Managing our Water Resources During Tough Financial Times Now What? John P. McCulloch Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner

Transcription

1 Managing our Water Resources During Tough Financial Times Now What? John P. McCulloch Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner Let me begin by thanking you for the opportunity to share some thoughts on complying with the Clean Water Act from the local point of view. It is no secret that we have been asked to do more with less and perhaps we have simply been asked to do less. Let me assure you that Oakland County is committed to provide clean water for its residents. Oakland County will continue to work closely with the Environmental Protection Agency and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality but, in the end, we answer to our residents and they are demanding clean water. Over the past decade we have made tremendous progress. We have sought direction from the regulators. We have been prodded by the federal courts. We were enticed by the available federal funds and through it all, we have had tremendous success. We have done what you have asked. We have performed well. More importantly, we have improved water quality and done so cost effectively. In summary, we can now document that many of the current EPA programs work. We know they are expensive but we also know how best to control the costs. We believe that we have a unique insight into implementing environmental programs. In this presentation, we will show that communities in general, and Oakland County specifically, can move beyond reacting to regulatory pressure, to preventative measures and finally predictive approaches. We are not shirking from our duties but rather accepting additional responsibilities. We have worked our way through CSO and SSO compliance. We have developed innovative storm water and watershed programs. We have implemented ISO 9000 and And we are now implementing a comprehensive asset management program. Through it all, we have made great progress in water quality. But the financial pressures, particularly at the state level, are eating away at the foundations of the regulatory programs. Monitoring is non-existent. Enforcement is impeded by a lack of adequate staffing. And unscrupulous businesses and developers recognize that ignoring the Clean Water Act is easy. This is a difficult challenge. We have done well with programs that have been entrusted to us. Now we want the EPA and the MDEQ to consider delegating more so we can do more. This presentation summarizes Oakland County s efforts to actively regulate wetlands, flood plain permitting and other permitting programs that are imminently connected to our daily drainage work. I will conclude with some remarks about an important development in a lawsuit that has been on-going for the past 35 years in front of U.S. District Judge John Feikens. 1 1

2 Today's Discussion Points County Responsibilities Under the Clean Water Act Wetlands Regulation DWSD Global Settlement 2 My name is John McCulloch. I am the elected Water Resources Commissioner for Oakland County Michigan the county immediately north of the City of Detroit. The role of a water resources commissioner is unique to Michigan. Prior to last November, the office was known as the drain commissioner s office. The name was changed to more accurately reflect what I do every day. Initially, the office of drain commissioner was established to drain swamps and turn them into productive farmland. As the laws changed and the state became more urbanized, the role of drain commissioner evolved to meet new demands. Drain commissioners and water resources commissioners today are responsible for the planning, financing, design, operation and maintenance of drinking water systems, drainage systems, sewage collection system, wastewater treatment plants and a variety of environmental challenges never anticipated at the turn of the century. In addition to the typical NPDES programs responsibilities, my office also issues permits and oversees the soil and sedimentation programs for the county. Thus, I maintain a staff of some 240 trained professionals who are well qualified to perform many of the functions currently performed by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. 2

3 Oakland County Is Dedicated to Meeting the Goals of the Clean Water Act All CSOs Are Controlled Near Completion of all SSO Control Projects In Compliance with Phase II Storm Water Regulations Seeking Long Term Funding Arrangements Comprehensive Asset Management ISO 9000 and ISO Compliant Visit and watch the video $500 million of water resources restoration summarized in 20 minutes! 3 Oakland County is on the leading edge of community-based water quality planning and management. For many years we have been proactive in dealing with tough environmental problems. We have learned significant lessons and offered to share our experience. We recognize the limitations that the federal government faces when addressing local water quality issues. I have embarked upon a path to go beyond regulatory-driven environmental programs. I want to address problems that are outside the scope of traditional regulatory programs. Most of these challenges call upon my office to plan carefully, execute judiciously and balance progress with our ability to pay. 3

4 Our Proven Performance We Addressed All Sources of Sewage Entering Our Rivers CSO Control Completed SSOs Major Portions Completed Storm Water Permit Coverage Completed and Continuing Illicit Discharge Elimination Program Completed and Continuing On Site Sewage Disposal Systems Continuing at Local Level 4 Oakland County s CSO control program is complete. Our facilities are operating well and have been certified by the Michigan Department Environmental Quality. Our SSO control program is nearing completion and serves as a statewide model. Our storm water permit, and those of our 18 urban communities, have been submitted and accepted by the MDEQ. Our illicit discharge elimination program is countywide and continues to effectively eliminate sewage from our waterways. Our local communities are working with the county health department to design effective systems to evaluate the performance of on-site sewage disposal systems. All of the this has been costly, but the water quality in the Rouge, Clinton and Huron rivers is improving. 4

5 Oakland County CSO Control Facilities 5 The success of our CSO control facilities demonstrates our commitment to working with the public. These major CSO control facilities are nestled into some of the most exclusive neighborhoods in Oakland County. As you can see, these facilities are quite attractive. They are all outfitted with odor control. They have all exceeded the requirements set forth by the MDEQ. Oakland County has documented that well-designed, well-operated CSO control facilities can co-exist with even the most exclusive neighborhoods and become a community asset. 5

6 Evergreen Farmington SSO Control Project Transfer excess flow from Farmington to Evergreen Commingling use existing CSO facility to store excess wet sanitary flow Existing interceptor system Preferential treatment modify regulators at 3 CSO RTB To DWSD 6 We have also proven that SSO control can be accomplished in an cost-effective manner. To accomplish this, Oakland County sought, and was granted, a innovative reading of the Michigan SSO policy that allowed us to quickly eliminate most of our SSOs while we continued to dry out our collection systems. We did this by re-routing flows; using preferential treatment; using commingling all while we continue to dry-out the collection system. We continue to eliminate excess flows from the system with the goal of removing three gallons of excess flow for every gallon of potential SSO. This, of course, would eliminate the need for the commingling and preferential treatment. 6

7 Wetlands Regulations in Flux What if MDEQ Gives Back the Wetlands Program? How Would the Role of the Army Corps Change? How Would EPA s Regulations in Michigan Change? Can EPA Delegate Wetlands Regulation in Oakland? 7

8 Oakland County Efforts to Address Wetlands WRC Advocates a Local Regulatory Approach Top Performing Municipalities Can Protect CWA Empower Local Governments Reduce Role of the State Reduce Costs to the State Replace State Control with an Audit Function Local Control Represents a Win Win Approach 8 Since 2003, my office has advocated a local regulatory approach to wetlands management and protection. The proposal is simple and straight-forward allow top performing governmental entities to implement specific parts of the Clean Water Act. We manage storm water in a manner that ensures the protection of our waterways. We can empower local governments to do the same with wetlands. This proposal reduces the role and costs to the state at the same time. Under this proposal the state would retain the ultimate authority, but would relinquish some day-to-day control and replace it with an audit function. Managing and regulating wetlands at the local level is a win-win approach that s good news for the environment.

9 Oakland County Works With the EPA E. coli as Regulatory Measure Implementation of TMDLs Implementation of Developing Technologies Coordinating the Great Lakes Restoration Efforts I will be meeting with your staff later today to continue our discussion on the use of E. coli as a regulatory measure. It seems that everyone believes that something needs to be done to replace E. coli as a surrogate for sanitary sewage. Still, our Total Maximum Daily Loads TMDLs state that they can not exceed 300 counts and our storm water permits require us to work toward achieving the discharge levels required in the TMDLs. It is extremely difficult to recommend to our local units of government to sign a permit that is instantly in violation with little likelihood of ever coming into compliance. We do not want to fight this fight alone. We would much prefer to work with the EPA. The decision, whatever it may be, will have a significant financial impact on Oakland County communities. Similarly, the implementation of TMDLs has finally impacted many Oakland County communities in a very real way and they are extremely concerned with the potential cost of implementation. I also recognize that water and wastewater technologies are changing. Bringing these technologies to market will save operators like Oakland County while providing economic development opportunities. There remains a need for a place where emerging technologies can be tested. We continue to seek ways to work with the EPA in an effort to market these technologies quickly. For the Great Lakes restoration efforts to succeed, the EPA should include Oakland County as part of a broader coalition. Today, Oakland County is leading the restoration efforts in its own five major watersheds. These watersheds are called home by more than a million residents. Unfortunately, Oakland County is rarely included in Great Lakes discussions held by the EPA. We are asking that to change. Oakland County can be a valuable partner in discussions involving Great Lakes restoration. 9 9

10 Questions? John P. McCulloch Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner 10 10