With all of the rain we've seen this week, supervisors, councilors, and planners are shifting their focus to stormwater management. Those government leaders are getting an in-depth look at ways to deal with polluted rain run-off Thursday afternoon, a task many of them know will not be cheap.
The Rivanna River Basin Commission (RRBC) is showing off a few facilities in a "Tour de Stormwater" Thursday. The tour starts at Charlottesville High School, where what seems to be just a garden sitting outside of the Martin Luther King Performing Arts Center is actually working as a natural water filter.
The "rain garden" has specific layers of dirt and rock that slow down water flow from the parking lot, school grounds and nearby neighborhoods. The Virginia-native plants soak up any extra nutrients and pollutants from that run-off, and the purified water then makes its way to a nearby stream. There are also various rain gauges and tracking devices so the system and what it collects can be studied.
RRBC Executive Director Leslie Middleton says people should know stormwater management is much more than pipes and plumbing, but also about aesthetics.
"Anything we can do to give them a natural setting, to be outside, to enjoy themselves, and if stormwater treatment can be going on in the background, so much the better," Middleton explained.
The commission will take the tour to the Greene County Community Park and downtown Crozet where other biofilters with different layouts are in place. RRBC is expecting elected officials from Fluvanna, Greene, Albemarle County, and Charlottesville to attend.
As government leaders get an entire afternoon to focus on these systems, they're also thinking about the price tag of any upgrades, especially ones they can't avoid.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recently proposed regulations to protect the Chesapeake Bay Watershed and better control pollutants in waterways.
Albemarle County Supervisor Chris Dumler says it costs big bucks to look after the environment under these mandates. He says the regulations are complicated and will require the board to plan finances for the next 12 - 16 years.
"If these rules were to come down tomorrow like a hammer, feds say you've got to deal with it now, we could be looking at $100 million we would have to spend just to bring the county's facilities to complete compliance," Dumler said.
The latest rules deal with stormwater retention, wastewater treatment, and other related issues, along with stormwater management.
"It's probably better to do things like that now, pay now, rather than pay more later," Dumler noted.
The "Tour de Stormwater" starts at 12 p.m. Thursday at CHS. The public is welcome to attend. Click here for more information.
