How to Fill Out the NPDES Permit Application Form 2C (w/Examples) + FAQs

EPA Form 2C is the federal wastewater discharge application that every existing manufacturing, commercial, mining, or silvicultural facility must file when it discharges process wastewater into a water of the United States and needs a new or renewed National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit. You file it together with Form 1 and send the package to your NPDES permitting authority, which is either an EPA Regional Office or an authorized state agency such as a state water board.

The form forces you to map every outfall, prove what is in your water through lab testing, and certify the results under penalty of law. Getting a line wrong, skipping a required pollutant test, or filing late can stall your permit, expose you to enforcement under the Clean Water Act, and put your right to discharge at risk. Roughly half a million facilities operate under NPDES permits nationwide, and the federal estimate for completing Form 2C alone is about 2.7 hours per response, a figure most filers find optimistic once lab data enters the picture.

Here is what you will learn in this guide:

• 🗂️ How to complete every section and table of Form 2C, line by line, using the exact box numbers on the official form.
• 🧪 How the effluent sampling and testing rules in Tables A through E work, and which pollutants you must test for.
• 🏭 Three full filled-out examples that follow real facilities from the first outfall to the final signature.
• ⏱️ Where, when, and how to file so your renewal lands at least 180 days before your permit expires.
• ⚠️ The most common mistakes that get applications rejected, and exactly what each one costs you.

What the Form Is and Who Must File It

Form 2C, officially EPA Form 3510-2C, is the application for a permit to discharge wastewater from existing manufacturing, commercial, mining, and silvicultural operations. The version covered here carries OMB Control No. 2040-0004 and an expiration date of 07/31/2026 printed in the top corner, so confirm your copy matches before you start. You must complete Form 2C if you answered “Yes” to Item 1.2.2 on Form 1, meaning your facility currently discharges process wastewater.

The legal engine behind the form is the Clean Water Act. Section 301 makes it illegal to discharge any pollutant from a point source into navigable waters without a permit, and the application requirement lives at 40 CFR 122.21. The agency that receives your form is your NPDES permitting authority, which is your state environmental agency in the 47 authorized states or the EPA Regional Office where your state has not taken over the program.

Plain English: if your factory, mine, or mill sends used process water to a creek, river, or other water of the United States, this is your application. The consequence of ignoring it is severe, because discharging without a valid permit can trigger civil penalties that exceed $60,000 per day per violation. A common misconception is that only big factories need Form 2C, but a small electroplating shop or a single rock quarry with one discharge pipe must file just as a large chemical plant does.

Form 2C is the “process wastewater” sibling in a family of related forms. Use Form 2E if you discharge only nonprocess wastewater, Form 2D for new sources that have not yet started discharging, and Form 2A for publicly owned treatment works. Picking the wrong form sends your package back to the start of the line, so the process-versus-nonprocess question decides everything.

Before You Start: Documents and Information You Need

Gather everything before you open the form, because Form 2C asks for data you cannot invent at your desk. Missing one item, especially lab results, is the top reason an application sits incomplete for months. The NPDES permitting authority judges your application complete only when every required piece arrives, and it will not start its clock until then.

Here is your pre-filing checklist:

• Your EPA Identification Number. The authority cross-references this Facility Registry Service number on every page; without it, your pages cannot be matched to your facility and may be set aside.
• Your current NPDES permit number. This proves you are an existing discharger and links the renewal to your active permit; a wrong number can route your file to the wrong reviewer.
• Outfall latitude and longitude. You need coordinates to the nearest 15 seconds for each discharge point, because the authority maps your outfall to the receiving water; vague locations trigger a request for correction.
• A water-balance line drawing. You must show flow from intake to discharge; without it, the reviewer cannot understand your system and will deem the application incomplete.
• Average flow data in million gallons per day (mgd). Each process, cooling, sanitary, and stormwater stream needs a flow figure; missing flows make it impossible to set permit limits.
• Effluent lab analyses. Tables A through E require sampled data from a qualified lab using 40 CFR Part 136 methods; no data means no complete application.
• Your applicable Effluent Limitation Guidelines (ELGs). Find your category in 40 CFR Subchapter N; naming the wrong subcategory leads to incorrect permit limits.
• Production records. If an ELG applies, you report actual daily production, not design capacity; using design numbers can saddle you with limits you cannot meet.
• Treatment unit descriptions. Size, flow rate, and retention time for each unit are needed so the authority can judge your treatment; gaps here invite follow-up questions that delay issuance.
• A signed certification authority list. You need to confirm who can legally sign under 40 CFR 122.22; a signature from the wrong person voids the whole submission.

Meet five filers you will see throughout this guide. Carlos manages a metal-finishing plant with one process outfall. Dana runs a small sand-and-gravel mining operation. Priya directs environmental compliance at a food-processing facility with three outfalls. Marcus owns a small textile dye house that qualifies as a small business. Janet operates a pulp and paper mill subject to an ELG.

Where to Get the Form and How to Access It

Download Form 2C only from the official EPA NPDES Applications and Forms page, which hosts the current fillable PDF along with the instructions. Print the form, the instructions, and the Tables A through E that sit at the end of the document. The PDF includes “Print All Pages” and “Print Form Only” buttons near the top so you can produce a clean working copy.

Plain English: the form is a free government PDF, not a product you buy. The consequence of grabbing an old copy from a random website is that you may submit an expired version, which the authority can reject outright. A real example is a facility that downloaded a pre-2019 form and had to refile because the testing tables had changed.

A common misconception is that every state uses the identical federal PDF. Many authorized states post the EPA form on their own pages, and some, such as the California State Water Resources Control Board, add state cover sheets or electronic portals. Always check your state agency’s permitting page after you download the federal form so you do not miss a state-specific wrapper.

If you cannot find your EPA Identification Number or are unsure who your permitting authority is, consult Exhibit 1-1 in the General Instructions of Form 1, which lists every authority and its contact information. Calling that office early prevents the most common access mistake, which is sending a complete package to the wrong agency and losing weeks while it is forwarded or returned.

Step-by-Step: How to Fill Out EPA Form 2C Line by Line

Work through the form in the order the items appear, and repeat the outfall-specific sections and tables for every discharge point you operate. Read the “General Instructions for Reporting, Sampling, and Analysis” before you touch Tables A through E, because those rules decide which pollutants you test. Note your EPA Identification Number, NPDES permit number, facility name, and outfall number at the top of every page.

Header: EPA ID Number, NPDES Permit Number, Facility Name, and Outfall Number

This block at the top of each page asks for the identifiers that tie your pages to your facility and to each discharge point. Enter your EPA Identification Number from the Facility Registry Service, your current NPDES permit number, your facility name exactly as it appears on your permit, and, for Tables A through E, the outfall number. Carlos writes EPA ID CAD000111222, permit CA0055123, “Bay Metal Finishing Inc.,” and “Outfall 001” across the top of each page.

If you do not know your EPA Identification Number, contact your permitting authority using Exhibit 1-1 rather than leaving it blank. A common mistake is filling the header on the first page only, which lets loose pages get separated and misfiled, slowing review. The misconception here is that the header is busywork, but reviewers actually use it to assemble multi-outfall packages, so an inconsistent facility name across pages can fracture your file.

Section 1, Item 1.1: Outfall Location

This section asks where each discharge pipe releases water and into what waterbody. List each outfall by number, give the latitude and longitude to the nearest 15 seconds or equivalent decimal degrees, and name the receiving water. Priya enters “Outfall 002, 37.804360, -122.271110, Oakland Estuary” for her second discharge point.

The form provides space for three outfalls, so attach additional sheets in the same format if you have more. The coordinate must be the exact point where discharge enters the water of the United States, not your office or front gate. A frequent error is reporting the treatment plant location instead of the pipe end, which mismaps your discharge to the wrong stream segment and can trigger the wrong water-quality limits. Many filers wrongly believe a street address is enough, but the authority needs precise coordinates from a GPS device, mapping tool, or USGS map.

Section 2, Item 2.1: Line Drawing

This item asks for a picture of how water moves through your facility from intake to discharge. Attach a line drawing that shows intake sources, every operation that contributes wastewater, treatment units labeled to match Section 3, and a water balance with average flows in stated units. Dana attaches a one-page diagram showing well-water intake, the wash plant, a settling pond, and Outfall 001, with flows in mgd at each arrow.

Show all significant water losses to product, the atmosphere, and discharge, and use actual measurements where you have them. If you run a mining operation where a true water balance is impossible, provide a pictorial description of water sources and collection instead. The common mistake is omitting stormwater or sanitary flows from the drawing, which makes your reported outfall flow fail to add up and prompts a completeness rejection. People often think a rough sketch suffices, but the authority compares this drawing against your Section 3 flows, so the two must agree.

Section 3, Items 3.1 to 3.3: Average Flows and Treatment

This section asks you to break down, for each outfall, every stream that feeds it, the flow of each, and how each is treated. For each outfall report the contributing processes, the average flow of each in mgd, a treatment-unit description with size and retention time, the treatment code from Exhibit 2C-2, and the ultimate disposal of any solids or fluids not discharged. Carlos lists “chrome rinse line, 0.04 mgd, treated by chemical precipitation and clarifier, code 3-G, sludge hauled to permitted landfill.”

Item 3.2 asks whether you are applying to operate a privately owned treatment works; if yes, Item 3.3 requires you to attach a list of every outside user, then answer “Yes.” If you only treat your own waste, you mark Item 3.2 “No” and skip to Section 4. The common mistake is lumping all flows into one number without separating process, cooling, sanitary, and stormwater, which hides streams the authority must regulate separately. A misconception is that you can use design flow; the form wants representative average flow, and inflated numbers lead to limits sized for water you do not actually discharge.

Section 4, Items 4.1 and 4.2: Intermittent Flows

This section asks whether any discharge is intermittent or seasonal rather than continuous. Answer Item 4.1 “Yes” or “No,” excluding stormwater, spillage, and leaks; if “Yes,” complete Item 4.2 by outfall with the frequency in days per week and months per year, the long-term average and maximum daily flow in mgd, and the duration. Priya marks “Yes” because her cannery only discharges process water during the summer pack, then enters “Outfall 003, 5 days/week, June-September, long-term average 0.6 mgd, maximum daily 0.9 mgd.”

A continuous discharge runs without interruption during operating hours except for brief maintenance shutdowns, while a seasonal one occurs only during part of the year. Use actual data where you can; otherwise give your best estimate. The common mistake is calling a seasonal discharge continuous, which produces permit limits that do not match your real operating pattern and can leave you out of compliance in your off months. Many filers believe stormwater belongs here, but the form specifically excludes it from Section 4.

Section 5, Items 5.1 to 5.5: Production

This section asks whether national Effluent Limitation Guidelines apply to your facility and, if so, your production figures. Answer Item 5.1 “Yes” or “No” on whether ELGs promulgated under CWA Section 304 cover any of your process wastewater; if “Yes,” complete Item 5.2 with the ELG category, subcategory, and regulatory citation. Janet enters “Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Point Source Category, Secondary Fiber Non-Deink Subcategory, 40 CFR 430, Subpart J,” matching the example in the instructions.

Item 5.3 asks whether the guideline is expressed in terms of production, Item 5.4 asks for actual daily production in the ELG’s units per outfall, and Item 5.5 asks whether you seek alternative limits based on a future production increase. Production figures must reflect a reasonable measure of actual daily production, never design capacity or future predictions. The common mistake is reporting maximum design output, which produces mass limits far higher than your real load and can mask a future violation. A misconception is that production data can be claimed confidential, but the instructions state plainly that you may not treat it as confidential.

Section 6, Items 6.1 to 6.3: Improvements

This section asks whether any government order requires you to build or upgrade treatment on a schedule. Answer Item 6.1 “Yes” if a federal, state, or local authority, through a permit condition, enforcement order, consent decree, court order, or grant condition, requires you to meet an implementation schedule affecting your discharges; if “Yes,” complete Item 6.2 with the affected outfall, the source, and both the projected and required final compliance dates. Carlos answers “Yes” and describes a consent order requiring a new cyanide destruction unit at Outfall 001 by 12/31/2027.

Item 6.3 is optional and lets you attach descriptions of voluntary pollution-control or environmental projects underway or planned. The common mistake is hiding an existing enforcement order out of fear it hurts the application, but the authority already has that record, and omitting it looks like concealment and can stall issuance. People wrongly assume only formal court orders count, when the item expressly includes administrative orders, compliance schedule letters, and grant or loan conditions.

Section 7 and Tables A-E: Effluent and Intake Characteristics

This is the heart of Form 2C and usually the largest part of your package, because Items 7.1 through 7.17 send you into Tables A through E to report sampled pollutant data for each outfall. Read the “General Instructions for Reporting, Sampling, and Analysis” first, since they set the sampling and analytical rules. Report results in concentration and total mass for Tables A through C, and concentration only for Table D, using 40 CFR Part 136 approved methods that are “sufficiently sensitive.”

Here is who completes each table:

• Table A covers conventional and non-conventional pollutants, and all applicants must report at least one analysis per pollutant for every outfall unless they obtain a waiver.
• Table B covers toxic metals, cyanide, total phenols, and organic toxic pollutants, and applies to applicants in the primary industry categories listed in Exhibit 2C-3.
• Table C covers certain conventional and non-conventional pollutants for applicants subject to ELGs or who believe the pollutants are present.
• Table D covers certain hazardous substances and asbestos for applicants who believe those pollutants are present.
• Table E covers 2,3,7,8-TCDD dioxin for applicants who use, manufacture, or expect that pollutant.

Carlos, whose plant is a primary-industry electroplater, checks “Testing Required” for every toxic metal, cyanide, and total phenol in Section 1 of Table B and reports chromium at “0.45 mg/L, 0.15 lbs/day, 4 analyses.” Items 7.1 and 7.2 let you request a testing waiver and name the outfalls and pollutants it covers, while Item 7.3 directs you to test each Table A pollutant you did not get waived. The common mistake is marking a pollutant “Believed Absent” to dodge a test when your raw materials clearly contain it, which is a false certification and can void the permit and invite penalties. A widespread misconception is that you only report pollutants over a limit, but Table A requires at least one analysis for every listed pollutant regardless of the result.

Sampling rules drive your data quality. Grab samples are required for pH, temperature, cyanide, total phenols, residual chlorine, oil and grease, fecal coliform, enterococci, and volatile organics, while a 24-hour composite of at least four grabs covers most other pollutants. Priya collects an eight-aliquot flow-proportional composite for BOD and TSS at each cannery outfall and four discrete grabs for the volatile fraction. You may use existing data if it was collected within 4.5 years of submission and is representative. The common mistake is using a grab sample where a composite is required, which makes the data unrepresentative and unusable, forcing a costly resample.

Items 7.10 and 7.11 handle the small-business exemption. Marcus, whose dye house averaged under $100,000 in annual sales in second-quarter-1980 dollars, answers “Yes” to Item 7.10, checks the small-business box atop Table B, and skips the organic-toxic quantitative testing in Sections 2 through 5. He still must mark “Believed Present” or “Believed Absent” for those pollutants. The common mistake is claiming the exemption without the sales documentation, which collapses under review and forces full testing late in the process. A misconception is that small size waives all testing, but the exemption covers only the organic toxic pollutants in Table B, not Table A.

Item 7.18 and Section 8: Certification and Signature

The final block requires a certification statement signed under penalty of law as required by 40 CFR 122.22. Read the certification, then have an authorized person sign and date it, printing their name and title. Priya, as a duly authorized representative with overall responsibility for environmental matters, signs, prints “Priya Nair, Director of Environmental Compliance,” and dates it 06/15/2026.

For a corporation, the signer must be a responsible corporate officer such as a president, vice president, or a manager of the facility authorized in writing. The common mistake is letting a junior staffer or an outside consultant sign, which makes the certification invalid and the entire application legally defective. A dangerous misconception is that the signature is a formality, but it is a sworn statement, and knowingly submitting false information carries fines and possible imprisonment under the Clean Water Act.

Three Filled-Out Examples Using Real Scenarios

These walkthroughs follow three filers through the major sections of Form 2C so you can see how real answers look. Each table lists the form section on the left and the entry on the right.

Example 1: Carlos, Bay Metal Finishing Inc. (single-outfall electroplater)

Form Section	What Carlos Enters
Header	EPA ID CAD000111222, Permit CA0055123, Outfall 001
Item 1.1 Outfall Location	37.795000, -122.401000, Mission Creek
Item 2.1 Line Drawing	Attached: city-water intake, plating line, precipitation/clarifier, Outfall 001
Item 3.1 Flows and Treatment	Chrome rinse 0.04 mgd, chemical precipitation, code 3-G, sludge to landfill
Item 5.1 ELG	Yes, Metal Finishing, 40 CFR 433
Item 7.4 Table B trigger	Yes, primary industry category
Table B Section 1	Total chromium 0.45 mg/L, 0.15 lbs/day, 4 analyses; cyanide 0.02 mg/L
Item 6.1 Improvements	Yes, consent order, cyanide unit by 12/31/2027
Section 8 Signature	Carlos Rivera, Plant Manager, 06/10/2026

Example 2: Dana, Valley Sand & Gravel (small mining operation)

Form Section	What Dana Enters
Header	EPA ID NVD000333444, Permit NV0021876, Outfall 001
Item 1.1 Outfall Location	39.529600, -119.813800, Truckee River
Item 2.1 Line Drawing	Pictorial: well intake, wash plant, settling pond, Outfall 001
Item 3.1 Flows and Treatment	Wash water 0.5 mgd, settling pond, code 1-B, reclaimed solids onsite
Item 4.1 Intermittent	Yes, discharges only after washing, 3 days/week
Item 5.1 ELG	Yes, Mineral Mining and Processing, 40 CFR 436
Table A	TSS 28 mg/L, pH 7.4, settleable solids 0.2 mL/L, 4 analyses
Item 7.10 Small Business	No
Section 8 Signature	Dana Olsen, Owner/Operator, 06/12/2026

Example 3: Priya, Coastal Cannery Co. (three outfalls, seasonal)

Form Section	What Priya Enters
Header	EPA ID CAD000555666, Permit CA0078945, Outfalls 001-003
Item 1.1 Outfall Location	Outfall 002: 37.804360, -122.271110, Oakland Estuary
Item 2.1 Line Drawing	Attached: city intake, cook/cool/clean lines, DAF unit, three outfalls
Item 3.1 Flows and Treatment	Process 0.6 mgd, dissolved air flotation, code 2-F, skimmings rendered
Item 4.2 Intermittent	Outfall 003, 5 days/week, June-Sept, LTA 0.6 mgd, max 0.9 mgd
Item 5.1 ELG	Yes, Canned and Preserved Fruits and Vegetables, 40 CFR 407
Table A	BOD 210 mg/L, TSS 180 mg/L, oil and grease 15 mg/L, pH 6.8
Item 7.12 Table C	Believed Present: nitrogen, phosphorus
Section 8 Signature	Priya Nair, Director of Environmental Compliance, 06/15/2026

How to File the Completed Form

Submit your complete package, both Form 1 and Form 2C with all attachments and tables, to your NPDES permitting authority, and time it to arrive at least 180 days before your current permit expires. Use Exhibit 1-1 in the Form 1 instructions to confirm whether your authority is an EPA Regional Office or your state agency. Form 2C does not accept electronic signatures on the certification, so the signed original travels on paper even when other steps are electronic.

By mail or courier, this is the default channel: print the full package, have the authorized official sign Section 8 in ink, and mail it to the address your permitting authority lists for permit applications. There is generally no federal filing fee for Form 2C itself, though many states charge a separate permit or annual fee billed by the state agency, and accepted payment methods are set by that agency. Keep a complete copy, the certified-mail receipt, and the return receipt as your proof of filing, because the postmark can decide whether your renewal counts as timely.

By state portal, some authorized states accept the application through an online system. California dischargers, for example, work through the California State Water Board NPDES program and its regional boards, which may require an electronic upload plus a signed paper or electronic certification through the federal NetDMY-linked system. Expected review time runs several months to over a year for complex permits, so the 180-day cushion is a floor, not a target, and your expired permit is administratively continued only if you applied on time.

In person or by fax is rare but allowed by some offices for the paper package; confirm with your authority first. Whatever the channel, the application is “complete” only when the authority is satisfied every required item and attachment has arrived. The proof-of-filing you keep is your best defense if the agency later claims a piece was missing.

What Happens After You File

After you file, the permitting authority reviews your package for completeness first, then for technical adequacy, and may send a Notice of Deficiency requesting missing data or clarification. Respond promptly, because the review clock effectively pauses until you cure the deficiency. If you filed your renewal at least 180 days before expiration, your existing permit is administratively continued and you may keep discharging legally while review proceeds.

The authority then drafts your permit, calculating limits from your reported flows, production, ELGs, and effluent data, and applying water-quality standards for your receiving water. The draft permit goes out for a public comment period, usually 30 days, during which anyone may comment or request a hearing. Janet’s pulp mill draft permit drew public comments on color limits, which the board addressed before issuing the final permit.

Once comments are resolved, the authority issues the final permit, typically valid for five years. You then must monitor and submit Discharge Monitoring Reports on the schedule the permit sets. The misconception that issuance ends your paperwork is costly, because the data you certified on Form 2C becomes the baseline the agency uses to judge every later report, and discrepancies can prompt an investigation.

Mistakes to Avoid When Filling Out the Form

Form 2C has dozens of fields, and each is a chance to slip. These errors most often delay or sink an application:

• Using the wrong form, such as Form 2E for a process-wastewater discharger; your package is returned and you restart.
• Filing later than 180 days before permit expiration; you may lose administrative continuation and discharge without coverage.
• Leaving response areas blank instead of entering “NA”; the reviewer cannot tell if you skipped or considered the item.
• Reporting an office or gate location instead of the true outfall coordinates; your discharge is mapped to the wrong waterbody.
• Omitting stormwater or sanitary flows from the line drawing; your flow totals fail to reconcile and the application is incomplete.
• Reporting design capacity instead of actual production in Section 5; you receive limits sized for water you never discharge.
• Marking a pollutant “Believed Absent” when raw materials show it is present; this is a false certification with penalty exposure.
• Using a grab sample where a 24-hour composite is required; the data is unrepresentative and you must resample.
• Submitting lab data older than 4.5 years; the authority rejects it as stale and requires new sampling.
• Claiming the small-business exemption without sales documentation; you are forced into full organic-toxic testing late.
• Letting a consultant or junior employee sign Section 8; the certification is invalid under 40 CFR 122.22.
• Hiding an existing enforcement order in Section 6; concealment looks worse than disclosure and stalls issuance.

Do’s and Don’ts

These quick rules keep your application clean and on schedule.

Do:

• Do confirm the form revision and OMB expiration date before you start, because an expired version can be rejected.
• Do enter “NA” in any item that does not apply, so the reviewer knows you considered it.
• Do match your line drawing flows to your Section 3 numbers, since the authority compares the two directly.
• Do use a qualified sampler and 40 CFR 136 methods, because unrepresentative data is unusable.
• Do file at least 180 days before expiration to keep your permit administratively continued.
• Do keep a signed copy and certified-mail proof, since the postmark can decide timeliness.

Don’t:

• Don’t leave any box blank, because blanks read as incomplete and stall review.
• Don’t report design or maximum capacity for production, since it produces limits you cannot meet.
• Don’t mark pollutants absent to avoid testing, because a false certification carries Clean Water Act penalties.
• Don’t let an unauthorized person sign, since that voids the certification.
• Don’t claim effluent data as confidential, because the authority denies such claims by rule.
• Don’t assume the federal PDF covers state extras, since many states add cover sheets or portals.

Filing on Your Own vs. With a Consultant

Many facilities weigh handling Form 2C in house against hiring an environmental consultant or attorney. The right choice depends on the number of outfalls, the complexity of your testing, and your staff’s experience.

Pros of filing on your own:

• You save consultant fees that can run thousands of dollars for a complex permit.
• You keep institutional knowledge of your processes in house for future renewals.
• You control the timeline directly rather than waiting on an outside firm.
• You build staff expertise that helps with ongoing Discharge Monitoring Reports.
• You avoid the back-and-forth of explaining your operation to an outsider.

Cons of filing on your own:

• You risk costly errors in the Table A through E testing logic that a specialist would catch.
• You may misidentify your ELG subcategory and receive the wrong limits.
• You carry the full burden of coordinating sampling, labs, and deadlines.
• You may underestimate the time, far beyond the 2.7-hour federal estimate, that data gathering demands.
• You face the certification’s legal exposure without professional review of your answers.

FAQs

Do I need to file Form 1 along with Form 2C?

Yes. Form 2C is never filed alone; you submit it together with Form 1, which carries your basic facility information, and the authority treats the two as one application package.

Do I file Form 2C if my facility discharges only stormwater or cooling water?

No. Facilities discharging only nonprocess wastewater use Form 2E; Form 2C is for existing facilities that currently discharge process wastewater.

Do I have to test for every pollutant in Table A?

Yes. All applicants must report at least one analysis for each conventional and non-conventional pollutant in Table A for every outfall, unless the permitting authority grants a waiver.

Do I write the treatment plant location or the pipe location in Item 1.1?

No. You enter the coordinates of the exact point where discharge enters the water of the United States, the end of the outfall pipe, not your treatment unit or building.

Do I report actual or design production in Section 5?

No. You report a reasonable measure of actual daily production, never design capacity or predicted future output, because the authority uses it to set your real permit limits.

Do I enter “NA” or leave a box blank when an item does not apply?

No. You never leave a response area blank; you enter “NA” so the reviewer sees you considered the item and found it did not apply.

Do I mark a pollutant “Believed Present” if it is only in my intake water?

Yes. You mark it “Believed Present,” but you need not analyze for it; instead you place an “X” in the long-term average of the “Intake” column.

Do small businesses still complete Table B?

Yes. Even with the small-business exemption, you must still mark “Believed Present” or “Believed Absent” for the listed pollutants; the exemption only excuses quantitative testing for the organic toxic pollutants.

Do I need a composite sample for every pollutant?

No. Grab samples are required for pH, temperature, cyanide, total phenols, residual chlorine, oil and grease, bacteria, and volatiles, while most other pollutants need a 24-hour composite.

Do I have to file before my permit expires?

Yes. You must apply at least 180 days before your current permit expires to keep it administratively continued while the authority reviews your renewal.

Do effluent data qualify for confidential treatment?

No. NPDES authorities deny all claims to treat effluent data as confidential, so you may not withhold any required Form 2C data on confidentiality grounds.

Do I need an original signature, or is an electronic one fine?

No. Form 2C requires a handwritten certification signature from an authorized official under 40 CFR 122.22, so a typed or unauthorized electronic signature does not satisfy the requirement.

Do I use historical lab data or sample fresh for this application?

Yes. You may use existing data if it was collected within 4.5 years of submission, is representative of your discharge, and meets all data requirements; otherwise you sample fresh.