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According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the primary cause of water quality problems in the U.S. today is not from factories or waste water treatment plants, but rather something called “nonpoint source pollution.” Nonpoint source pollution is runoff from rainfall, snowmelt, or irrigation that picks up soil and contaminants as it runs over land or under ground, eventually depositing them into surface water or introducing them into ground water. Healthy lakes, rivers, and streams directly impact property values and the quality of life we enjoy. Each of us has a responsibility to be a part Of Owensboro’s pollution solution by controlling what we purposefully or inadvertently put down our storm drains.

The City of Owensboro and Daviess County both face unique challenges with respect to stormwater management. Inside the City limits, there is very little relief in the ditches. This means that the City is so flat, the water does not run off very fast. It takes larger pipes and ditches to carry the same amount of water as it would take in Cities with steeper systems. Also, the City of Owensboro is one of 17 cities in Kentucky that has what is called a Combined Sewer System, or CSS. This is a system where the sanitary sewage and the storm water are combined in one pipe. When there is flooding in the streets in these areas, there is raw sewage combined with the storm water. Also, a large portion of the undeveloped land in Daviess County is in the floodplain, which introduces numerous concerns about the quality of water. All of these issues are being addressed with the Phase II efforts.

The Six Minimum Control Measures

The Phase II permit is designed to improve water quality from our MS4. The permit requires the City of Owensboro to address 6 minimum control measures:

• Public Education and Outreach
• Public Involvement and Participation
• Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination
• Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control
• Post-Construction Stormwater Management in New Development and Redevelopment
• Pollution Prevention / Good Housekeeping for Municipal Operations