"Within thirty (30) days after the Effective Date of this Consent Decree, LFUCG shall pay a civil penalty to the United States of $425,000Ö."
Translation: Clean up your act, Lexington!
Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government (LFUCG) will pay this penalty as part of the Consent Decree, an agreement reached on March 14, 2008 with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Kentucky's Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet. It resolves a joint federal-state lawsuit filed against LFUCG in November 2006.
Why was LFUCG sued? Because, in the words of Mayor Newberry, "Ö We have never attempted to contest the fact that (the) Urban County Government repeatedly violated the Clean Water Act." The Consent Decree requires close to $300 million of sanitary and stormwater sewer system repairs and wastewater treatment plant improvements over the next decade.
The Sanitary Sewer System
Neglected, and with many operational problems, the sanitary sewer system backs up during heavy rains, discharging raw sewage into our streets, basements, and streams. Also, the sanitary and storm sewer systems interconnect in at least nine places, resulting in untreated sewage entering our waterways.
Fixing the sanitary sewer system may not be exactly easy but it is a known quantity. A toilet gets flushed; the wastewater enters a pipe and is directed to a wastewater treatment plant. No doubt repairing the pipes and upgrading the wastewater treatment plants will be a massive undertaking, but this is at least something one can get a handle on.
Stormwater Management
Here's where it gets really tricky. Stormwater originates fromÖeverywhere.
In undeveloped areas, rainfall soaks into the soil, replenishing the groundwater and entering streams slowly. Vegetation absorbs water and transpiration cools the air.
In urban areas, a lot of the rain never makes it into the soil. Think about it: an average single family dwelling property has 2,500 square feet of impervious surfaces-rooftops, sidewalks, driveways and patios (and compacted lawns can be considered 'green concrete'). During a quarter-inch rain, 390 gallons of clean water will become stormwater runoff. Our drainage and stormwater systems move runoff into our streams and rivers as quickly as possible, taking oil and grease, trash, fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and pet waste right along with it. What was clean water becomes wastewater.
And there's more. Many streams are fed by groundwater, and impervious surfaces block rainwater from contributing to the groundwater supply. This can result in lower stream flows during the dry season. A sudden rush of contaminated stormwater runoff causes more frequent flooding, stream banks erode, and sedimentation makes channels shallower. This results in a loss of wildlife habitat because, as impervious surfaces increase, the number and diversity of aquatic life decreases.
Several of our key watersheds are recognized by the Kentucky Division of Water as being "impaired," meaning they are unable to support aquatic habitat and are not suitable for human contact.
Low-Impact Development
David Gabbard is a senior engineer with LFUCG who works with many elements of the stormwater quality management program. Much of what I've written thus far, I learned from him. Gabbard is passionate about the importance and urgency of taking care of stormwater issues, and speaks eloquently about the need for Low Impact Development.
Gabbard says that Low Impact Development (LID), an innovative stormwater management approach, "is all about creative ways to take water and get it back into the soil." 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. These techniques are based on the premise that stormwater management should not be seen as stormwater disposal. LID addresses stormwater through small, cost-effective landscape features located at the lot level.
As Gabbard points out, the Consent Decree specifically requires the techniques of Low Impact Development. Appendix E states that "ÖLFUCG shall also have a goal ofÖfacilitating the use of green infrastructure alternatives to managing post-construction storm water, such as infiltration, reuse, and evapotranspiration."
"Infiltration, reuse and evapotranspiration" will include a lot of larger and more complicated processes for a water quality engineer like Gabbard, but for the average homeowner this might be translated as rain gardens, rain barrels, and lots of native plants.
Rain Gardens
Gabbard is big on rain gardens, seeing them as part of a comprehensive stormwater management program. He installed one at his home in 2003, he gives high-energy presentations about their benefits, and he has advised on many rain garden installations.
A rain garden is a shallow depression in the ground that captures runoff from your property (driveway, roof, etc.) and allows it to soak into the ground. Native plants and soil work together to absorb and filter pollutants and return cleaner water through the ground to nearby streams. Rain gardens reduce flooding by sending the water back underground, rather than onto the street. And they provide habitat for beneficial insects and wildlife. (That does not include mosquitoes! Water is only in the rain garden for a day or two; mosquitoes need 7-12 days in standing water to reproduce.)
Many of our homes and businesses would be suitable for rain gardens. The benefits are indisputable. How exciting would it be if we all do our share to help bring our ecosystem back to life? Local environmental organizations have partnered to form the Bluegrass Rain Garden Alliance in order to help us do just that.
2010 Rain Gardens by 2010!
The Bluegrass Rain Garden Alliance campaign, "2010 Rain Gardens by 2010," was kicked off with a reception in February that drew 150 people. Three teams have been formed to move this campaign forward. The Educators Team will work with schools, the Homeowners Team will assist and encourage homeowners in their rain garden endeavors, and the Commercial/Professional Team will provide professional landscapers with training workshops to help ensure that rain gardens are properly installed and will function as required. The project is funded by a grant received by the Tracy Farmer Center for the Environment from the state's Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet.
Russ Turpin, an environmental specialist with EcoGro who builds rain gardens, is heading up the Commercial/Professional Team along with Scott Southall. Russ says, "A rain garden is not going to handle 100 percent of water produced by storms. It is designed for the first inch of rain, and 90 percent of all our storms produce around an inch of rain or less. Rain gardens are built to address the 'first flush' of rain. This is when pollutants are first picked up by runoff and are treated by the hardy plants in a rain garden rather than dumping into the nearest creek."
Rainwater is a resource that we can no longer afford to misuse. In fact, under the Consent Decree, homeowners and businesses may well be required to manage their own rainfall, to ensure that it does not become stormwater runoff. As Mayor Newberry stated in his address on February 19, 2008: "The Stormwater Quality Management ProgramÖ will materially impact the way many homeowners contain storm water on their property."
Something to remember
If all the world's water were to fit into a gallon jug, the amount of fresh water would be just one tablespoon full. Yet almost half of our nation's 3.6 million miles of rivers and streams are threatened or impaired. Search out practical tips on things you can do to protect and improve the quality of the rivers close to you.
-The Nature Conservancy
Click here to read Mayor Newberry's speech about consent decree.
Click here to visit the Bluegrass Rain Garden Alliance's Web site.
Rain Garden Tour
The Bluegrass Rain Garden Alliance is hosting a rain garden tour, which will begin at the Arboretum with a brief talk about rain gardens. Participants can then visit five local rain gardens. Get ideas for your rain garden design and tips on installation!
Date: Sunday, May 18th
Time: 1 p.m. - 5 p.m.
Where: Meet at the Arboretum
Cost: No charge
Ann Bowe offers both interior and landscape design, specializing in Feng Shui. She can be reached at (859) 278-0069, or by email at annbowe@annbowedesigns.com.