Noblesville runs a federally mandated Phase II Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) program administered by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) under 327 IAC 15-13 (the former 'Rule 13') and the IDEM MS4 General Permit. The local ordinance is Chapter 52 (Stormwater Management) of the Noblesville City Code, including the Illicit Discharge ordinance adopted as Ordinance 23-4-05. The MS4 Coordinator is Mykel Overby in the City Engineering Department at 16 S 10th Street, Noblesville, IN 46060, (317) 776-6330. The entire city drains to the Upper White River watershed via the White River, Cicero Creek, Stony Creek, and other tributaries.
Noblesville's stormwater program operates on three layers: federal (the U.S. EPA NPDES Phase II MS4 framework under 40 CFR 122.34), state (IDEM's MS4 General Permit administered under 327 IAC 15-13 / former 'Rule 13' and the Indiana Construction Stormwater General Permit, formerly Rule 5 at 327 IAC 15-5), and local (Chapter 52 of the Noblesville City Code, including Sections 52.30 et seq. on illicit discharges adopted by Ordinance 23-4-05). The MS4 program is administered out of Engineering by MS4 Coordinator Mykel Overby at (317) 776-6330. Noblesville's Stormwater Quality Management Plan (SWQMP) implements the six federally required Minimum Control Measures: public education and outreach, public involvement, illicit discharge detection and elimination (IDDE), construction site runoff control, post-construction stormwater management for new and redeveloped sites, and pollution prevention/good housekeeping for municipal operations (street sweeping, storm system cleaning, parks education programming). Noblesville's MS4 program is unusually consequential because the entire city drains directly to the White River and its tributaries (Cicero Creek from Morse Reservoir upstream, Stony Creek, and smaller drains), all of which flow south into the Indianapolis water-supply intake and then to the Wabash via the West Fork. Chapter 52 prohibits non-stormwater discharges to the MS4 (except for narrowly defined exempt discharges and firefighting flows under Ordinance 23-4-05), requires Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPPs) on construction sites consistent with the Indiana Storm Water Quality Manual and the local Noblesville Stormwater Technical Standards Manual, and authorizes the Engineering Department to inspect, sample, and require corrective action. Indiana HEA 1037 (effective May 1, 2025) added IC 36-1-3-14 limits providing that an MS4 ordinance cannot be more stringent than IDEM's Construction Stormwater General Permit (CSGP) — Noblesville's Chapter 52 has been read accordingly. Report illicit discharges, oil sheens, sediment, or sewage in the storm drain system to MS4 Coordinator Mykel Overby at (317) 776-6330.
Violations of Chapter 52 are enforced by the City Engineering Department, MS4 Coordinator, and Code Enforcement. Remedies include suspension of MS4 access under Ordinance 23-4-05, Stop Work orders on active construction sites, written Notices of Violation, civil penalties under the Chapter 52 enforcement provisions, withholding of the Certificate of Occupancy, and required restoration at the violator's expense. Illicit discharges may be referred to IDEM Office of Water Quality for state enforcement under the Indiana Environmental Management Act (IC 13-30-2-1) with civil penalties up to $25,000 per day per violation and criminal sanctions for knowing violations. Noblesville's MS4 General Permit coverage can be reviewed by IDEM if the City fails to administer the SWQMP consistent with 327 IAC 15-13.
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Noblesville, IN
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