other wastewater conveyance facilities (force mains, pumping stations, etc.) as well as evaluating downstream conveyance and treatment capacity.

Because building new treatment plants and conveyance systems, or upgrading existing ones, can be very costly, financial assistance programs were created to help municipal dischargers fund needed improvements. These programs provide financial assistance, through grants and loans to dischargers, using priority systems which rank wastewater projects based on the nature and severity of the problems. This includes a number of different programs discussed in more detail under the Municipal Finance and Construction Element section.

If a treatment plant fails to meet its NJPDES discharge permit limits, it can adversely impact the waterway it discharges into, threatening drinking water supplies and the habitat of aquatic plants and animals. To prevent further harm, a sewer ban is implemented in the areas served by the affected treatment plant. This measure protects the receiving water from additional damage until the problem can be corrected. To avert the need for a sewer ban, the Capacity Assurance Program serves as a planning tool which is implemented when committed flows (anticipated flow from permitted projects not yet constructed) reach 80% of a treatment plant's permitted design capacity. This helps treatment plant owners decide how a plant's remaining flow capacity will be used and whether an equipment upgrade is necessary to assure future capacity.