The problem is no longer maintaining a permit and providing basic services to comply with the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES). Clouds are on the horizon, and a veritable financial storm is brewing, a storm which might engulf the general fund.
The following is a list of many stormwater challenges which may be brewing within your community, and it’s possible that all of them apply:
- Inadequate or failing infrastructure, as your baseline
- Additional infrastructure needs, in existing and newly developing communities
- Groundwater management and recharge
- Degraded local environment, including creeks, bays, marshes, etc.
- NPDES requirements, including trash capture in storm drains
- Sanitary sewer implications (inflow and infiltration)
- Recurring flooding
Responding to any or all of the above is a challenge, but it is doubly so considering the competing financial needs for public safety, streets and transportation improvements, community services and so on. It is an imperative to review your needs, and consider the tools in your financial toolbox. This effort must be broad-based, across virtually all departments, and include a healthy dialogue within your community.
