Welcome to the 33rd issue of Runoff Rundown, the Center for Watershed Protection's quarterly electronic newsletter.
Center Announces the Launching of our New Webcast Series
The Center is proud to announce the launch of our webcast
series on watershed and stormwater management. Webcast watchers will
recall the participation of Center staff in various webcasts hosted by EPA.
Past Center webcasts addressed post-construction stormwater management,
stormwater retrofitting, IDDE, and municipal maintenance. The Center will
now be hosting our own webcast series beginning in April. Some of the
first topics to be covered include municipal pollution prevention and good
housekeeping programs, managing your stormwater program in the age of budget
cuts, creating a link between MS4s and TMDLs, managing coastal watersheds,
better site design, and more! Our 2009 webcast schedule will be published
soon. We want your input - please take this very brief survey to tell us about topics you would like to see in a
webcast. http://survey.constantcontact.com/survey/a07e2fvs9blfpzxr7md/start
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Staff News
Congratulations to Greg Hoffmann
for his promotion from Senior Watershed Engineer to Program Director. Greg will
be working with Dave Hirschman on
our stormwater and watershed services work.
We are also happy to announce that our Communications Manager,
Lauren Lasher and her husband
Robert, are the proud parents of daughter Madeleine Skye and son Caleb
Andrew. Director of Research, Karen Cappiella and her husband Steve Medellin also
welcomed their new baby girl, Katharine Alicia Medellin, in late December. Congrats
to all!
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What We're Wrapping Up
The Center has been working on a Draft Generic Environmental
Impact Statement for Lake George,
NY, and submitted a draft to the
Lake George Planning Commission late last year. The Commission has released the
draft EIS and buffer guidelines for comment. The Center will be conducting
another public workshop and will hopefully be working towards implementing the
buffer guidelines along this sensitive and historic lake.
A couple years ago, the Center wrote a "User's Guide to
Watershed Planning in Maryland" developed with MD DNR to help communities in
Maryland conduct watershed planning and use watershed plans to meet existing
regulatory drivers. We have recently been working to adapt this manual to local
governments in EPA's Region 3, which includes VA, PA, DC, DE, MD & NY. We
are wrapping up the final report now and hope to be able to put it up on our
website for download, in the near future. Stay tuned!
Congratulations to the recipients of the Center's first Technical Capacity Mini-grants. The Center received a total of
129 proposals and seven recipients were chosen. For more information on the
recipients, refer to http://www.cwp.org/News/newsroom/minigrantrecipients.pdf
Last, but not least, the Center has launched the Watershed Forestry Resource Guide Website
that serves as a central source for resources related to forests and
watersheds, including fact sheets, slideshows, training exercises and other
tools, as well as links to research papers, reports and relevant websites.
Launched in cooperation with the USDA Forest Service - Northeastern Area, with
supplemental funding from The Home Depot Foundation, the URL for the site is http://www.forestsforwatersheds.org/
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What We're Working On
The Southwest Conservancy of
Florida has asked the Center to conduct an independent peer review focused on
the revised version of the so-called "Harvey Harper" Method described in a
document entitled "Evaluation of Current Stormwater Design Criteria within the
State of Florida (June 2007)." The
document is currently being used to develop stormwater criteria for the state. A previous version of the method had undergone an EPA review
which raised several technical issues.
The revised methodology was developed in light of these review comments,
but has not undergone a separate independent peer review. The Center's review will include review by
Center staff, as well as five independent peer reviewers. This review will determine the Harvey
Method's appropriateness for stormwater treatment system designs, identify deficiencies,
recommend modifications, and potentially recommend an alternative approach.
The Center is very close to finishing up its work with the
Georgia Department of Natural Resources, the Chatham County-Savannah
Metropolitan Planning Commission, and the University of Georgia River
Basin Center, on the development of a Coastal
Stormwater Supplement (CSS) to the Georgia Stormwater Management Manual.
Built on the wealth of information presented in the Georgia Stormwater
Management Manual, the CSS promotes an integrated approach to site design,
natural resource protection, and stormwater management that can be used to
protect Coastal Georgia's valuable aquatic and terrestrial resources from the
unintended negative impacts of the land development process. The integrated
approach detailed in the CSS shifts the focus of the site planning and design
process away from the mitigation of these impacts and instead places it on
their prevention. To accomplish this, the CSS relies on the Runoff
Reduction Method (featured in the Spring 2008 edition of Runoff Rundown),
which puts better site design and low impact development practices, such as
rainwater harvesting, downspout disconnection, green roofs and stormwater
planters, in the same "stormwater management toolbox" as traditional stormwater
management practices, such as wet and dry ponds. The Center is currently
addressing comments and putting the finishing touches on the CSS, and is
expecting to present the final document to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources
by the end of January.
Those of you who have been following our progress with
watershed planning in Accotink Creek, VA, in Fairfax County, will be pleased to
learn that we are moving into the retrofit process. Having identified dozens of
sites for stormwater retrofit practices, we are currently working with KCI
Technologies, the lead on the project, to sketch plans for various retrofits.
These include wetlands, bioretention, and various swale designs.
In early December, Center staff, joined by staff from Arlington County, VA
spent two days searching for stormwater retrofit opportunities in the Little
Pimmit Run watershed. Sites visited included schools, neighborhoods, and
parks. The watershed is almost completely built out, with very few existing
stormwater quality or quantity controls and a substantial amount of residential
infill development occurring. In addition, wide residential roads were
identified throughout the watershed as potential locations for street-side
bioretention. In total, over 60 sites were visited during field
work. The results of this field effort will be summarized in a Technical
Memorandum in the early Spring.
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What We're Starting
Approximately 43% of Maryland
is covered by forest, much of which is located near exurban areas. As Maryland's population
steadily increases, land development is threatening these "forests on the
fringe." The Center, through funding from the Maryland Center
for Agro-Ecology, Inc. is working with Frederick County, MD to develop urban
watershed forestry techniques in the Linganore Creek watershed. This new
planning approach acknowledges watershed benefits of forests and promotes
managing forests at the watershed scale. Protection of the Linganore Creek
Watershed is critical for several reasons: it is a state Class IV Recreational
Trout Water, one of the largest tributaries to the Monocacy
River - a National Scenic
River, source of drinking
water for surrounding communities and has a TMDL for sediment and phosphorus.
Working closely with Frederick County, the Center will provide several useful
forestry tools to help protect the watershed that include development of forest
cover coefficients to estimate future forest cover, identification of priority
forest conservation and reforestation sites and establishment of a forest cover
goal for the watershed.
Also thanks
to the Heineman Foundation for funding a proposal to study the relationship of
drinking water and forests. This
research is being done in conjunction with Forests on the Fringe. The goal is to identify the
specific economic connections between forests and drinking water (supply,
quality, and cost) based on the available science to provide a basis for the
need to conserve forests as an economical means to ensure reliable safe
drinking water supplies. The
Linganore Creek watershed in Frederick County will be evaluated in terms of
costs and benefits and used as a real world example to demonstrate the economic
impact of using forest conservation planning techniques compared to traditional
urban development practices. The Center will
develop and disseminate educational materials for local officials, planners and
other decision makers that summarize this information. The ultimate goal is for this material to be
used to: a) advance planning for water supply and forest conservation and place
it at the forefront of community issues, b) make the case for forest
conservation to protect drinking water, c) encourage the use of incentives for
forest conservation and tree planting that are more reflective of their true
value, and d) factor in the costs of drinking water supply and treatment when
evaluating development alternatives. The
Center has just kicked off this project and expects a final product at the end
of 2009.
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Feature Article
The Center recently finished a tree planting project in a
dry pond in Goose Creek. Center staff Alexi Boado, Neely Law, Greg Hoffmann, and Hye Yeong Kwon worked
with the Piedmont Environmental Council, the Town of Leesburg, the Home Depot Foundation and the
Water Quality Improvement Fund of the Virginia Department of Forestry to make
the project possible. Read
more about our efforts in Leesburg,
VA. http://www.cwp.org/News/Runoff_Rundown/Archive/33/article1.htm
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From A Guest Writer
Recently,
Runoff Rundown heard from Matt Jones, a Water Resource Education Specialist with
the Allen County Partnership for Water Quality. He offered to tell all of our
readers more about his education and outreach efforts in the Maumee River basin.
The award-winning video documentary that he helped produce, "A Watershed
Mentality", encourages a cooperative, comprehensive approach to erosion and
sediment control and watershed restoration. Here is what Matt offered up for us
in his report: http://www.cwp.org/News/Runoff_Rundown/Archive/33/article2.htm
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FYI
Where We're Speaking
Mike
Novotney about the Georgia Coastal
Stormwater Supplement on February 3-4, 2009 in Brunswick, GA.
Mike
Novotney and Kelly Collins on Post-Construction, Low Impact Development, and Smart
Growth as Stormwater BMPs at the IECA
Preference Workshop on February 9, 2009 in Reno, NV.
http://www.ieca.org/applications/calendar.asp?eventID=486
Hye Yeong Kwon on the work of the
Center for Watershed Protection at Howard
County's Watersheds:
Issues and Efforts, Thursday, February 19, 2009 from 9:30am - 3:30pm. Sponsored
by the Maryland Cooperative Extension, Howard County
Office.
Mike
Novotney on Leveling the Playing Field for
Low Impact Development at the South Carolina LID Summit
on March 9-10, 2009 in Beaufort,
SC. http://www.sccoastalinfo.org/list.php#null
Greg Hoffmann on the Runoff
Reduction Method at the World Environmental and Water Resources Congress on May
17-21, 2009 in Kansas City,
MO. Sponsored by the Environment and Water Resources Institute of ASCE. http://content.asce.org/conferences/ewri2009/
Mike
Novotney on Improving Quality of Life through
Effective Land Use Policies at the Coastal Georgia Stormwater/Land Use Policy
Practicum on May 19, 2009 in Brunswick, GA and again on May 20, 2009 in Savannah, GA.
Events:
CONFERENCE: Exploring
Diversity in Our Environment February
27-March 1, 2009. Clarion Resort
Fontainebleau Hotel, Ocean City,
MD. Organized by the Maryland Association for
Environmental and Outdoor Education. http://www.maeoe.org/conference/
CONFERENCE:
Urban Water Management - An Integrated Water Quality Conference &
Exhibition March 24 - 26, 2009. Overland Park
Convention Center, Overland Park, KS.
Organized by the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA)
and the City of Independence
Water Pollution Control Department. http://uwm09.events.pennnet.com/fl/index.cfm
CONFERENCE: APA National Planning Conference April 25-29, 2009. Minneapolis Convention Center, Minneapolis, MN. Organized by the American Planning Association. http://www.planning.org/nationalconference/
CONFERENCE: Managing
Water Resources & Development in a Changing Climate May 4-6, 2009. Anchorage
Marriott Downtown, Anchorage,
AK. Organized by the American
Water Resources Association (AWRA). http://www.awra.org/meetings/Anchorage2009/
CONFERENCE:
World Environmental & Water
Resources Congress May 17-21, 2009.
Kansas City Marriott Downtown, Kansas
City, MO. Organized by EWRI and ASCE. http://content.asce.org/conferences/ewri2009/index.html
CONFERENCE: Nonpoint Source Pollution Conference May
18-20, 2009. Eastland Park Hotel, Portland, ME. Organized by New
England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission (NEIWPCC). http://www.neiwpcc.org/npsconference/
CONFERENCE: River
Rally 2009 May 29-June 1, 2009. Hyatt
Regency Baltimore, Baltimore,
MD. Organized by River
Network. http://www.rivernetwork.org/rn/rally/
CONFERENCE: Wetland Connections June 22-26, 2009. Monona
Terrace Community & Convention Center, Madison, WI. Organized by the North Central Chapter of the Society of Wetland Scientists,
with partners the Wisconsin Wetlands Association and the Wetland
Biogeochemistry Symposium. http://www.sws.org/2009_meeting/index.mgi
CONFERENCE: North American Surface Water Quality Conference & Exposition (StormCon '09) August 16-20, 2009. Anaheim Marriott, Anaheim, CA. http://www.stormcon.com/sc.html
Other Resources:
NEW REPORT: Virginia
Water Resources
Research Center
Releases Stormwater BMP Decision Support Tool
The Virginia Water Resources Research Center (VWRRC)
recently released a report entitled, "Virginia's
Stormwater Impact Evaluation: Developing an Optimization Tool for Improved Site Development,
Selection and Placement of Stormwater Runoff BMPs." The report
describes the development of an "optimization tool" for stormwater BMP
selection based on physical site characteristics; local, state, and federal
pollution control ordinances; and implementation and long-term maintenance
costs. The decision support tool, known as an "analytic hierarchy process
(AHP)" is designed to assist with a less subjective selection of BMPs based on
a mathematical comparison of BMPs across a range of criteria. The report
can be downloaded from the VWRRC website at:http://www.vwrrc.vt.edu/pdfs/specialreports/SR-44%20USEPA%20BMP%20Optimization%20Project%20Final%20Report.pdf
NEW TOOL: Center
Releases Stormwater BMP Performance Verification Checklist
Are you confounded by the wide array of manufactured and
proprietary BMPs on the market? Are you confused about if and when to
approve a particular device on the development site? The Center is
pleased to assist you by releasing Tool #8 of our post-construction stormwater
management project, Managing Stormwater in Your Community. Tool #8
is a downloadable checklist that will help local program authorities provide a
consistent set of questions for applicants proposing to use manufactured and
proprietary BMPs. The goal of this tool is to provide more of a level
playing field so that all applicants provide the same type of BMP performance
information and data as a basis for approving particular devices. The
tool does not promote or "pre-approve" any particular device, but is applicable
for the review of all proprietary BMPs. The checklist is accompanied by
an explanation and instructions for using the checklist, technical appendices
that elucidate the complex world of BMP performance, and a matrix that compares
existing BMP verification protocols, such as TARP, TAPE, and NJCAT. The tool
can be downloaded at: http://www.cwp.org/postconstruction
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Runoff Rundown Team: Hye Yeong Kwon, editor, Kathy Proebstle, Tiffany Wright. Contributions from Center staff.
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