Water Quality - Permits
Welcome to the Permits Section
We issue legally binding permits for the discharge of pollutants to state waters, including surface waters and some groundwater.
Our job is to ensure that the discharge permits we issue protect the beneficial uses of those waters (domestic water supply, aquatic life, agriculture, recreation, and wetlands).
Clean water permitting sectors (permits by category)
Our clean water permit sectors page provides information about commerce and industry, construction, municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4), domestic sewage systems, biosolids, pesticides, reclaimed water, pretreatment, and contacts.
- Senate Bill 89-181 governs the protection of groundwater quality and discharges to groundwater among several implementing state agencies.
- The discharge of dredge and fill materials into state waters is excluded from the definition of discharge pollutants and is regulated by a different program.
- The Environmental Agriculture Program regulates the discharge of pollutants to state waters and other items related to animal feeding operations.
Links to Permitting Resources and References
- Permitting resources and references are available along the left-hand navigation bar (or at the bottom of the page on the mobile version).
- Water and COVID-19 - Frequently Asked Questions - Answers to frequently asked questions regarding COVID-19 and water supplies.
- Permit Extract of all information (as of 12/09/25).
- Most requested forms - Includes annual reports, change of contacts, transfers, modifications, operator in responsible charge report, supplements, termination application, and withdrawal forms.
- CEOS - Colorado Environmental Online Services - This portal is used to obtain coverage under the COR400000 construction stormwater general permit and the general permits for dewatering and well development.
- Information about your clean water bill and permit fees.
- NetDMR, electronic Discharge Monitoring Report (DMR) information.
- ARC GIS map of waterbody segments.
- Enter longitude first (include -), then space, then latitude (e.g., -104.123456 39.123456).
- If the response is "no information available," refresh the map.
- Water Body ID explanation of stream segment: eight-character description.
Stakeholder Participation
- Water quality control division quarterly clean water webinars.
Stakeholder page for quarterly webinars for its CDPS permittees and the public. - Engage with the Water Quality Control Division.
Prioritization for Individual Permit Renewals and Annual Permit Work Plan
Individual process water permits to surface water have historically been renewed under a basin schedule. The Permits Section started renewing permits in a major watershed basin the year after the Water Quality Control Commission considered changes to water quality standards for that basin.
In 2025, the Commission formalized changes in how they determine whether a proposal to change water quality standards (Regulations 31-38) is ripe and when to address the proposal. This occurs through Policy 25-1 and a Future Issues for Standards Hearings (FISH) list. Further information is available on the Commission’s webpage at https://cdphe.colorado.gov/wqcc-public-participation.
The division has historically used these criteria to prioritize individual permit renewals. Currently, we are engaging with stakeholders on how to prioritize individual permit renewals through the Permit Performance Improvement and Reporting workgroup, and this will be reflected in an annual permit work plan. The federal fiscal year (FFY) 2026 Permit Work Plan guides the work this year, and the division regularly shares its progress during the quarterly Clean Water webinars.