Stormwater Facility Maintenance Workshops Held in Sussex County

Maintaining stormwater ponds and other stormwater facilities was the topic of workshops held throughout Sussex County this autumn.   Approximately 100 Sussex County residents representing homeowner associations, property management firms and local towns attended one of the three workshops.  These were hosted by the Sussex Conservation District and the Delaware NEMO (Non-Point Education for Municipal Officials) Program with technical support from DNREC.  The project was funded in part with a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through DNREC.

Stormwater pond designed into residential landscaping

Stormwater ponds have become prevalent in Sussex County in recent years as farm fields and forests have been increasingly converted to residential developments, commercial establishments and roads.   Rain, which used to be absorbed by vegetation and sandy soils, now travels over impervious surfaces such as rooftops, roads, and parking lots to storm drains and ultimately runs off into nearby waterways such as streams, bays and the coastal ocean.

Stormwater ponds — both wet and dry — act as temporary holding basins to prevent flooding and remove pollutants and settle suspended sediments transported by stormwater.  These ponds can add to the aesthetics of a community, and homeowners often pay a premium to be close to these man-made waterfront sites.  They are very effective at controlling flooding and removing pollutants, but they need to be maintained.

The workshop provided participants with a basic introduction to stormwater pond management and offered guidance on how residents can better manage their stormwater facilities.   Environmental scientists, engineers, and managers from DNREC, Sussex Conservation District and the environmental consulting firm, Envirotech, provided presentations and addressed questions that ranged from how to control algae blooms to where to seek funding to support stormwater facility maintenance.

The workshop was also designed to hear from attendees about the types of issues and concerns they have with their stormwater facilities.  These issues have been forwarded to the Stormwater Maintenance Advisory Committee, a group of Sussex County stakeholders, who are charged with providing DNREC with a list of concerns and recommendations related to stormwater facility maintenance.

Since 1991 there has been a statewide Sediment and Stormwater Program in place, administered by DNREC in cooperation with conservation districts, counties and municipalities.  Residential, commercial, industrial and institutional developments are required to construct stormwater management facilities that address non-point pollution on developed sites.

The task of maintaining stormwater ponds falls on property owners.  In the case of residential development, the owner is often an individual or a homeowner association.  Some individuals or associations seek professional support, while others, particularly those with dry ponds, choose to manage their ponds on their own.   Still others may not even be aware that the ponds require ongoing and sometimes extensive periodic maintenance.

While the intent of the workshops was not to turn property owners into pond-maintenance experts, most participants felt that they left with a good sense of why the ponds are there, how they function and how to manage them to do what they are designed to do.  This hits at the core of the Delaware NEMO goal – providing local decision makers (including homeowner associations and individuals) with the information they need to ask the right questions about the natural resources under their control.

For more information, please contact Joe Farrell, University of Delaware Sea Grant Program and Delaware NEMO coordinator, (302) 645-4250