- NEWS RELEASE
- July 25, 2007
Storm
Water District Initiates Annual Dry Weather Screening Program
The Butler
County Storm Water District is beginning an annual program to
conduct testing of dry weather flows from outfalls of the county
storm drain system. An outfall is any flowing or non-flowing
closed pipe or open drainage channel twelve inches in diameter
or greater that discharges into a stream. Dry weather screening
will consist of sensory observations for color and odor as well
as chemical testing for common pollutants such as ammonia, nitrates,
phosphates, potassium, and metals.
Information
gathered from outfall locations and dry weather flow pollutant
levels will allow the Storm Water District to detect, locate,
and eliminate illicit discharges from the Butler County storm
drain system.
The District
has entered into an agreement with the Miami University Institute
for Environmental Quality to conduct the project, which will
consist of crews walking local streams to note the location of
illicit connections and to conduct water quality sampling.
Field work
will be conducted in the following areas:
- West Chester
Township
- Liberty
Township
- Fairfield
Township
- Lemon Township
- Madison
Township
- St. Clair
Township
- Hanover
Township
- Ross Township
- Village
of Millville
- Village
of New Miami
- Village
of Seven Mile
- City of
Trenton
Miami University
field crews may require access to private property to conduct
their surveys. All field personnel will carry proper identification.
Section 5517.01 and 163.03 of the Ohio Revised Code authorizes
such entries but also requires that reimbursement be made for
any actual damage resulting from such work. The field crews have
received strict instructions concerning the preservation of private
property and public lands. In all cases, removal of vegetation
as well as other damage will be held to a minimum. If at any
time property owners feel that Storm Water representatives have
not given proper attention to private property, please notify
the Butler County Storm Water District at the following address:
Bob Lentz,
Storm Water Coordinator
Butler County Storm Water District
1921 Fairgrove Avenue
Hamilton, Ohio 45011-1965
Phone: 513-785-4101
Email: [email protected]
Miami University
work crews may not be able to provide specific answers to potential
questions. They will simply be collecting data required for the
completion of the storm drain outfall map. Questions about the
project should be directed to Storm Water Coordinator Bob Lentz
at the address and phone number listed above.
Storm
Water District Mission and Dry Weather Screening
The primary
mission of the Butler County Storm Water District is to safeguard
public health and protect the environment through the implementation
of the U.S. EPA National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
Phase II Program. Mandated by Congress under the Clean Water
Act, the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)
is a national program for addressing sources of storm water discharges
which adversely affect the quality of our nation's waters.
The program
requires the implementation of six minimum control measures designed
to prevent harmful pollutants from being washed by storm water
runoff into local water bodies:
- Public Education
and Outreach
- Public Involvement
- Illicit
Discharge Detection and Elimination
- Construction
Site Run-off Controls
- Post-Construction
Run-off Controls
- Pollution
Prevention and Good Housekeeping
Dry weather
screening of storm drain outfalls is part of the third control
measure -- Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination. The screening
project is a critical part of Butler County's efforts to reduce
the discharge of pollutants from its storm drain system.
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