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KNOW YOUR WEATHER BEFORE BREAKING GROUND!
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NPDES + WILDLIFE CONSERVATION
International Erosion Control Association JOIN TODAY
Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District
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Greetings!
LAKE LANIER's RECENT RISE!
Are we still in a drought? What defines a drought anyway? It rained in the Lake Lanier watershed last week. It's truly amazing to see a huge lake like Lanier rise by over 2 feet after one rain event. Good news and I'm grateful for it, but does that mean the entire state of Georgia is out of the drought now? Read what came out of Los Angeles Times about Georgia's drought.
As I was out on the lake a few days ago, I was reminded that the quality of our water after a rain event is impacted alot by us humans. Floating trash (gas cans, fuel oil sheen, dog poop, cans, plastic bottles, footballs, plumes of sediment,and various assortments of litter) were all popping up and down in the waves on beautiful Lake Lanier. I couldn't help but think of the people that live along the shores of West Point, the first lake on the Chattahoochee River, as it flows south of Atlanta, after it rains.
One thing for sure, it's not safe to be in the water in a lake, river, or ocean bay after a heavy rain where runnoff from our over populated watersheds have carried the plethora of pollutants we see floating, mixing, and often sinking, into our waterways. Let's not forget that NPDES is all about giving American's, and our future generations, a great place to live, work and play!
I'm a lucky man to be able to speak, train and consult about something I care about so much. Thank you for allowing the NPDES Training Institute to be a part of your educational experience!
CLICK HERE to see what people say about our stormwater training! |
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FAQs
WHAT ARE THE RULES
for GEORGIA CONSTRUCTION
There are a lot of scenarios that people in the construction industry have to contend with in Georgia and most of our states in the US! What kind of a permit is required? When is a permit required and when is it not required? If a permit is not required, is a ES&PC Plan required? In order to address this voluminous list of scenarios, the Georgia EPD recently published a 5-page Table to help figure that out. By downloading this table and keeping it with your Field Manual and other tools for compliance, it should help unravel the maze.
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HELPING YOU CATCH A FISH OF A LIFETIME, IS HOW WE CAN BEST SHOW THE IMPORTANCE OF PROTECTING OUR WATER!
& WIN your opportunity!
Not only do you get a chance for a nice fishing trip, we guarantee our courses and have thousands of people that rave about our training. Click here to read a few of their comments.
Congratulations to Kaaba Johnson of East Point City, winner of the 2012, 2nd Quarter guided fishing trip!
CLICK HERE FOR A LAKE LANIER FISHING REPORT! THE FALL BITE IS UPON US AND IT'S LOOKING GOOD! |
CONSTRUCTION & NPDES COMPLIANCE
American's Working Together for WATER QUALITY!"
Click Here for
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MAJOR DOLLARS FOR GEORGIA'S WATER SUPPLY
The Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA) and Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA) awarded $90,490,866 in loans and $9,060,000 state direct investment (SDI) for eight water supply projects through the Governor's Water Supply Program (GWSP).
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SUPREME COURT IS BACK AT CWA ISSUES....
BIG ONES!
by Bradley M. Marten
The United States Supreme Court begins its 2012-13 term with two environmental cases on its docket. Both are Clean Water Act (CWA) challenges brought by environmental groups, both appeal decisions favoring those groups, and both come from the Ninth Circuit - a circuit the Supreme Court has overturned six times on environmental cases in its last four terms. These two cases, coming on the 40th anniversary of the Clean Water Act, will be important in deciding the reach of that core environmental statute.
In the first case, Georgia-Pacific West, et. al. v. Northwest Environmental Defense Center and Decker, et al v. NEDC. The Ninth Circuit held that public and private forest land owners and timber companies are required to obtain permits for stormwater discharges from ditches and culverts.
The second case, L.A. County Flood Control District v. Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC),[3] presents the Court with an opportunity to reassess the reach of "navigable waters" under the CWA following the Court's 2006 Rapanos decision[4] and to provide additional clarification of what constitutes a "discharge" under the Act. |
A GREAT ARTICLE ABOUT A BASIC BMP
SILT FENCE....LET'S GET IT RIGHT!
A proper silt fence installation is much more complex than people think - and more than manuals specify. In the past and in many areas today, silt fence is spoken about in one or two sentences and a couple of bullet points. Since it is rarely installed properly, people don't give it due credit nor understand its potential.
Properly installed silt fence is the most effective temporary sediment control device available. It can withstand concentrated flows (not to be confused with continuous flows), heavy winds, and potentially retain 18 inches of sediment - often times 10-20 tons of sediment per run of fence. It is relatively fast to install so it can go in on short notice, inexpensive, and the posts are recyclable.
However, it is somewhat better utilized for open construction and residential development sites than individual home lots under construction. For maximum effectiveness, any sediment retention device must filter sediment contained in runoff or pond water for deposition/sedimentation to occur, and that is harder to achieve on an individual lot with busy construction traffic.
MORE from Land and Water Magazine |
We customize our MS4 courses around your training needs. One or two day trainings available! Our 2-Day Training is awesome and combines classroom with field in a great way!
We also help you with your reporting. Have a difficult time organizing all of those records and submitting that Annual Report to the EPD? Not only do we provide MS4 Training for cities, counties, DOTs and universities, we also get you connected with a cost effective solution for your MS4 Annual Reporting Requirements! The MS4 Web and Desktop program is a customizable, state of the art software that can make annual reporting less expensive, much simpler, and a lot easier!
"What is a Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4)?" A MS4 is a conveyance, or a system of conveyances, that is owned by a state, city, town, village, military base, or other public entity (e.g., University) that discharges stormwater to waters of the United States. A MS4 collects or conveys stormwater (including storm drains, pipes, ditches, etc.). It is not a combined sewer system, and it is not part of a publicly owned treatment works (POTW). MS4s must report annually to the State administering the MS4 permit or the US EPA, and that's where we can help! Call us at 678-469-5120. |
INTERNATIONAL EROSION CONTROL ASSOCIATION
IECA.ORG
If you want to learn more and gain some CEUs about erosion prevention and sediment control, check out IECA and their online resources to courses and workshops. This organization has it going on when it comes to the technical resources available for just about anything related to the subject. I'm the President of the Southeast Chapter and proud to be a part of this highly professional organization.
The Southeast Chapter for the IECA is active and excited about it's role in the construction and stormwater industries!
CLICK HERE for more information! |
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It's important that we sacrifice a little to give our future generations an equally great place to work, live, fish, hunt, and enjoy. As construction picks back up, let's remember the importance of having a healthy economy; a strong construction sector that is mindful of stormwater runoff impacts to America's watersheds.
Before the Clean Water Act was passed, sediment, sewage, and chemicals caused America's rivers, like the Chattahoochee River, to be void of fish. As Americans, we cannot take our eyes off of the importance of water quality. Respecting our neighbors downstream is what the Clean Water Act is all about! There is a lot happening today with water regulations that affect a diverse community of public and private entities. If you have areas of interest that you would like included in this newsletter, please contact us at
678-469-5120.
This Newsletter is intended to be a useful tool for all individuals involved in land disturbing activities and stormwater management.
Sincerely,
T. Luke Owen, PG
Principal, NPDES Stormwater Training Institute
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