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The Draft Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems General Permit is available for public comment from November 12, 2019 through January 11, 2020 on the MPCA public notices webpage.
The MPCA has created multiple informational documents to supplement the draft permit, along with additional resources to assist interested parties in meeting new permit requirements. These items can be found at https://www.pca.state.mn.us/water/reissuing-municipal-stormwater-general-permit.
The MPCA will hold an interactive webinar on the draft MS4 General Permit via WebEx on Wednesday, December 11, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. (Central time). Register for the webinar on WebEx before 8:00 a.m. on Wednesday, December 11.
The city of Alexandria is getting help from its residents to manage how stormwater utility funds are spent. In 2004, the city created a City Council subcommittee of seven city residents to hear and resolve stormwater concerns. City staff answered our questions about their Stormwater Management Committee and the role it plays in the Alexandria’s stormwater program.
Q: What is the Stormwater Management Committee?
A: The Stormwater Management Committee (SMC) is a group of seven Alexandria residents that manage stormwater utility funds collected by the city. The committee reports to the City Council for approval on larger expenses and is supported by the council to manage funds on smaller improvements. The SMC funds street sweeping, maintenance equipment, and storm sewer maintenance and repair. It also funds stormwater pollution prevention activities at city construction projects, residential flooding projects, and all components of the city’s municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4). The committee meets once a month to discuss the budget, residential concerns, and equipment status while always looking for opportunities to improve upon the city’s current MS4. Residents are invited to present during the meeting and residential stormwater concerns are analyzed for solutions and prioritized using a project prioritization spreadsheet. If a solution is possible and the project scores high enough on the prioritization spreadsheet, the SMC may fund the project.
Q: What’s the greatest accomplishment of the Stormwater Management Committee?
A: It’s the way it is able to manage the city of Alexandria’s MS4 program. Accomplishing this is a group effort between the city and their consultant, Widseth Smith Nolting and Associates. The committee takes pride in being responsive to city residents. The goal of the committee is to see that all concerns are dealt with in a way that allows residents to feel that their voices have been heard.
Q: What are future plans for the Stormwater Management Committee?
A: They include continuing to manage, inspect, educate, and maintain the city’s MS4 as well as look for ways to improve the value of the MS4 for city residents. The SMC has a capital improvement plan that includes eliminating direct discharges to lakes as well as constructing best management practices for water quality at various locations around town. One of the next tasks will be a major update to the stormwater GIS mapping system. The committee is also looking into ways of partnering on major projects to further leverage available funds.
Q: If other MS4s wanted to implement something similar to the Stormwater Management Committee, what advice would you give them?
A: The biggest piece of advice to set up a successful committee is to gain respect from all involved by making decisions based on facts and the wellbeing of city residents. The Alexandria Stormwater Management Committee works well because it is so well supported by the City Council and staff. This level of trust is a critical component of the success of the committee.
Recently, there has been considerable discussion regarding the effectiveness of stormwater ponds for removing phosphorus. In 2019, the MPCA contracted with the LimnoTech engineering firm to:
- Estimate the extent to which constructed stormwater ponds don’t effectively retain phosphorus
- Identify conditions in which constructed stormwater ponds would release phosphorus
- Compile a list of constructed stormwater ponds that could potentially release phosphorus
The extent of phosphorus release from stormwater ponds has not been determined, but recent efforts have begun shedding light on the process. A University of Minnesota study revealed that a large proportion of ponds have surface concentrations higher than estimated stormwater influent. A study conducted by the Lake Simcoe Conservation Authority identified that many ponds are not operating as efficiently as designed, speculating that anoxic conditions may be contributing to internal phosphorus loading. This speculation has been supported by recent literature.
Most stormwater ponds are retaining phosphorus on an annual basis, but not to the extent expected or desired, due to design, types of phosphorus inputs, inadequate maintenance, and other factors. The MPCA will continue to study the factors affecting phosphorus dynamics in ponds and develop tools to assist stormwater practitioners, including models and guidance on managing phosphorus inputs. See the Minnesota Stormwater Manual for more information on the LimnoTech study and links to other work and literature on the topic.
Cities across Minnesota are working to reduce chloride pollution in lakes and streams, usually by reducing road salt use or salty discharges to their wastewater treatment plants. The MPCA partnered with the Nine Mile Creek Watershed District, TetraTech, and several local cities and watershed organizations to develop two new resources to help cities with these efforts:
- The suite of model ordinances are for municipal officials who want to craft laws around the use of deicers in their cities to protect water quality, animals, human health, and infrastructure. The language was adapted from existing code enacted by Midwestern cities and from the MPCA’s Smart Salting and deicer management guidance. Local governments may tailor the language to their needs.
- The water softener rebate program guide is for city or watershed staff who have determined that water softeners are a significant source of chloride to their wastewater treatment facility. The guide helps them develop a program to offer residents rebates for optimizing, upgrading, or removing their water softeners.
For additional resources, please visit the Statewide chloride resources webpage or contact Brooke Asleson (MPCA) (651 757-2205).
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Stormwater professionals and researchers across Minnesota are studying practices, policies, and management techniques that would help to limit the effects of urban stormwater. The Minnesota Stormwater Research Program and the Minnesota Stormwater Research Council at the University of Minnesota are conducting applied research in conjunction with the MPCA.The agency’s peer review process ensures that the research is scientifically rigorous and directly applicable to Minnesota stormwater management. A brief report highlights recent accomplishments and eleven on-going projects.
Fundraising by the Stormwater Research Council and contributions by the organizations listed below support these projects and the U of MN’s Stormwater Research Program:
- Minnesota Clean Water Fund and Capital Region Watershed District
- Comfort Lake-Forest Lake Watershed District
- Mississippi Watershed Management Organization
- Nine Mile Creek Watershed District
- Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District
- South Washington Watershed District
- Valley Branch Watershed District
- City of Bloomington
- City of Edina
- City of Minnetonka
- City of Woodbury
- Wenck Associates
2020 Stormwater Research Request for Proposals (RFP)
The Minnesota Water Resources Center, in cooperation with the Minnesota Stormwater Research Council (MSRC), invites proposals to advance urban stormwater science, technology, and management in Minnesota.The 2020 RFP is now available online at https://www.wrc.umn.edu/stormwaterrfp.The RFP provides details on priority research topics and instructions on the proposal submission process. Anyone may apply! Funding to support this work is provided by the Minnesota Clean Water Fund and by members of the MSRC https://www.wrc.umn.edu/msrc.
2019-20 Stormwater Research: Request for Funds (RFF)
The Minnesota Stormwater Research Program (MSRP) and the Minnesota Stormwater Research Council (MSRC) of the University of Minnesota, are conducting applied research in conjunction with the MPCA. A number of local organizations including watershed districts, watershed management organizations, cities, and private entities have contributed to support this research through a RFF.
Become a contributor, too! Your contributions to the MSRC's 2019-20 pooled fund will support research projects selected under the current RFP to begin in 2020. The new practical knowledge resulting from MSRP’s research will directly benefit your organization and Minnesota’s water quality.
Contact a member of the MSRC Advisory Board, David Fairbairn (MPCA), or John Bilotta (UMN) for more information on requests for funds or for research proposals.
The MPCA recently revised and updated the GreenStep Cities’ municipal stormwater assessment. GreenStep participants use the assessment to gauge how well they’re doing in managing stormwater. The assessment replaces the Blue Star Award Program stormwater management assessment. Use the assessment to:
- Learn about stormwater management options
- Compare your city’s efforts to others
- See your progress from year to year
- Report your achievements to your city council and community
- Get recognized at Steps 4 and 5 in the GreenStep program for Best Practice #17 and Metric #9
The assessment will be sent out to cities by January 1, 2020 in a Snap Survey format, but a Word document is currently available for viewing here.
Some Minnesotans, particularly those with low incomes and people of color, can be exposed to more pollution and its related health effects than others. Environmental justice work is combatting the unfair distribution of environmental benefits and burdens. The MPCA is striving to ensure:
- No group of people bears disproportionate negative effects of pollution
- All Minnesotans have opportunities for meaningful involvement in our processes.
The MPCA considers environmental justice during development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies.
To assist in these efforts, the MPCA has modified the Construction Stormwater Special Waters Search Tool to show “environmental justice areas” in Minnesota. The areas are determined using the 2010 census (and are subject to change) and include communities where the majority of the population are people of color or where more than 40% are low income. Permittees may use the tool to assist them in community outreach efforts and to ensure they are achieving the same degree of environmental quality in all areas. In the tool, select “Environmental justice areas” from the Map Layers drop down list.
In September, MPCA MS4 staff volunteered at the Metro Children’s Water Festival at the state fair grounds. About 1,800 fourth graders from Twin Cities area schools toured stations on aquatic insects, invasive species, stormwater, erosion, and much more, created by a variety of water-related organizations. MPCA staff asked students what they learned about water throughout the day.
Q: What is something you do not want in the water?
A. Trash, plastic, gasoline or paint.
Q: What is one thing you learned today?
A. We should conserve water so when I am brushing my teeth I should shut the faucet off.
B. We do not need to water the grass every day because it does not need that much water.
Interacting with kids and getting them thinking about water issues is important because they are our future environmental stewards. And, of course, keeping trash, plastic, gasoline, and paint out of lakes, rivers and streams is part of managing stormwater and complying with the municipal stormwater general permit! As is educating the public on protecting stormwater, which affects our water quality throughout the state.
Learn about the festival and how you can participate on the festival web site.
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The MS4 Toolkit is a new page in the Minnesota Stormwater Manual. This page is a stormwater education resource for MS4 permittees, but is also accessible to the general public. This site hosts a variety of stormwater materials, including resources that can be downloaded, printed, and distributed. Examples include flyers, pamphlets, videos, PowerPoints, etc. on topics like illicit discharges and why we should protect stormwater.
Updates to the Toolkit will continue over the next couple of months as we add new materials. Keep an eye out for additional updates, including an educational webinar in the future on how to navigate the Toolkit.
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The MPCA recently hired Dana Vanderbosch as director of its Municipal Division, which includes the agency’s municipal wastewater, subsurface sewage treatment, and stormwater programs. She succeeds Mark Schmitt who has retired.
Dana has worked for the MPCA as the Assistant Division Director for the Environmental Analysis and Outcomes and Watershed divisions. She has been instrumental in aligning watershed activities with water monitoring activities for more efficient program operations. She has experience in environmental review, permitting, supporting regulatory and water standards activities, and compliance.
Dana also served as manager in the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ Parks and Trails program, where she managed the $30 million state park, trail acquisition, and construction program, which included wastewater and drinking water infrastructure. Her considerable experience and leadership will serve the Municipal Division and the MPCA well.
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Panel Event: Stormwater Best Management Practices Performance Evaluation, Sponsored by: Interstate Technology and Regulatory Council, December 5, 2019, 12:00 PM - 1:15 PM, CST
Minnesota Erosion Control Association, 32nd Annual Conference, January 21-23, Crowne Plaza Minneapolis West, Plymouth, Minnesota
Climate Adaptation Conference, Water Resources Center, University of Minnesota, January 22, 2020
If you have questions about or suggestions for this newsletter, contact Roberta Getman, MPCA-Rochester, 507-206-2629.
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