Iowa Department of Natural Resources issues discharge permits under delegation of a federal program known as the NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) permit program. The NPDES program regulates the direct discharge of wastewater to surface waters. The authority to issue NPDES permits rests either with a state or with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Wastewater Public Information Exchange (WWPIE) provides public access to active individual NPDES permits, such as city or industry wastewater permits. The permit details pages in WWPIE provide basic information on the permits, permit delay reasons (if applicable), and links to the permitting documents.