Water Permits

Introduction

Drinking water, wastewater, storm water and wetlands are managed through IDEM's permitting program. If your place of business provides drinking water; if you're planning new or improved drinking water or wastewater service for your customers; if you treat or process wastewater; if you are responsible for controlling storm water run-off at your work site, place of business or in your community; or if you have project plans that involve working in water or wetlands, you may need a permit from IDEM's Office of Water Quality. Please visit the links here to learn about the various water permit programs we manage and contact our staff to discuss specific requirements. Working with IDEM to obtain the correct permit will help you stay in compliance with environmental regulations. Failing to apply for an IDEM permit or operating without the correct type of permit are violations.

Guidance Documents

IDEM Permit Guide - A plain English guide to help identify environmentally related permits or approvals that must be obtained or requirements that may apply to new businesses or expansion projects.

Permit Programs

EPA Sources

Pending and Issued Permits and Compliance Reports, published by the U.S. EPA.

NPDES Permit Public Notices

Public Notices

Branches Responsible for Issuing Permits

Drinking Water Branch (Drinking Water Permits): The Drinking Water Branch includes two primary program areas: the Public Water Supply Supervision Program, and the Ground Water Protection Program. Although seemingly distinct in nature, both programs possess an overall mission of protecting the quality of drinking water supplies. The Public Water Supply Program focuses on ensuring the quality of water provided for drinking purposes through public water supply systems, while the Ground Water Protection Program focuses on protecting the resource, that is, groundwater, from which a large percentage of drinking water is derived.
Permits Branch (Wastewater Permits): The primary function of the Permits Branch is to support the OWQ in the issuance and implementation of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit Compliance Program (CWA 308, 327 IAC 5), the Sewer Connection Ban Program (327 IAC 4), and the Environmental Assessment/Environmental Impact Statement Program (327 IAC 11). The Branch coordinates regulatory compliance activities with the Office of Enforcement and the Office of Voluntary Compliance (Office of Pollution Prevention and Technical Assistance), as well as inform the public, private sector, and regulated community about strategies to achieve regulatory compliance