The Stormwater Report

The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation announced March 24 that $2.4 million will be available for water basin studies through the WaterSMART Basin Study Program. Studies will aid comprehensive water management plans that ensure water supplies for all purposes while protecting ecosystems. Study areas will include the Sacramento–San Joaquin river basins and [...]

The Coca-Cola Co., in partnership with River Network, celebrated the month of April — Earth Month — by donating more than 1000 syrup drums for communities to use as rain barrels. Since the rain barrel program started in 2008, Coca-Cola has provided more than 22,000 drums. The company estimates that these rain barrels have replenished [...]

On April 11, Save the Sound, a program of the Connecticut Fund for the Environment, released Green Infrastructure Feasibility Scan for Bridgeport and New Haven, CT. While the report is geared toward two Connecticut cities specifically, it covers the basics of a broad range of green infrastructure practices and discusses implementation concepts that could be [...]

On April 18, high school students in Yakima, Wash., helped collect runoff samples from a low-impact development demonstration project. The project — funded in part by a grant from the Washington State Department of Ecology — compares pervious asphalt, pervious concrete, and permeable pavers. All three demonstrations have a layer of crushed stone or sand [...]

Ocean County, N.J., has begun repairing storm basins to protect Barnegat Bay, starting with the Todd Road stormwater basin. This project and other basin improvement efforts are part of the larger Barnegat Bay Restoration Plan and corresponding funding initiative. Studies of old stormwater basins showed that soil compaction was preventing water from properly infiltrating the [...]

The European Union’s Smart Resilient Technologies Systems and Tools (SMARTeST) program, the Water Environment Foundation (WEF), and the Northern Virginia Regional Commission hosted a one-day workshop at WEF. The workshop included presentations and discussion on the development of applications related to flood resilience and progressive stormwater management, including green infrastructure. The goal was to facilitate an [...]

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has again delayed the release of the stormwater rulemaking schedule, which was expected April 27.  EPA officials stated the schedule will now be released in early to mid-May along with a posting of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to the Federal Register. The posting of the NPRM will officially [...]

On April 18, the Virginia General Assembly passed the Nutrient Trading Act, which requires certification of best management practices (BMPs) to qualify as nutrient reduction credits in Virginia water quality trading schemes. The act requires that BMPs be registered with the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, which is in charge of implementing and enforcing [...]

Federally subsidized low-interest loans offered through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) State Revolving Fund are not just for public infrastructure projects. Nonpoint source projects and those linked to the National Estuary Program, even those on private lands, can receive funding. According to EPA, the agency provided $90 billion for water quality projects between 1988 [...]

Legislation passed April 9 by Maryland’s 2012 General Assembly will double the Bay Restoration Fund fee. Money collected will be used for water quality projects, especially reductions in nutrient pollution that affect Chesapeake Bay. Funds will provide grant money for local stormwater projects and will be used to upgrade the state’s 67 major wastewater treatment [...]