Storm Water Discharge

Integrated Landscape Design and Stormwater Management Plan for Blue River Water Treatment Plant

Using a native plant “palate” from the surrounding area, Blue River Treatment Plant personnel have seamlessly meshed the front gardens with the natural landscape. They also turned a steep slope into a native species demonstration garden. The native varieties complement each other, need little maintenance, and use only natural irrigation after the first year. In addition, they naturally grow on steep slopes in this climate, helping to stabilize the soil and prevent runoff.

The demonstration garden is just one of the management practices incorporated into the Blue River Treatment Plant’s Stormwater Management Plan. Native species vegetation is promoted throughout the site. In addition, we use the general contours of the site to create containment in the chemical delivery area. In some areas runoff is directed into catchments and routed through the treatment process. Many other processes are also employed: On the east end of the site, wetlands do much filtering and their vegetative buffer zone consumes some water and retains any runoff stormwater.

Using many of the techniques used in nature, the staff at the Blue River Treatment Plant has succeeded in preventing or treating Stormwater with their sustainable design. In addition, the Plant has constructed storage buildings so that equipment can be kept indoors. These efforts combined with good housekeeping practices and clean containment areas protect surface water from contamination.

The Blue River Treatment Plant not only cleans and recycles the water that is used by the community, but its staff is striving to protect the natural waters of its beautiful fifteen-acre site as well.

In the words of Luna Leopold:

“Water is the most critical resource issue of our lifetime and our children’s lifetime. The health of our waters is the principal measure of how we live on the land.”

Another aspect of the design plan involves restoring and enhancing the wetlands on site. In the late 1990’s Zach Margolis, JSA Manager, posed the question

“How can we best be good stewards of the 15 acre site?”

This question along with thoughts of a future expansion prompted the gathering of a team to brainstorm the possibilities of the site. One of the goals was to ensure that the wetlands mitigation would be completed and successful before any expansion was to take place. The JSA formulated a plan to enhance, create and restore the quality and diversity of habitat represented on the 15-acre site while fulfilling or exceeding the regulatory requirements of future expansion projects. In 2000, Christina McGrath was hired as an operator and to implement the restoration plans and the wetland design created by Virgil Best.

Goals for the wetlands included increasing habitat diversity, improving or creating aquatic, emergent, saturated, and seasonally saturated habitat zones, and the graduation of transition between zones; restoring plant communities including: emergent sedge, riverine willow sedge, riverine sedge/sedge grass, palustrine sedge-grass, and upland mesic grass; and finally regrading of pond banks increasing shallow inundation and saturation zones to support expanded (2x) wetland plant communities. This coordinated with an extensive weed management plan, a native plant landscape plan, and a strong desire from the right people produced a successful project.

As of 2003, the site has seen the benefits of expanded wildlife habitat, less contamination of invasive species, more natural habitat and native species, and establishment of microhabitats accelerated with a substantial growing in phase. In effect by the time the next expansion rolls around, the restoration and enhancements will be functional and successful.