What is Stormwater Management?

Stormwater Management is a mechanism for controlling stormwater runoff.  These practices are incorporated into the design of a development to mitigate any impacts the development may have on the aquatic environment.  Stormwater Management practices address two major issues, the quantity or volume of stormwater and the quality of the stormwater.

Stormwater Quantity  - Pervious (or vegetated) surfaces, such as fields,  meadows and woodlands, absorb and infiltrate rainfall and generate little runoff.  As land develops, these areas are typically covered with impervious surfaces, such as pavement and rooftops.  These impervious surfaces generate more runoff every time it rains. The quantity of runoff from these areas can overwhelm natural channels and streams.  Stormwater Management practices are designed to offset these increases in runoff.

Stormwater Quality - The pervious and impervious surfaces in the urbanized landscape collect pollutants such as automobile oil, grease, brake pad dust, sediment from construction sites, bacteria from animal waste, excess lawn care fertilizers and pesticides, as well as atmospheric deposition of phosphorus, nitrogen and other airborne pollutants. Rainfall washes these surfaces so that the initial flush of runoff can carry high concentrations of these pollutants to nearby drinking water supplies, waterways, beaches and properties. Pollution washed from the land surface by rainfall is called nonpoint source pollution.  Stormwater Management practices also provide water quality treatment to help prevent additional pollution from entering streams and rivers.  Stafford County is located in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, where protecting water quality is very important.

Stormwater Management in Stafford County

In 1994, Stafford County adopted a Stormwater Management Ordinance (Chapter 21.5 of the County Code) to establish minimum stormwater management requirements which: protect the safety and welfare of Stafford County residents and businesses; reduce flood damage to property; minimize the impacts of increased stormwater runoff from new land development; maintain the adequacy of existing and proposed culverts, bridges, dams, and other structures; prevent, to the greatest extent feasible, an increase in nonpoint source pollution; maintain the integrity of stream channels for their biological functions and drainage; minimize the impact of development upon stream erosion; and preserve and protect water supply facilities from increased flood discharges, stream erosion and nonpoint source pollution.  The County's Stormwater Management was updated in 2003 to comply with amendments to the Virginia Stormwater Management Regulations.  All land development projects must comply with the requirements of this ordinance.  The following references may be helpful when preparing a Stormwater Management Plan for a development project in Stafford:

Stafford County Development Plan Applications

Stafford County Stormwater Management Design Manual

Virginia Stormwater Management Handbook

Low Impact Development Design Strategies: An Integrated Design Approach

Low Impact Development Hydrologic Analysis

Low Impact Development

Low Impact Development (LID) is an innovative Stormwater Management approach with a basic principle that is modeled after nature:  manage rainfall at the source using site design techniques that store, infiltrate, filter, evaporate and detain runoff.  LID's goal is to mimic a site's predevelopment hydrology by using design techniques that infiltrate, filter, store, evaporate and detain runoff close to its source.  A goal of LID is to use site and subdivision design techniques in coordination with Stormwater Management engineering to mimic the hydrologic conditions associated with an undeveloped site.  In 2003, Stafford County updated its Stormwater Management Ordinance to include LID as an option for complying with the water quality, stream channel erosion, and flooding technical criteria of the County Stormwater Ordinance.  The County also refined some of its requirements in the zoning and subdivision ordinances to provide some incentives to utilize LID practices.  In 2004, the County went a step further and required the use of LID on new development projects to the "maximum extent practicable".  To lead by example and to provide a demonstration project to show developers and engineers some LID facilities, the County in conjunction with friends of the Rappahannock constructed a demonstration project in the County Administration Center parking lot.  For more information on the demonstration project click here.

People interested in learning more about Low Impact Development may wish to visit the following websites:

Low Impact Development Center

Friends of the Rappahannock

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Puget Sound Action Team

NPDES (National Pollution Discharge Elimination System) Phase II Permit Program

Stafford County is designated under the NPDES Phase II permitting requirements because portions of the County are located within urbanized areas according to the 2000 census.  The County is required to obtain a permit for the Stormwater discharges from its Municipal Seperate Storm Sewer System or MS4.  In Virginia, this permit is referred to as a Virginia Pollution Discharge Elimination System (VPDES) permit.  The County obtained its permit in July of 2003 and is required to implement a Stormwater Management Program that meets goals in the following categories referred to as "minimum control measures":

• Public Education and Outreach on Stormwater Impacts

• Public Involvement/Participation

• Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination

• Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control

• Post-Construction Stormwater Management in New Development and Redevelopment

• Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping for Municipal Operations
  
  To learn more about the County's NPDES permit and program click here and for a list of Key Contacts for the County's Stormwater and Erosion Control Program please click here.