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1. What is stormwater runoff?

Stormwater runoff occurs when precipitation from rain or snow-melt flows over the ground. Impervious surfaces like driveways, sidewalks and streets prevent stormwater from naturally infiltrating into the ground.

2. Why do I need to be concerned about stormwater runoff?

Stormwater runoff can pick up debris, chemicals, dirt and other pollutants during a rainfall or snowmelt event. The runoff can flow into a storm sewer or directly to a lake, stream, river or wetland. Anything that enters a storm sewer system is discharged untreated into nearby surface waters.

Polluted stormwater runoff can have many adverse effects on plants, fish, animals and people. Sediment can cloud the water and make it difficult for aquatic plants and habitat to survive. Excess nutrients can cause algae blooms. When algae die they sink to the bottom and decompose in a process that removes oxygen from the water. Fish and other aquatic organisms cannot exist in water with low dissolved oxygen levels.

Household hazardous wastes like insecticides, pesticides, paint, solvents, used motor oil and automotive fluids can poison aquatic life. Surface water pollution in these forms can pose a health hazard to animals and people.

Polluted stormwater often affects drinking water sources such as ground water or other surface water features from which the potable supply is drawn. This, in turn, can affect human health and increase drinking water treatment costs.

3. My property is adjacent to a storm water pond and I don’t like all the tall grass and wildflowers surrounding it. Can I mow it down and do my own landscaping?

These areas around storm water ponds are intended to have a natural landscape that serves several important purposes:

• The vegetation provides a layer of protection for the water, consuming harmful nutrients (such as fertilizer runoff) before they reach the water surface and contribute to algae formation.
  
• The vegetation prevents erosion from compromising the slopes of the pond.
  
• The vegetation creates a uniform landscape along the sides of the pond, providing an aesthetic amenity for the neighborhood.
  
• The vegetation provides a natural habitat shelter for waterfowl.

For these reasons, property owners are encouraged to leave the buffers around storm ponds in their natural state.

4. Who’s in charge of stormwater management?

Stormwater management and surface water quality is an issue that every community is faced with today. Polluted stormwater continues to affect our lakes, streams, rivers and natural water resources. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has been delegated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to implement the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Phase II permit. This permitting program requires local governments to develop a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Program (SWPPP) that incorporates structural, procedural and operational practices that help prevent contamination of stormwater prior to discharge into nearby surface waters.

The City of Rosemount has developed its very own Stormwater Pollution Prevention Program (SWPPP) designed to meet the specific needs and issues within the community.

5. What are Best Management Practices (BMPs)?

Best Management Practices (BMPs) are schedules of activities, prohibitions of practices, maintenance procedures and other management practices intended to prevent or reduce the pollution of local and regional surface waters. BMPs also include treatment requirements, operating procedures, and practices to control plant site runoff, spillage or leaks, sludge or waste disposal, or drainage from raw material storage.

6. What Is Nonpoint Source Pollution?

Nonpoint source pollution comes from various land use practices, air pollutants and daily human activities. Unlike specific points such as factory discharge pipes, nonpoint source pollution comes from many different spots.

Nonpoint source pollutants include nutrients such as phosphorous and nitrogen, leaking septic tanks, sediment, pesticides, salt, construction site erosion, forestry operations, animal waste, trace metals and toxic chemicals. Individually, these pollutants may not be a major concern, but taken as a whole, they can result in widespread water quality problems that will need to be addressed.

7. What do all the abbreviations mean?

The Stormwater Program for Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4s) is designed to reduce the amount of sediment and pollution that enters surface and ground water from storm sewer systems to the maximum extent practical. Stormwater discharges associated with MS4s are regulated through the use of National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems (NPDES) permits. NPDES permits are legal documents. Because the stormwater permit is a part of the NPDES program, the City of Rosemount must be aware of the national goals of restoring the integrity of the nation’s waters. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) requires owners and operators of MS4 systems to complete and produce a SWPPP to the MPCA for review and approval. The MS4 owner or operator is required to submit an annual report with the activities completed for the subsequent year.

In response to this new legislation, the City of Rosemount has developed a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) to address the issues associated with stormwater pollution. The plan is designed to prevent the spread of pollutants by applying Best Management Practices (BMPs) and Public Education which aim to reduce the concentration of common pollutants and eliminate the pollutant sources. The SWPPP is a collaboration of ordinance, policy and public education. The Surface Water Management Ordinance and Erosion Control Policy stipulate strict requirements relating to fertilizer application, wetland protection and erosion control application(s). Public education focuses on the lifestyle habits and practices of the community and identifies which habits and practices are influencing stormwater pollution. Efforts are focused on these particular issues.