|
Hamilton County Storm Water District Revisited History The Hamilton County Storm Water District was established in response to newly promulgated legislation that is an extension of the 1972 Clean Water Act. As end-of-pipe, point sources of pollution were reduced by the original Act, it became apparent that other nonpoint pollution sources that include sediment, fertilizers, pesticides, urban runoff, stream chanelization and land disposal were significantly degrading our water quality and were in fact, responsible for over half of the pollutants in our streams. The USEPA created legislation known as the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Phase II Final Rule that required more that 480 local governments across Ohio to apply for a storm water permit by March 10, 2003 and develop a storm water management plan to reduce these nonpoint sources of pollution. In Hamilton County, the local jurisdictions took this opportunity to work together to create a county-wide storm water district. Our waterways know no jurisdictional boundaries and if we are to truly address water quality; our waterways must be viewed as a whole system. Fee structure One benefit of having a county-wide storm water district is the economy of scale. The District is administered by the County Engineer and draws on the knowledge and talents of existing county departments. Since the County Commissioners deemed Storm Water as a priority in 1990, our District had a head start in dealing with the requirements of this new permit. Here is a comparison of our Storm Water Fee other regional districts and then nationally: * Hamilton County = $4.54 per year per SFU * Maumee River Regional Storm Water District = $5 – 10 per year per ERU * City of Loveland = $16 per year per ERU (Phase II only) * Forest Park = $36 per year per ERU * National AFSMA = $8.28 per year per household What am I getting for my fee? The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) NPDES Phase II permit requires six minimum control measures to improve our water quality. 1. Public Information & Education – The biggest challenge is to instill the fact that individual action and choices have an impact on water quality. When you consider our current population is approximately 814,000, you can imagine the cumulative affect of one bad action. The Hamilton County Soil & Water Conservation District (SWCD) is responsible for this component. Actions include the development of a general brochure, a water quality curriculum for grades K-12, creation of billboard and radio ads, free classroom and community education programs and a web based library of education materials. See the website at http://www.hamilton-co.org/stormwater/ To arrange an educational program, call 772-7645. 2. Public Involvement and Participation – The Hamilton County General Health District (GHD) staffs a hotline for stormwater pollution complaints – 946-7000. Hamilton Co. SWCD coordinates a storm drain labeling and watershed signage program. They also offer mini-grants to local watershed groups for education programs. Call 772-7645 to become active in any one of these programs. 3. Illicit Discharge Detection & Elimination – The Hamilton County GHD is assisting the District by mapping the location of outfalls to Hamilton County storm water system including rivers, creeks, and streams. The Hamilton County GHD is also performing dry weather screening and sampling of these located outfalls to determine if there are any illicit substances being discharged. The dry weather screening allows priority areas to be identified and ultimately each detected illicit discharge to be tracked to its source and eliminated. 4. Construction Site Runoff Control – Sediment is our #1 water pollutant by volume. The Hamilton County SWCD along with the SW District Support Staff has developed erosion and sediment control regulations and an ordinance that cover site plan review & construction site inspection involving land disturbances of one acre and larger. The ordinance and regulations are being reviewed by the Prosecutor’s office and will be implemented this year. The SWCD will train local government employees on how to implement these regulations. 5. Post Construction - The Storm Water District Support Staff and Camp Dresser & McKee Inc. (CDM) have worked closely with the Hamilton County Department of Public Works to develop a storm water quality ordinance and rules and regulations that compliment the existing rules and regulations governing storm water quantity site design considerations. These rules and regulations will be reviewed by the Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office and will be implemented this year. 6. Pollution Prevention & Good Housekeeping – The SW District Technical Advisory Committee and CDM Consultants have worked closely to develop a water quality maintenance management plan for local governments. This plan is intended to provide guidance regarding the best management practices that need to be utilized in everyday governmental operations in order to minimize the potential for stormwater pollution, and improve the water quality of the rivers, streams, and creeks. Storm Water District Oversight Board meetings are held monthly. See the Storm Water District website for meeting date and location or call 946-4250.   The Hamilton County Solid Waste Management District (SWMD) is divided into three categories: Residential Outreach, Business and Industry Outreach and Education Outreach. Within these divisions is information on recycling in your home or community, business materials exchange information, and teacher resources, to name a few. The Hamilton County Solid Waste Management District home page CLICK HERE 
The 5th Annual Computer Recycling Collection Event will be held June 4 – 11, 2005 at Technology Recycling Group located in Reading, Ohio. All participants must pre-register for the event. The registration deadline is April 29, 2005. MORE INFORMATION  BACK | Voting | Hamilton County Park System | Village Demographics | HIP Program | Building and Zoning | Minutes | Honors, Awards and Mayor's Proclamation | Announcements, Projects, Events | Trash Collection, Recycling | Police services | Fire and Emergency Services | Picture Gallery Page 1 | Picture Gallery Page 2 | Village Officials | Important Phone Numbers | Airport Noise Complaints | State Officials | Hamilton County Solid Waste District | Swearing in Ceremony 2006 | Hamilton County Emergency Management Agency | Hamilton County Environmental Services | Memorial Day Parade | | Return Home | Village Of North Bend | Village Calendar | Great Links | Contact Us | Hamilton County Government | |
||