Bill to Provide Funding for Stormwater Management Projects Introduced To County Council

Stormwater runoff is a serious problem that negatively affects the health of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. All sorts of pollutants, such as excess nutrients, animal waste, oil and sediment are washed into our waterways with each precipitation event. As runoff is channeled into storm drains it gains speed and causes erosion of natural stream beds when it is discharged from storm drain pipes.

This runoff problem has worsened in our area over the last several decades as land that was once woods or farms are developed for such projects as housing, shopping centers and businesses. According to The Chesapeake Bay Program the number of impervious surfaces such as roads, roofs, driveways and parking lots has increased faster than the population by nearly a two to one margin. These surfaces prevent rain water from being absorbed into the soil and instead allow stormwater to run off into storm drains.

In an effort to rectify this situation, Anne Arundel County Councilmen Chris Trumbauer (D-District 6) and Dick Ladd (R-District 5) have introduced Bill 79-11 to the County Council which would provide a dedicated source of funding for the county to begin addressing the problems of stormwater runoff.

The Anne Arundel Chapter of the Maryland League of Conservation Voters states that funding for this proposed Storm Water Management and Restoration Fund would come from assessing single family homes an annual fee of $35 per home. Individual townhomes and apartments would be assessed $25 annually, while businesses would be assessed $35 for every 2,500 square feet of impervious surface with the assessment not exceeding $25,000 per year, per business.

The league further states the county is hoping the proposed fees would raise $12 million to $15 million per year to help pay for restoration projects that are in need of funding. This dedicated source of funding would be used by the county Department of Public Works to eventually eliminate the estimated one-billion-dollar backlog of stormwater management projects.

The county will gain an additional benefit of meeting its EPA pollution budget (total maximum daily load or TMDL) by addressing the stormwater management issues. By 2020 it will be necessary for Anne Arundel County to reduce the amount of nutrient and sediment pollution entering our waterways by 10,000 pounds.

The problem of reducing pollution caused by stormwater runoff is huge. According to the Watershed Stewards Academy, each of the county’s 12 watersheds is contaminated by three or more pollutants. However, this is not solely the county government’s problem. It is also a problem to be addressed by all residents and businesses in Anne Arundel County to help improve the quality of water in our streams, creeks, rivers and the Chesapeake Bay.

As a Watershed Steward, I believe in the power of concerned citizens working at the grassroots level to reduce sources of water pollution. The passage of the Storm Water Management and Restoration Fund bill by the County Council will provide the Department of Public Works with the necessary funding to use its resources to address the larger pollution reduction projects.   

Editor's Note: See the Patch Poll below and cast your opinion on the proposed fee.