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NPDES Enforcement

States, territories, and tribes are primarily responsible for enforcing NPDES permits when EPA has authorized them to administer the NPDES program. EPA takes enforcement action if these entities fail to do so. EPA must first inform the state, territory, or tribe of its belief that enforcement is necessary and give it time to take action.
Enforcement actions include the following:

• Injunctions
• Fines for typical violations (exceed permit limits, failure to report)
• Imprisonment for criminal violations (repeated, willful violations)

With a SEP, instead of simply paying a fine to the federal or state treasury, the violator must spend more money than the amount of the fine on a relevant environmental project, such as wetlands restoration or abandoned mine cleanup. Citizens also can bring a lawsuit against a violator, but they must provide a 60-day notice to EPA and the state, territory, or tribe to give them time to take action against the violator.