VNRC Rejects Policy That Paves Farms to Solve Stormwater

Wal-Mart needs a state permit to discharge stormwater into a nearby tributary of Stevens Brook, a stream which already does not meet Vermont water quality standards. Last summer, the Agency of Natural Resources granted the stormwater permit to the developers of the proposed 160,000-square-foot store. But VNRC has appealed the stormwater permit raising concerns about Wal-Mart’s plans to discharge several tons of sediment and nutrients into a tributary that has no capacity to absorb it.

VNRC Uncovers Illegal Discharge at Jay Peak

In late September 2005, VNRC received a phone call from a concerned citizen who observed discharges from construction sites at Jay Peak Ski Resort. Construction at the resort appeared to be depositing excessive sediment and muddy water to tributaries of the Jay Branch, which ultimately leads to Lake Champlain. VNRC staff visited the site and documented serious water quality problems being caused by the resort’s uncontrolled runoff. The results were nothing short of alarming.

Board Grants VNRC’s Stormwater Petition

VNRC has won a major victory that will ensure that stormwater discharges in five watersheds in Chittenden County comply with the federal Clean Water Act. The Vermont Water Resource Board ruled in favor of VNRC’s request that all stormwater discharges into polluted waters will be covered under the federal permitting program. The decision will result in a more consistent, predictable, and effective stormwater clean-up program.

Stormwater Pollution Facts

Well over 100 rivers and lakes in Vermont are so polluted, meaning that they do not meet basic minimum water quality standards, that they are considered "impaired" by definition. Vermonter’s cannot swim or expect to catch fish in many of them.

History of Stormwater Regulation

Stormwater pollution has been regulated for decades.

Stormwater Rules

For the past several months, ANR has been meeting with stakeholders to review a draft stormwater rule that will implement the stormwater legislation passed by the Vermont Legislature in 2004. VNRC continues to be an active participant, advocating for incentives that would encourage developers to construct environmentally sound projects that will minimize stormwater pollution and maximize on-site infiltration.

Stormwater Blending

VNRC was recently asked to testify before the National League of Cities Steering Committee on the Environment about stormwater blending. Stormwater blending refers to the practice of wastewater treatment facilities bypassing secondary treatment when flows at facilities are increased during wet weather events. Partially treated wastewater is then blended in with fully treated wastewater prior to discharge.

Vermont's Stormwater Pollution

When rain and snowmelt flows across rooftops, parking lots, streets, and driveways, it creates what is known as stormwater runoff. On its way to Vermont’s rivers and lakes, stormwater runoff picks up sediment, phosphorous, toxins, pathogens, oil, grease, and other pollutants that create a nasty brew that can severely pollute our waters. Dozens of streams in Vermont are so polluted by runoff from stormwater that they do not meet basic minimum water quality standards that require that Vermont’s waters be fishable, swimmable and drinkable.

While advances have been made in methods of treating stormwater pollution, it still remains the fastest growing threat to Vermont’s water quality. The stormwater permitting program at the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) began to atrophy starting in the mid 1990s. Funding and staffing shortages left the program all but abandoned, leading to the expiration of over 1,500 permits. Some treatment facilities were never built; others were left in a state of disrepair.

The Vermont Legislature passed legislation aimed at fixing the problem in 2000 and 2002, but no real progress was made to effectively solve the stormwater problem.

Watershed-wide stormwater permits (called Watershed Improvement Permits or WIPs) were drafted by ANR as authorized by the 2002 legislation, but were challenged by VNRC and the Conservation Law Foundation at Vermont Water Resources Board (Board). VNRC appealed the permits for the four polluted Chittenden County streams believing that the WIPs were woefully inadequate to bring Vermont’s waters back into compliance with water quality standards. The Board agreed—the permits were deemed illegal in June of 2003.

Throughout the summer of 2003, ANR sat idle, offering no legal alternative for the permitting program. Obtaining a permit was difficult, and Vermont’s polluted waters continued to get worse.

During the same time period, VNRC worked closely with business interests, municipal representatives, scientists, and other environmental groups to craft workable stormwater clean up plans. When the 2004 Vermont General Assembly went back to the drawing board to deal with the stormwater crisis, much of the work that had been generated by VNRC and others was plugged into the legislative solution.

The Vermont Legislature passed amendments to the stormwater law that includes many of the initiatives that VNRC help craft. While the bill was far from perfect it did include clear requirements that ANR implement cleanup plans for its stormwater impaired waters, something that has been advocated by the Water Resources Board since 2002.

VNRC will continue to be an active participant in crafting effective clean up plans and rules to implement Vermont’s stormwater program. Without a real commitment to cleaning up polluted waters, we not only compromise Vermont’s values, but we leave a shameful legacy of polluted waters to future generations.

Check our web page for updates on this issue and VNRC’s efforts and to ensure that Vermont’s stormwater polluted waters are finally restored.

VNRC v. Wal-Mart: The David and Goliath Story

Over five years ago, VNRC drew a line in the sand when we decided to put our organizational muscle behind halting Wal-Mart’s plans to build an oversized, poorly sited store in a cornfield two miles outside of the city of St. Albans. Going up against the world’s largest retailer is no small feat. Yet, when the health of a great Vermont community’s downtown and its natural resources were at stake — and serving as a bellwether for other communities — VNRC knew it was the right fight to fight. Get an update on this years-long effort.