Ohio EPA issued a draft general National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for the statewide regulation of data center wastewater discharges. The draft permit will be issued as a final action unless the Director revises it after considering the record of a public hearing or written comments, or upon disapproval by the Administrator of the U.S. EPA.
The NPDES General Permit for Discharges from Data Center Facilities (Permit No. OHD000001) is a first-time issuance and would cover data center facility operations that discharge into waters of the state. Both wastewater and stormwater from the data center facility are proposed for coverage under this permit. Wastewater discharges include non-contact cooling waters (once through or re-circulated water that does not come into contact with the process operations of a facility and is used only to convey heat from the facility), low volume wastewaters (such as, cooling tower blowdown, boiler blowdown, and air compressor condensate yet excludes some waste streams like sanitary wastes) and stormwater associated with the industrial activities from the site.
The permit identifies who can be covered, how an entity obtains coverage, and how a permittee terminates coverage. The permit includes reporting requirements for all facilities.
The public notice, associated fact sheet and draft general permit are available online. Comments are being accepted through December 17, 2025.
Ohio EPA will be holding an in-person and virtual public hearing on the new statewide draft general NPDES permit for wastewater discharges from data centers. The public hearing will be held on Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025, at 2:30 p.m. at the Ohio EPA Lazarus Government Center, 6th Floor Conference Room A (Autumn Room), 50 West Town Street, Suite 700, Columbus, Ohio 43215. You can also register to join online. To facilitate the scheduling of in-person oral testimony, persons intending to give testimony in-person at the hearing should notify the Ohio EPA Public Interest Center at mary.mccarron@epa.ohio.gov or 614.644.2160.
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Identification Number(s)
OHD000001
Action Date
Oct 9, 2025
Weekly Review Date
Oct 13, 2025
Ohio EPA issued a draft general National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for the statewide regulation of data center wastewater discharges. The draft permit will be issued as a final action unless the Director revises it after considering the record of a public hearing or written comments, or upon disapproval by the Administrator of the U.S. EPA.
The NPDES General Permit for Discharges from Data Center Facilities (Permit No. OHD000001) is a first-time issuance and would cover data center facility operations that discharge into waters of the state. Both wastewater and stormwater from the data center facility are proposed for coverage under this permit. Wastewater discharges include non-contact cooling waters (once through or re-circulated water that does not come into contact with the process operations of a facility and is used only to convey heat from the facility), low volume wastewaters (such as, cooling tower blowdown, boiler blowdown, and air compressor condensate yet excludes some waste streams like sanitary wastes) and stormwater associated with the industrial activities from the site.
The permit identifies who can be covered, how an entity obtains coverage, and how a permittee terminates coverage. The permit includes reporting requirements for all facilities.
The public notice, associated fact sheet and draft general permit are available online. Comments are being accepted through December 17, 2025.
Ohio EPA will be holding an in-person and virtual public hearing on the new statewide draft general NPDES permit for wastewater discharges from data centers. The public hearing will be held on Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025, at 2:30 p.m. at the Ohio EPA Lazarus Government Center, 6th Floor Conference Room A (Autumn Room), 50 West Town Street, Suite 700, Columbus, Ohio 43215. You can also register to join online. To facilitate the scheduling of in-person oral testimony, persons intending to give testimony in-person at the hearing should notify the Ohio EPA Public Interest Center at mary.mccarron@epa.ohio.gov or 614.644.2160.
Contact Information
*Indicates Required Fields