HomeMy WebLinkAboutNCS000240_Charlotte FY2018 Annual Report_20180928City of Charlotte
NPDES MS4 Permit Program
Stormwater
Management Program Plan
FY2018 Annual Report
Permit Number NCS000240
September 2018
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Table of Contents
Section 1 Introduction ................................................................................................1
Section 2 Background Information ..........................................................................3
Section 3 Public Education and Outreach Program ...............................................8
Section 4 Public Involvement and Participation Program ...................................21
Section 5 Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination Program ..........................31
Section 6 Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control Program.....................64
Section 7 Post-Construction Stormwater Management Program .......................70
Section 8 Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping Program.............................76
Section 9 Industrial Facilities Evaluation and Monitoring Program ..................92
Section 10 Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Program ........................103
Section 11 Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program ..................................119
Acronyms Used In This Document:
BMP: Best Management Practice
CAR: Corrective Action Request
CATS: Charlotte Area Transit System
CDOT: Charlotte Department of Transportation
CFD: Charlotte Fire Department
CITY: City of Charlotte
CMANN: Continuous Monitoring Alert Notification Network
CMCSI: Charlotte-Mecklenburg Certified Site Inspector
CMPD: Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department
CMSWS: Charlotte-Mecklenburg Storm Water Services
CW: Charlotte Water Department (formerly Charlotte-Mecklenburg Utilities)
DEMLR: Division of Energy, Mining, and Land Resources
DO: Dissolved Oxygen
DWF: Dry Weather Flow
DWQ: Division of Water Quality
EPM-SWS: Engineering and Property Management Dept.-Storm Water Services Division
EPM-LD: Engineering and Property Management Dept.-Land Development Division
ETJ: Extra Territorial Jurisdiction
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FY: Fiscal Year
GIS: Geographic Information System
HDD: Horizontal Directional Drilling
IDDE: Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination
IDEP: Illicit Discharge Elimination Program
MEP: Maximum Extent Practicable
MS4: Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System
MST: Microbial Source Tracking
NCDEQ: North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality
NCGA: North Carolina General Assembly
NOV: Notice of Violation
NPDES: National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
O&M: Operation & Maintenance
PCSO: Post-Construction Stormwater Ordinance
QA/QC: Quality Assurance/Quality Control Program
RSWP : Regional Stormwater Partnership
SAP: Standard Administrative Procedure
SARA: Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act
SCM: Stormwater Control Measure
SOP: Standard Operating Procedure
SSO: Sanitary Sewer Overflow
SWAC: Stormwater Advisory Committee
SWMP: Stormwater Management Program Plan
SPPP: Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan
TMDL: Total Maximum Daily Load
TP: Total Phosphorus
TSS: Total Suspended Solids
UNCC: University of North Carolina at Charlotte
USEPA: United States Environmental Protection Agency
WLA: Waste Load Allocation
WQ: Water Quality
WQS: Water Quality Standards
WTP: Water Treatment Plant
WWTP: Wastewater Treatment Plant
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Section 1: Introduction
On November 1, 1993, the City of Charlotte “City” began operating under National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) Permit
Number NCS000240. This permit has subsequently been renewed for a five-year permit term on
three occasions and is currently in its 4th permit cycle effective March 1, 2013 through February
28, 2018. The City submitted an application for permit renewal on August 28, 2017 and is
currently awaiting issuance of a new permit by the North Carolina Department of Environmental
Quality (NCDEQ). Per permit regulations, the term of the current permit is extended past the
expiration date of February 28, 2018 if an application for permit renewal has been submitted to
NCDEQ; therefore, the City continues to operate under the current permit until such time as a
new permit is issued.
This document provides the Annual Report for the Stormwater Management Program Plan
(SWMP) for FY2018 under the current permit term as required by Part III, paragraph 2 of the
NPDES MS4 permit. The overall objective of this Annual Report is to document activities
conducted in support of the SWMP during FY2018 (July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018) and discuss
future proposed program activities and/or SWMP changes as necessary.
The City Engineering and Property Management Department-Storm Water Services Division
(EPM-SWS) is the primary agency responsible for managing the City’s NPDES MS4 permit, the
MS4 system and the SWMP. The implementation of the requirements within the permit program
and SWMP are coordinated with other applicable City departments as necessary. In addition,
coordination is conducted with the NPDES MS4 permit programs for the jurisdictions in
Mecklenburg County adjacent to the City where appropriate and feasible. This coordination is
conducted to help ensure uniformity between the local NPDES MS4 stormwater permit programs
and jurisdictions. Mecklenburg County stormwater staff along with EPM-SWS staff collectively
form Charlotte-Mecklenburg Storm Water Services (CMSWS). City and County water quality
staff within CMSWS work together to accomplish many of the activities discussed in this report.
Included in this SWMP Annual Report are:
Best management practices (BMPs) that are being used to fulfill the program
requirements;
Frequency and status of each BMP;
Measurable program goals and planned future activities;
Implementation schedule;
Responsible positions; and
An assessment of program activities conducted during the reporting year.
Staff of EPM-SWS, under the direction of the City’s Surface Water Quality and Environmental
Permitting Program Manager, is responsible for the fulfillment of most of the activities discussed
in this SWMP. Exceptions to this include the City’s Engineering and Property Management
Department-Land Development Division (EPM-LD), which is the primary agency responsible
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for the Development and Redevelopment Plan Review and Construction Site Stormwater Runoff
Control programs within the SWMP. In addition, the City’s Department of Transportation-Street
Maintenance Division and Solid Waste Services Department have responsibility for routine
maintenance of certain portions of the MS4, in coordination with EPM-SWS. Funding for the
BMPs specified in the SWMP is provided by local stormwater utility fees, except where noted.
The City’s SWMP includes the following core permit programs:
1. Public Education and Outreach Program – This program provides the general public and
businesses with information on general water quality, pollution prevention, and reporting
problems, as well as specialized information on various activities that have the potential to
cause pollution and harm water quality. This information is delivered through a wide range
of methods including print, web, radio, social media, television, presentations, and public
events.
2. Public Involvement and Participation Program – This program provides the general public
and businesses the opportunity to participate in various programs within the City’s SWMP.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg government maintains a Storm Water Advisory Committee (SWAC),
which is an appointed citizen panel to review and comment on the City’s and County’s
stormwater programs. In addition, public volunteer opportunities are available with
City/County programs such as Storm Drain Marking, Adopt-a-Stream, and the annual Big
Spring Clean event.
3. Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination Program – This program is designed to protect
water quality by detecting and eliminating pollution sources such as improper sewage or
wastewater connections; illegal discharges of chemicals, paint, or oil; and accidental
discharges from sanitary sewer lines and vehicle accidents. As part of this program, the City
enforces the “City of Charlotte - Stormwater Pollution Control Ordinance,” which prohibits
the discharge of pollutants to the storm drainage system and receiving streams. The City
relies on reports from the public, various monitoring programs, and a wide range of other
activities to assist in identifying and eliminating these sources of pollution.
4. Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control Program – This program maintains the City’s
delegated erosion and sediment control program to control sediments and other pollutants
from construction sites. As part of this program, the City enforces the “City of Charlotte -
Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Ordinance,” which requires suitable erosion control
on project sites. The City conducts routine inspections of construction sites and issues
violation notices and fines when necessary to ensure compliance with the ordinance.
5. Post-Construction Stormwater Management Program – This program is designed to control
the discharge of pollutants in stormwater runoff from new development and redevelopment
projects. As part of this program, the City enforces the “City of Charlotte – Post-
Construction Stormwater Ordinance,” which requires structural stormwater controls for
applicable new development and redevelopment projects as defined in the ordinance. The
program involves review and approval of project plans as well as site inspections and
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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maintenance activities to ensure that treatment practices are properly operated and
maintained.
6. Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping Program – This program focuses on ensuring that
City facilities and field operations are managed in a way that minimizes stormwater pollutant
discharges. Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans and Spill Response Plans are maintained
for applicable facilities that conduct activities with the potential for stormwater pollutant
discharges. The City conducts inspections and training sessions at these facilities to ensure
that requirements are being met. Field operations are evaluated for impacts on stormwater
quality and best management practices are developed and implemented in order to minimize
those impacts.
7. Industrial Facilities Evaluation and Monitoring Program – This program focuses on industrial
facilities that discharge stormwater to the City’s MS4 and receiving streams. Inspections are
conducted at these facilities on a rotational basis to review site operations and materials
handling practices. In addition, if the facility has a stormwater permit, it is reviewed to
ensure that permit conditions are adhered to.
8. Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Program – This program maintains a water
quality monitoring plan designed to monitor major streams to determine water quality
conditions and assist in evaluating the effectiveness of various stormwater management
programs. The program is also used to assist in locating illicit discharges and connections
where possible.
9. Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program – This program maintains a TMDL watershed
plan designed to address applicable TMDL pollutants of concern by implementing best
management practices (BMPs) within the six minimum NPDES stormwater permit measures.
These BMPs are designed to reduce the TMDL pollutant of concern within the Permittee’s
assigned MS4 NPDES regulated waste load allocation to the maximum extent practicable
(MEP), and to the extent authorized by law.
Section 2: Background Information
2.1 Population Served
The SWMP covers the jurisdictional area, including the incorporated area and extra territorial
jurisdiction (ETJ), for the City, as applicable and defined by the NPDES MS4 permit. Table 2-1
provides the population for the City based on the 2000 and 2010 US census. This census data
was obtained from the following website of the US Census Bureau:
https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045216/3712000,00
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Table 2-1: Population and Growth Rate for the City of Charlotte.
2017 Population
(est.)
2010 Population 2000 Population Average Annual Percent
Change (2010-2017)
859,035 731,424 540,828 2.5%
2.2 Growth Rate
Table 2-1 shows the population growth rate represented as an “Average Annual Percent
Change” for the City. This growth rate was calculated by dividing the overall percent change
between the 2010 and 2017 population by the 7-year interval.
2.3 Jurisdictional and MS4 Service Areas
The jurisdictional and MS4 service area for the City is provided in Table 2-2. The location of
this area within Mecklenburg County and corresponding watershed areas are provided in Figure
2-1. The source of this information is the City Planning Department, which updates
jurisdictional and geographical boundaries as annexations occur.
Table 2-2: Jurisdictional and MS4 Service Area for the City of Charlotte.
Incorporated Area (Sq. Miles) ETJ (Sq. Miles) Total Jurisdiction (Sq. Miles)
307 69 376
2.4 MS4 Conveyance System
The existing MS4 serving the City is composed of curbs, gutters, catch basins, culverts, pipes,
ditches, and outfalls that collect and convey stormwater for discharge to receiving streams.
Currently, there are an estimated 6,659 outfalls, 3,775 miles of storm drain pipe and 195,173
catch basins and drop inlets within the City’s MS4. Pipe systems are typically 15 inches or
larger in diameter and are designed for the ten-year storm event. Outlet energy is commonly
dissipated through the use of end-walls or flared end sections with riprap aprons. Although the
natural alignment of many receiving streams has been altered over the past century, many of the
stream banks remain mostly vegetated as a result of the City’s stormwater management
philosophies. Stream banks that were armored with riprap as a result of previous stabilization
efforts are currently allowed to re-vegetate naturally, and new projects incorporate “soft”
methods involving tree plantings and other vegetation.
Maintenance and improvements to the MS4 system are funded by stormwater utility fees
collected within the City. Maintenance activities include cleaning inlets of debris and sediment,
maintaining channels to reduce erosion and maximize pollution reduction capabilities, and the
removal of blockages. Improvements to the MS4 system include solving infrastructure
problems, channel stabilization, safety improvements, stream habitat enhancement, water quality
enhancement, and resolving flooding problems associated with stormwater generated from
public streets.
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2.5 Land Use Composition Estimates
The number of square miles and percentage of the MS4 service area under residential,
commercial, industrial and open space land use categories are provided in Table 2-3. These
percentages include the incorporated area and ETJ for the City. Figure 2-2 provides a map of
these land use areas.
Table 2-3: Percentage of Land Uses in the City of Charlotte (including ETJ).
Land use Category Number of Square Miles % of Land Use within City of
Charlotte and ETJ
Residential 132 35
Commercial 56 15
Industrial 13 4
Open Space 98 26
Institutional 20 5
Transportation/Other 54 14
Lake Water/Open Space 3 1
2.6 Estimate Methodology
Land use estimates are derived from Mecklenburg County land parcel geographic information
system (GIS) data (2018).
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FIGURE 2-1
Charlotte Jurisdictional Area and Watersheds
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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FIGURE 2-2
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Section 3: Public Education and Outreach Program
During the annual report period, the Public Education and Outreach Program distributed
educational materials to the community and conducted outreach activities focused on the impacts
of stormwater discharges on water bodies per the SWMP. The following sub-sections explain:
The BMPs implemented to meet program requirements;
Target audience and pollution sources;
Outreach strategy;
Measures of success;
Future goals and planned activities; and
Program assessment.
3.1 BMP Summary Table
Table 3-1 provides information concerning the BMPs implemented to fulfill the Public
Education and Outreach Program requirements.
Table 3-1: BMP Summary Table for the Public Education and Outreach Program.
BMP BMP Description Schedule (years) Responsible
Position 1 2 3 4 5
Describe target
pollutants and
target pollutant
sources
Describe the target pollutants and target pollutant
sources the permittee’s public education program is
designed to address and why they are an issue.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Describe target
audiences
Describe the target audiences likely to have
significant stormwater impacts and why they were
selected.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Informational Web
Site
The permittee shall promote and maintain an
internet web site designed to conve y the program’s
message.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Distribute public
education materials
to identified user
groups.
Distribute general stormwater educational material to
appropriate target groups as likely to have a
significant stormwater impact. Instead of developing
its own materials, the permittee may rely on state-
supplied Public Education and Outreach materials, as
available, when implementing its own program.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Promote and
maintain
Hotline/Help line
Promote and maintain a stormwater hotline/helpline. X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Implement a Public
Education and
Outreach Program.
The permittee’s outreach program, including those
elements implemented locally or through a
cooperative agreement, shall include a combination
of approaches designed to reach the target
audiences. For each media, event or activity,
including those elements implemented locally or
through a cooperative agreement the permittee shall
estimate and record the extent of exposure.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
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3.2 Target Pollutants and Sources
Table 3-2 provides the specific pollution sources targeted for the public education program as
well as a description as to why the sources were important for protecting water quality in the
City.
Table 3-2: Targeted Pollution Sources for the Public Education and Outreach Program.
Target
Pollutant
Pollution Source Issue
Bacteria Improper Waste Disposal
Sanitary Sewer Overflows
Pet Waste
Improper handling and disposal of wastes can result in the discharge
of a variety of pollutants to the storm drainage system, causing
increases in harmful bacteria. Discharges of food wastes such as
fats, oils, and greases to the sanitary sewer system can result in line
blockages that cause sanitary sewer overflows. Improper disposal
of pet waste can also cause discharges of bacteria to the storm
drainage system.
Sediment Construction Erosion
Stream Bank Erosion
Improper erosion control practices at construction sites can result in
sediment discharges to the storm drainage system. In addition,
uncontrolled volumes of stormwater runoff can cause scouring of
stream banks resulting in increased sediment volumes in streams.
3.3 Target Audience
The City’s public education and outreach program reaches a fairly broad representation of the
city’s population through various methods as explained in Section 3.4 with the goal of reaching
certain target audiences for particular reasons as explained below. These are evaluated with each
annual SWMP update and as part of the development of the SWMP following permit renewal.
Multi-Family Residential Apartment Complexes: This target audience has been selected because
private sanitary sewer systems at apartment complexes are often not well-maintained and have
been found to be significant contributors to SSOs in the municipal sewer system due to improper
disposal of grease and other items by apartment residents.
Construction Industry: This target audience has been selected because it has the greatest potential
for affecting erosion and sedimentation control at construction sites, which can be a significant
contributor of sediment to the City’s waterways.
Commercial Sectors: Various commercial sectors are targeted for education each year due to the
significant negative impacts they can have on water quality by improperly handling and
disposing of wastes and practicing poor housekeeping at their facilities. Each year an evaluation
of previous pollution service requests, illicit discharges, and notices of violation is conducted to
determine which commercial sectors are commonly demonstrating non-compliance. Based on
that evaluation, education and outreach efforts are focused on particular sectors for a certain time
period, typically a fiscal year.
School-aged Children: Children are very important when it comes to protecting surface waters.
They play in creeks and lakes and, therefore, want to protect them. They bring home what they
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learn and encourage their parents to adopt positive behaviors for protecting water quality.
Lessons about surface water quality and stormwater pollution often fit into and enhance science
learning principles required by school curricula. Also, teaching children instills a sense of
responsibility for the environment that can carry forward and grow into their adult lives. For
these reasons, the City’s public education program focuses significant resources on teaching
students at various grade levels.
During spring 2018, a targeted Scoop the Poop campaign was launched by CMSWS in an effort
to combat increasing fecal coliform counts in local creeks. This targeted program flagged 1,400
deposits of dog waste in seven area parks in order to raise awareness about the potential water
quality impacts of not cleaning up after your pet. The campaign also received local media
coverage which helped to raise awareness.
The City is also exploring ways to educate an even more diverse representation of our
population. A research and strategizing phase is underway to establish priorities and determine
effective methods for sharing water quality messages with various audiences and getting more of
them involved in volunteering and advocating for protection of water resources.
3.4 Stormwater Public Education and Outreach Program
The City’s Stormwater Public Education and Outreach Program provides water quality and
pollution prevention messages to educate residents and businesses about the ways they can help
protect water quality and get involved to help reduce stormwater pollution. The program
provides these messages through the following activities:
Mass Media;
Social Media;
Public Hotline Promotion;
School Presentations;
Public Presentations and Events;
Website; and
Public Education Materials.
3.4.1 Mass Media
Significant resources were spent on providing water quality messages through mass media
channels because they are the most effective way to reach adult audiences. The media campaign
focused on three main themes:
Report Pollution;
Volunteer; and
Flood Safety.
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Media channels utilized to promote events and messages consisted of television, radio, website,
and print advertisements. A total of 636 television ads ran on local stations WSOC, WJZY, and
WTVI. In addition, 95 radio ads ran on WFAE 90.7 FM. CMSWS also worked with WJZY TV
to produce “Ask the Pros” segments that focused on “Reporting Pollution” and “Volunteering.”
WSOC TV produced “Rainy Day” segments that covered “Flood Safety.” These segments are
considered “Added Value” segments as they provided additional media impressions at no
additional cost.
Print media for the City’s program included the use of:
Vehicle wraps;
A parking garage banner;
Magazine ads;
Newspaper ads; and
Utility bill inserts.
3.4.2 Social Media
CMSWS continued efforts to build a social media presence this past year as more and more
people are receiving information through this media source. Four social media channels used by
CMSWS are shown in Table 3-3.
Table 3-3: Social Media Channels
Social Media Account Name Handle URL
Facebook CMSWS* @StormWaterCM https://www.facebook.com/StormWaterCM
Twitter CMSWS* @StormWaterCM https://twitter.com/StormWaterCM
Instagram CMSWS* @StormWaterCM https://www.instagram.com/stormwatercm/
YouTube CMSWS* N/A https://www.youtube.com/user/StormWaterServices
*Abbreviation for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Storm Water Services
CMSWS posted various videos and news stories on the You
Tube channel. CMSWS also provided more content,
pictures and videos related to stormwater pollution, surface
water quality, pollution prevention and flood messages on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and boosted some posts to
reach tens of thousands of users. There are 6834 Facebook
followers, a 14% increase from last fiscal year. There are
511 Instagram followers, a 26% increase from last fiscal
year. There are 971 Twitter followers, a 23% increase from
last year. There are 37 subscribers to our YouTube page, a
23% increase from last fiscal year. Figure 3-1 shows a
typical Facebook post.
CMSWS provided the public with a mobile application
called “Water Watchers” to report pollution. There were 73 Figure 3-1: Typical Facebook post
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downloads of the application during FY2018, making for a total of 1719 downloads since the
application was launched during FY2013. This past year, there were 46 reports of pollution
using the application. The application allows users to provide pictures of their concern and this
has proven very helpful to staff for providing follow-up services.
A variety of tools and events were used to promote the 311
hotline and the Water Waters mobile application including:
Giving away promotional products such as magnets and
water bottles with 311 and Water Watcher information;
Providing information about reporting pollution on a
website;
Working with local TV stations to produce news
segments focused on reporting pollution;
Buying media time and airing a TV ad focused on
reporting pollution;
Designing and mailing the October utility bill insert,
focused on volunteering and reporting pollution, to
approximately 255,000 residents; and
Hanging a six-story banner on a parking garage across
from a popular exit ramp off I-277 (Figure 3-2).
3.4.3 Public Hotline
The City, in cooperation with Mecklenburg County, operates a joint customer service hotline to
receive information about a variety of concerns. Citizens can dial 311 to report pollution,
flooding, and blockages to the drainage system as well as request other City/County services.
The 311 call center is staffed and open Monday through Friday from 7 am to 7 pm to receive
calls. Citizens can also submit requests for service to 311 on-line anytime (24/7/365). The City
promotes this hotline throughout all of the activities provided as part of the Stormwater Public
Education and Outreach Program.
During this past fiscal year, a total of 8,329 calls were received by 311 and referred to EPM-
SWS and/or CMSWS. Out of this total number, 519 resulted in service requests related to water
quality issues within the City. Of the calls received, the highest number came from citizens.
Calls from citizens as a group made up 57% of all calls, which was 40% higher than from any
other audience. This is important information for targeting education campaigns related to
pollution reporting. Table 3-4 provides information about the number and type of callers that
reported these issues.
Figure 3-2: Typical Parking
Garage Banner
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Table 3-4: FY2018 Service Request Source Summary
Caller Type Number of Service Requests*
Public Citizen 296
Business 14
Charlotte Fire Department staff 24
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department staff 2
Charlotte Storm Water Services staff 38
Charlotte Water staff 36
Mecklenburg County Storm Water Services staff 86
State – NCDEQ staff 9
Environmental Protection Agency 1
Other 13
TOTAL 519
* Source summary data includes all types of service requests within the City jurisdiction
An additional unique outreach tool for
publicizing pollution reporting was the
design and implementation of three
vehicle wraps (Figure 3-3). These
vehicle wraps have been placed on
three CMSWS vehicles and each
addressed a different subject – storm
drains lead to streams, smelly and
discolored streams, and mud pollution.
In addition to informing and
educating, these wraps encourage
residents to recognize and report
pollution by calling 311. The vehicle
wraps were completed toward the end
of FY2016 and have been driven since
then by CMSWS staff while
conducting illicit discharge investigations and service request responses. It is estimated that the
vehicle wraps will last about five years.
3.4.4 School Presentations
During FY2018, CMSWS staff provided 63 school
presentations to 2070 students, grades K-12, at 20 different
schools. There were seven different programs available to the
schools which included:
Blue Planet;
Common Water;
Freddie the Fish;
Enviroscape Model and Video;
CMANN Demo and Power Point;
Figure 3-4: Enviroscape Model Presentation
Figure 3-3: Vehicle Wrap on a CMSWS vehicle
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Festival Table Demonstrations; and
Career Day.
Two stormwater pollution videos (made by a former local meteorologist) and the Enviroscape
model were also available on loan to schools upon their request. Figure 3-4 shows a
presentation using the Enviroscape model.
3.4.5 Public Presentations and Workshops
A variety of water quality presentations and workshops were available from CMSWS to the
general public, interest groups, businesses and industrial facilities upon request. Each
presentation, while similar in nature, was also changed depending on the topic of interest and the
audience receiving the presentation. For example, this past year presentations were given about
yard waste, grease, pollution prevention, general water quality information, and landscaping tips.
Table 3-5 shows the public presentations that were provided by CMSWS during FY2018.
Table 3-5: FY2018 Public Presentations and Workshops
Date Event Name Number of Attendees
07/18/17 Greater Charlotte Apartment Association Green Committee 50
07/19/17 County Career Exploration 120
08/15/17 Greater Charlotte Apartment Association Green Committee 10
09/23/17 Volunteer Monitoring Training 28
11/01/17 Aquatic Pesticides and SCM Maintenance 104
11/30/17 Post Construction Stormwater Ordinance Training 120
02/10/18 Catawba River Keeper Urban Stream Workshop 35
03/13/18 Apartment Managers & Maintenance staff 20
03/15/18 Engagement Café 30
03/16/18 Girl Scout Troop 1782 35
03/20/18 Webelos Cub Scout Pack 3 41
04/07/18 Volunteer Monitoring Training 17
04/26/18 Greater Charlotte Apartment Association Maintenance Staff 20
05/10/18 Master Naturalist 20
05/15/18 Camp Green Neighborhood Association 20
05/24/18 Master Naturalist 20
TOTAL 690
3.4.6 Public Events
CMSWS staff participated in a variety of community events that were used to promote education
campaigns, give away promotional products, provide face-to-face education opportunities, and
provide formal presentations on water quality topics when appropriate. Table 3-6 shows the
public event participation during FY2018.
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Table 3-6: FY2018 Public Event Participation
Date Conducted Event Name Number of Attendees Interacted With
07/22/17 Girl Scout Service Unit Kick-off 70
08/19/17 Hummingbird Festival 200
09/23/17 City of Charlotte's 2017 Neighborhood
Exchange & Leadership Awards (NEXLA) 100
09/29/17 Catawba River STEM Festival 300
10/03/17 Meet & Eat CLTMeckGov 97
10/10/17 Meet & Eat CLTMeckGov 75
10/12/17 Meet & Eat CLTMeckGov 70
10/15/17 Open Streets 250
10/17/17 Meet & Eat CLTMeckGov 51
10/24/17 Meet & Eat CLTMeckGov 100
10/25/17 MoRa Community Meeting 25
10/30/17 Meet & Eat CLTMeckGov 100
11/09/17 Air Quality Annual Forum 50
01/23/18 Carolina Green Network 150
02/02/18 CMGC Employees – First Friday 50
02/08/18 to 02/11/18 Mid-Atlantic Boat Show 250
02/17/18 Soil & Water Conservations District Tree Sale 25
03/09/18 Charlotte Checkers Game for Volunteer
Appreciation Night 500
03/31/18 Weenie Walk 100
04/06/18 CMGC First Friday Environmental Fair 20
04/11/18 Waggle For Your Beer 30
04/14/18 Matthews Earth Day 100
04/14/18 CMPD Rabies/Microchip Event 50
04/17/18 Charlotte Career Discovery Day 150
04/18/18 Waggle For Your Beer 30
04/18/18 UNCC Earth Day 75
04/20/18 Ballantyne Earth Day 75
04/20/18 CMGC GovPorch Earth Day 50
04/21/18 Pet Palooza 250
04/23/18 Food Fair w/Health Dept. 20
04/29/18 Open Streets 704 350
05/12/18 Discovery Place Takeover 181
05/26/18 Mint Hill Madness Parade 300
TOTAL 4,244
3.4.7 Informational Website
A significant amount of resources were used to continue promoting and maintaining the
CMSWS website http://charlottenc.gov/StormWater (Figure 3-5). During September 2016, the
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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City launched a new, redesigned website. The new website provides an updated and enhanced
site that continues to be one of the best ways to provide the general public with water quality
information. A vast amount of water quality information is provided on this website including,
but not limited to, pollution prevention fact sheets, activities and lessons for kids, volunteer
activities, sediment and erosion, regulations, data, maps, watershed information, and stormwater
projects. The number of website page views during FY2018 was 275,595; of these, the number
of unique page views (i.e. the number of times a page was accessed at least once during a
browsing session) was 108,352.
Figure 3-5: CMSWS Main Webpage
3.4.8 Public Education Materials
This outreach mechanism was used to target specific
pollution sources associated with the general public and
industrial/commercial facilities including lawn care
practices, handling of used oil and other automotive wastes,
housekeeping techniques, etc. Public outreach materials
were also used to increase public reporting of pollution
problems. Figure 3-6 shows an example of a brochure that
was distributed during responses to citizen requests for
service, presentations and at event displays. The following
provides a list of topics for the written outreach
materials/handouts available to staff for distribution during
citizen requests for service:
Figure 3-6: Example of a brochure
distributed as part of Citizen Requests for
Service and at public events
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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A Guide to Used Oil Recycling
Scoop the Poop (proper handling of animal waste)
Only Rain Goes Down The Storm Drain – The Citizen’s Guide to Pollution
Prevention
Volunteer Opportunities
A Brief Look at Charlotte-Mecklenburg Storm Water Services – Your Storm Water
Fees at Work
Grease Free (proper disposal of grease from Charlotte Water Department)
Household Hazardous Waste – What do you do with left over chemicals
Mobile Detailer Best Management Practices
Landscapers Best Management Practices
Painters Best Management Practices
Contractors Best Management Practices
Carpet Cleaners Best Management Practices
Vehicle Service Best Management Practices
Food Service Best Management Practices
Multi-family Best Management Practices
Stone Cutting & Fabrication Industry Best Management Practices
Concrete Industry Best Management Practices
Commercial Property Management Best Management Practices
Asphalt Sealing Best Management Practices
Swimming Pool & Spa Industry Best Management Practices
Dry Detention BMP Maintenance
Rain Garden BMP Maintenance
Sand Filter BMP Maintenance
SW Wetland BMP Maintenance
Wet Pond BMP Maintenance
Environmental Notices – Disposal into the storm drain is against the law (available in
English, Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean)
3.4.8.1 Promotional Items
Promotional items were designed and distributed to complement outreach activities such as
group presentations, workshops and public events. All promotional items have the CMSWS
website and include other messages as space allows. Table 3-7 shows the promotional items
distributed during FY2018.
Table 3-7: FY2018 Promotional Items
Promotional Item Message
Dog waste bags Scoop the Poop
Insulated, stainless steel water bottles Report water pollution, volunteer
Wildflower seed bookmark Soil test, reduce fertilizer use
Stormy tattoos and stickers “Stormy” the mascot branding
Sunscreen Stormwater.Charmeck.org
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Promotional Item Message
Golf towels Stormwater.Charmeck.org
Boat whistles Stormwater.Charmeck.org
3.4.8.2 Utility Bill Inserts
During FY2018, CMSWS included utility bill inserts in four of the 12 monthly water/sewer
utility bills. The inserts focus on various topics which included volunteering, water quality,
flooding, CMSWS services and fee changes. The total number of utility bill inserts that were
mailed during FY2018 was 1,329,196. Figure 3-7 shows a typical utility bill insert that was
mailed.
Figure 3-7: June 2018 Utility Bill Insert
3.4.9 Regional Stormwater Partnership
The City serves on the Executive Committee of the Regional Stormwater Partnership of the
Carolinas (RSPC); a partnership which includes municipalities throughout the region that are
interested in collaborating on education and outreach initiatives to meet NPDES stormwater
permit requirements. Formed in 2006 and originally comprised of professionals from six
municipalities in the Charlotte metropolitan area, the RSPC was developed as a forum for
stormwater professionals to work collaboratively on local stormwater issues. The RSPC
provides an opportunity to leverage limited resources to fulfill common needs of the partners.
During FY2018 the RSPC’s media campaign ran advertisements on WFAE, WCCB and MeTV;
these advertisements had 4,296,900 impressions.
3.5 Measurable Goals/Planned Activities for Future Program Years
Table 3-8 describes the various Public Education and Outreach BMPs and the Measurable Goals
and Planned Activities for Future Program Years for each BMP by permit term year.
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Table 3-8: BMP Measurable Goals for the Public Education and Outreach Program.
BMP BMP Description Measurable Goals
(by permit term year)
1 2 3 4 5+
Describe target
pollutants and target
pollutant sources
Describe the target pollutants and target
pollutant sources the permittee’s public
education program is designed to address
and why they are an issue.
Identify target
pollution sources
utilizing
monitoring and
service request data
Review and update target pollution sources as necessary. (On-going, years 2 – 5+)
Describe target
audiences
Describe the target audiences likely to
have significant stormwater impacts and
why they were selected.
Identify target
audiences to adopt
desired water
quality
improvement
behaviors
Review and update target audiences as necessary. (On-going, years 2 – 5+)
Informational Web
Site
The permittee shall promote and
maintain an internet web site designed to
convey the program’s message.
Continue to maintain an informational website to provide program information to the public . (On-going,
years 1 – 5+)
Distribute public
education materials to
identified user groups.
Distribute general stormwater educational
material to appropriate target groups as
likely to have a significant stormwater
impact. Instead of developing its own
materials, the permittee may rely on state-
supplied Public Education and Outreach
materials, as available, when
implementing its own program.
Distribute educational materials at public events, workshops and presentations. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Promote and maintain
Hotline/Help line
Promote and maintain a stormwater
hotline/helpline.
Maintain a hotline that receives information from the public 24 hours a day. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Implement a Public
Education and
Outreach Program.
The permittee’s outreach program,
including those elements implemented
locally or through a cooperative
agreement, shall include a combination
of approaches designed to reach the
target audiences. For each media, event
or activity, including those elements
implemented locally or through a
cooperative agreement the permittee
shall estimate and record the extent of
exposure.
Continue to implement a plan to conduct education & outreach activities, including a media campaign, that
address target pollutants and audiences. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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3.6 Program Assessment
The overall Public Education and Outreach Program was successfully implemented during the
annual report period. Table 3-9 shows a summary of the various items and corresponding data
results for activities conducted under the program.
Table 3-9: Program Summary
PUBLIC EDUCATION PROGRAM FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2017 FY2018
Utility bill inserts 3,300,000 2,913,000 2,916,000 1,707,629 1,785,000 1,329,196
Public events 9 15 14 18 28 35
Attendees at public events 1,335 2,884 2,683 13,514 4,025 4,394
Public presentations 2 7 11 15 19 16
Citizens educated at public presentations 473 254 737 559 1,111 720
School presentations 54 56 61 56 80 63
Students educated at school presentations 1,402 1,421 1,510 1,330 2,097 2,070
Website page views 99,958 149,786 274,129 288,432 183,759 275,595
Social Media Followers/Subscribers1. N/A N/A 1,0002. 3,9002. 7,206 8,353
TV and radio advertising spots 492 1,977 3,761 1,146 800 731
Public requests to hotline 2,576 3,262 2,429 3,127 7,509 8,329
1. Includes Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube follower data for FY2017 and FY2018.
2. Includes only Facebook follower data for the fiscal year.
Overall: A combination of evaluation tools indicates that the City’s residents were successfully
being exposed to water quality education messages. It is always difficult to measure the true
impact of an education program, but continued program offerings and continued participation in
them, indicate that messages were successfully provided through a diverse set of communication
channels. To be successful, CMSWS must build on its strengths and invest in new learning
opportunities that attract and motivate current, new and expanding audiences to actively engage
in activities that reduce the impacts of stormwater discharges to our surface waters. Staff has
developed plans and done research on potential methods that can be used to reach more diverse
audiences and expand the outreach program. The following provides more detail regarding some
of the numbers reported above.
Utility Bill Inserts: During FY2018, the decrease in numbers from FY2017 reflects the decrease
in the frequency at which utility bill inserts were distributed.
Public Events & Public Presentations: The number of events and presentations during FY2018
increased.
School Presentations: The number of school presentations decreased while the number of
students educated remained in line with FY2017.
Website Page views: The number of website page views increased by 50% during FY2018.
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Social Media: The number of followers and subscribers to CMSWS social media channels
increased during FY2018.
Section 4: Public Involvement and Participation Program
During the annual report period, the Public Involvement and Participation Program provided
opportunities for the public to participate in program development and implementation per the
SWMP. The following sub-sections explain:
The BMPs implemented to meet program requirements;
Target audience;
Volunteer opportunities;
Public involvement mechanisms;
Measures of success;
Future goals and planned activities; and
Program assessment.
4.1 BMP Summary Table
Table 4-1 provides information concerning the BMPs implemented to fulfill the Public
Involvement and Participation Program requirements.
Table 4-1: BMP Summary Table for the Public Involvement and Participation Program.
BMP
BMP Description Schedule (years) Responsible
Position 1 2 3 4 5
Volunteer
community
involvement
program
The permittee shall include and promote volunteer
opportunities designed to promote ongoing citizen
participation.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Establish a
Mechanism
for Public
involvement
The permittee shall provide and promote a mechanism
for public involvement that provides for input on
stormwater issues and the stormwater program.
X X X X X Stormwater
Division
Manager
Establish
Hotline/Help line
The permittee shall promote and maintain a
hotline/helpline for the purpose of public involvement
and participation.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Public Review
and Comment
The permittee shall make copies of their most recent
Stormwater Plans available for public review and
comment.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Public Notice Pursuant to 122.34 the permittee must, at a minimum,
comply with State, Tribal and local public notice
requirements when implementing a public
involvement/ participation program.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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4.2 Volunteer Involvement Program
4.2.1 Target Audience
Public involvement is essential for ensuring the success of volunteer programs. The City
recognizes that without public involvement and support, little progress can be made toward
protecting and improving water quality in its streams. The primary target audience for volunteer
participation includes citizens between the ages of 25 and 55 due to their likelihood to become
involved in volunteer activities. There is a special emphasis to improve outreach to the African-
American and Hispanic populations and to increase the diversity of engaged citizens in general.
The following sub-sections discuss the volunteer programs used in the City’s overall Public
Involvement and Participation Program.
4.2.2 Storm Drain Marking Program
CMSWS continued to provide volunteers the
opportunity to help educate their community about
stormwater pollution through the Storm Drain
Marking program. This program enabled volunteers
to adhere vinyl printed markers (Figure 4-1) to storm
drains along streets they had selected in their
neighborhoods. CMSWS provided the decals,
adhesive, safety vests and information forms for completion by the groups. Following the
completion of storm drain marking activities, the groups submitted a report that included the
street names and number of drains that were marked, information concerning the condition of
storm drains, and whether any pollutants were detected. CMSWS staff recorded the storm drains
that had been marked and ensured any issues reported received follow-up investigation.
This past year, a total of 2,590 storm drains were marked by 246 volunteers for a combined total
of 635 volunteer hours for this program. Storm Drain Marking activities are tracked in order to
help determine programmatic gaps and where resources should be focused. Figure 4-2 shows
Storm Drain Marking activities conducted during FY2018. The Storm Drain Marking program
is a well-organized and a relatively easy-to-manage activity for successfully including citizens of
all ages in stormwater education. By using a more focused approach and targeting families and
volunteer groups, the program saw an increase in participation.
4.2.3 Adopt-A-Stream Program
The objective of this program is for volunteers to “adopt” segments of streams and agree to walk
them, picking up trash and reporting any pollution problems found along the way. The program
not only serves as a public involvement initiative, but it also allows for interaction and
observations of the City’s streams by its citizens, which can lead to the identification and
elimination of pollution sources.
Figure 4-1: Storm Drain Marker
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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The Adopt-A-Stream Program is designed in a way that empowers volunteers and provides them
with the necessary resources and educational information to assist in improving water quality
conditions in Charlotte-Mecklenburg streams. Individuals, families, organized groups, schools,
businesses, and industry “adopt” their favorite stream sections and were responsible for walking
these sections a minimum of two times per year. The current Adopt-A-Stream Program format
promotes a sense of community ownership and responsibility for local water resources.
During FY2018, a total of 111 groups of volunteers completed 196 stream cleanups under the
Adopt-A-Stream Program in the City. A total of 2,441 volunteers dedicated 5,811 hours to
picking up trash and reporting pollution in Charlotte-Mecklenburg streams. In addition,
volunteers removed approximately 26.6 tons of trash and debris. Adopt-A-Stream activities are
tracked in order to help determine programmatic gaps and where resources should be focused.
Figure 4-3 shows Adopt-A-Stream activities conducted during FY2018 and Table 4-3 provides
a summary of important results relating to the program.
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City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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FIGURE 4-2
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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FIGURE 4-3
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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4.2.4 The Big Spring Clean
The Big Spring Clean is a one-day annual event promoted by CMSWS and the local organization
Keep Mecklenburg Beautiful. The event is held on a selected Saturday morning during the
spring season and typically provides seven to nine locations where citizens can go to remove
trash from local streams. These locations are conveniently situated at greenway trailheads with
ample parking and staffed by CMSWS to provide the volunteers with supplies, drinks and
snacks. CMSWS coordinates the logistics during this event and collects statistics such as
number of volunteers participating, volunteer hours, and the amount of trash removed at each
location. CMSWS also coordinates with the Mecklenburg County Parks and Recreation
Department to have the collected trash removed and properly disposed.
During FY2018, a total of 210 volunteers dedicated 810 hours to participating in the event and
removed seven tons of trash from local waterways at seven locations throughout the City.
Figure 4-4 shows the promotional information used for the event.
Figure 4-4: Big Spring Clean advertisement
4.2.5 Volunteer Monitoring Program
The Volunteer Monitoring Program allows
volunteers to monitor local streams in order to
evaluate the stream’s health, and flag problem areas
for further investigation by CMSWS staff.
Volunteers learn about the chemical composition of
the water, macro invertebrate identification, and
stream habitat, and can also compare data with
other volunteer monitoring groups (Figure 4-5).
Although CMSWS has historically supported
volunteer monitoring programs in the schools, this Figure 4-5: Volunteer Monitoring Workshop attendees
learning sampling techniques
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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was only the second year that a significant effort has been put forth to develop and promote an
actual citizen volunteer monitoring program. During FY2018, two Volunteer Monitoring
Workshops trained 44 attendees and a total of 125 trained volunteers dedicated 250 hours to
participating in the Volunteer Monitoring program. Table 4-3 provides a summary of important
results relating to the program.
4.3 Public Involvement Mechanism
The City, along with Mecklenburg County, established a citizen Stormwater Advisory
Committee (SWAC) in 1994 with the development of their joint stormwater utility (Charlotte-
Mecklenburg Storm Water Services).
SWAC members are nominated and subsequently appointed by the Mecklenburg Board of
County Commissioners, Charlotte City Council, Charlotte Mayor and Town Boards. SWAC
includes residents from the City and serves as the City’s stormwater management citizen
advisory panel for the purpose of involving the public in the development of the SWMP and the
implementation of program requirements. The SWAC reviews:
Capital and operational programs;
Appeals;
Stormwater program policies;
Long-range plans; and
Budgets.
These reviews assisted CMSWS in making recommendations and offering comments to the City
Council and the Board of County Commissioners on program matters and annual budgets. The
committee also adjudicated appeals for erosion control violations, service charges, credits and
adjustments, as needed throughout the program year.
4.4 Public Hotline
The City, in cooperation with Mecklenburg County, operates a joint customer service hotline to
receive information about a variety of concerns. Citizens can dial 311 to report pollution,
flooding, and blockages to the drainage system as well as request other City/County services.
The 311 call center is staffed and open Monday through Friday from 7 am to 7 pm to receive
calls. Citizens can also submit requests for service to 311 on-line anytime (24/7/365). The City
promotes this hotline throughout all of the activities provided as part of the Stormwater Public
Education and Outreach Program. The hotline/help line is discussed further in sub-section 3.4.3
above.
4.5 Public Review and Comment Opportunities
The City provided opportunities for public review and comment in the implementation of its
permit and SWMP Plan through website information. During FY2018, CMSWS also submitted
an application for renewal of the City’s NPDES MS4 permit. This application and associated
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Stormwater Management Report was placed on the CMSWS website and a public notice was
published in the newspaper to notify the public of the opportunity to provide comments on these
documents.
4.6 Public Notice
A public notice was published in the main local newspaper concerning the City’s MS4 permit
renewal application. The application was placed on the CMSWS website and made available for
review. No comments were received by the City.
4.7 Measurable Goals/Planned Activities for Future Program Years
Table 4-2 describes the various Public Involvement and Participation Program BMPs and the
Measurable Goals and Planned Activities for Future Program Years for each BMP by permit
term year.
[THIS SPACE INTENTIONALLY BLANK]
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Table 4-2: BMP Measurable Goals for the Public Involvement and Participation Program.
BMP BMP Description Measurable Goals
(by permit term year)
1 2 3 4 5+
Volunteer
community
involvement
program
The permittee shall include and
promote volunteer opportunities
designed to promote ongoing citizen
participation.
Continue to maintain a public involvement and participation program that outlines campaigns and tools to
encourage public involvement. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Establish a
Mechanism
for Public
involvement
The permittee shall provide and
promote a mechanism for public
involvement that provides for input on
stormwater issues and the stormwater
program.
Maintain the Stormwater Advisory Committee. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Establish
Hotline/Help line
The permittee shall promote and
maintain a hotline/helpline for the
purpose of public involvement and
participation.
Maintain a hotline that receives information from the public 24 hours a day. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Public Review and
Comment
The permittee shall make copies of
their most recent Stormwater Plans
available for public review and
comment.
Maintain an informational website which includes the SWMP available for review and comment. (On-going,
years 1 – 5+)
Public Notice Pursuant to 122.34 the permittee must,
at a minimum, comply with State,
Tribal and local public notice
requirements when implementing a
public involvement/ participation
program.
Comply with State and local public notice requirements when making major changes to the stormwater program
and/or applying for permit renewals. (On-going, as needed)
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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4.8 Program Assessment
The Public Involvement and Participation Program was successfully implemented during the
annual report period. In addition, although not currently listed as a required BMP in the City’s
NPDES MS4 permit or SWMP, the City coordinates with Mecklenburg County to sponsor an
annual Big Spring Clean event. Data on this additional program is included in the table below
for reference. Table 4-3 shows a summary of the various items and corresponding results for
activities conducted under the program.
Table 4-3: Program Summary
PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT PROGRAM FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2017 FY2018
Storm Drain Marking volunteers 231 89 125 119 297 246
Storm Drain Marking volunteer hours 668 216 198 286 624 635
Storm drains marked 1,663 956 983 927 2,646 2,590
SWAC meetings conducted 8 9 10 10 12 11
Persons attending SWAC meetings 76 88 82 96 109 92
Adopt-A-Stream groups 81 84 64 67 95 111
Stream clean-ups conducted 128 141 98 106 155 196
Adopt-A-Stream volunteers 1,540 1,983 1,211 1,280 1,928 2,441
Adopt-A-Stream volunteer hours 3,556 5,324 2,514 2,736 4,516 5,811
Adopt-A-Stream trash removed (Tons) 9 16 9.6 14.9 13.8 26.6
Big Spring Clean volunteers N/A N/A N/A 265 199 210
Big Spring Clean volunteer hours N/A N/A N/A 928 796 810
Big Spring Clean trash removed (Tons) N/A N/A N/A 9.4 2.7 7
Volunteer Monitoring participants N/A 122 97 619 222 125
Volunteer Monitoring participant hours N/A 7,076 194 773 654 250
The City’s Public Involvement and Participation Program provides a combination of activities
that allows residents to be involved in the City’s stormwater management program and the
opportunity to comment on components of the City’s plan to meet NPDES MS4 permit
requirements. The following provides an overview of the program’s effectiveness:
Storm Drain Marking Program – The number of volunteers and storm drains marked
remained steady during FY2018;
Adopt-A-Stream Program – The number of groups participating increased from FY2017
to FY2018. One-time stream clean-ups are becoming more popular with groups verses
conducting two clean-ups per year, which has traditionally been required;
Big Spring Clean – The number of volunteers for the Big Spring Clean increased slightly
during FY2018;
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Volunteer Monitoring Program – The number of volunteer monitoring participants and
hours decreased during FY2018. Volunteer monitoring has typically been focused in the
schools and this was only the second year that citizens were directly targeted for this
program;
SWAC meetings – Meeting frequency and participation continues to be maintained.
These meetings continue to be a highly effective method for involving the public in
policy decisions related to the overall stormwater program; and
Public Hotline/ Helpline – The 311 hotline and the Water Watchers Application
continued to be successful tools for allowing the public to report water pollution
problems.
Section 5: Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination (IDDE) Program
During the annual report period, staff implemented the Illicit Discharge Detection and
Elimination (IDDE) program to identify and eliminate sources of pollution to the MS4 per the
SWMP. The following sub-sections explain:
The BMPs implemented to meet program requirements;
Measures of success;
Future goals and planned activities; and
Program assessment.
5.1 BMP Summary Table
Table 5-1 provides information concerning the BMPs implemented to fulfill the IDDE Program
requirements.
Table 5-1: BMP Summary Table for the Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination Program.
BMP BMP Description Schedule (years) Responsible
Position 1 2 3 4 5
Maintain
appropriate legal
authorities
Maintain adequate ordinances or other legal
authorities to prohibit illicit connections and
discharges and enforce the approved IDDE Program.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Maintain a Storm
Sewer System Base
Map
The permittee shall maintain a current map showing
major outfalls and receiving streams.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Inspection /
detection program
to detect dry
weather flows at
MS4 outfalls
Maintain written procedures and/or Standard
Operating Procedures (SOPs) for detecting and
tracing the sources of illicit discharges and for
removing the sources or reporting the sources to the
State to be properly permitted. Written procedures
and/or SOPs shall specify a timeframe for monitoring
and how many outfalls and the areas that are to be
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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targeted for inspections.
Employee Training Conduct training for appropriate municipal staff on
detecting and reporting illicit connections and
discharges.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Maintain a public
reporting
mechanism
Maintain and publicize reporting mechanism for the
public to report illicit connections and discharges.
Establish citizen request response procedures.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Documentation The permittee shall document the date of
investigations, any enforcement action(s) or
remediation that occurred.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
5.2 Ordinance Administration and Enforcement
The City adopted its Stormwater Pollution Control Ordinance on January 30, 1995 for the initial
NPDES MS4 permit term. The ordinance was subsequently updated and amended on March 22,
2004 and most recently on June 9, 2008. This ordinance continued to be implemented as part of
the NPDES MS4 permit program and SWMP. All procedures and guidelines for proper
administration and enforcement of the ordinance were reviewed and updated, as necessary.
These procedures and guidelines along with all other information relevant to the IDDE program
were included in the IDDE Manual.
Currently, the ordinance has four sections that are considered prohibitions (violations) for which
the issuance of a Notice of Violation (NOV) and/or other enforcement remedies is authorized.
Those sections are:
Section 18-80(a) Illicit Discharges and Disposals;
Section 18-80(b) Illicit Connections;
Section 18-80(c) Accidental Discharges; and
Section 18-80(d) Obstruction.
Cumulatively from FY1995 through FY2018, a total of 1,206 violations of the ordinance have
been discovered resulting in the issuance of an NOV. Historically, the majority of these
violations have occurred under Section 18-80(a) with many of these being either for the improper
disposal of wash water or wastewater, or the illicit discharge of sewage.
During FY2018, a total of 117 violations of the ordinance were discovered resulting in the
issuance of an NOV. Of these, 13 also resulted in the issuance of a civil penalty assessment to
the violator. The number of violations observed for each ordinance section was:
Section 18-80(a) Illicit Discharges and Disposals (112);
Section 18-80(b) Illicit Connections (4);
Section 18-80(c) Accidental Discharges (1); and
Section 18-80(d) Obstruction (0).
The violations are further categorized based on the type of material discharged. During FY2018
the number of violations discovered per material category was:
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Sediment (1) Paint (1)
Drilling Slurry (5) Trash (1)
Concrete wash (9) Motor oil (15)
Wash water (6) Heating oil (2)
Wastewater (4) Gasoline (1)
Process water (12) Chemicals (1)
Private sewage SSO (41) Pool Discharges (1)
Food waste/grease (12) Animal waste (1)
Figure 5-1 shows the graphical representation of these material categories for which NOVs were
issued, and Figure 5-2 shows the number of NOVs issued per month during FY2018.
Figure 5-1: NOVs issued by material category.
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Figure 5-2: NOVs issued per month.
5.3 Stormwater System Inventory and Storm System Base Map
The City collects stormwater system inventory using a Stream Walk Program and an Inventory
Program.
The Stream Walk Program focuses on CMSWS staff walking stream channels to inspect outfalls,
identify and collect data on new outfalls, and to identify dry weather flows. Stream walks are
scheduled in every sub-basin within the City at least one time every five years. All Stream Walk
Program data is transferred to the City’s Inventory Program annually.
During FY2018, a new five-year stream-walk plan was developed based on an analysis of the
previous five year stream-walk program and the following conclusions:
The high priority basins (history of poor water quality and illicit discharges) that were
walked every other year did not result in a significant amount of new outfalls or illicit
discharges as compared to the other basins.
The large number of miles walked in the high priority basins each year made it difficult
for staff to walk different basins if the need was identified.
The analysis led to changes in protocol to develop the new five-year stream walk plan that
groups the sub-basins by watershed in both the City and Mecklenburg County. The same
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
35
number of miles will be walked each year as previously, but the plan will also allow for a 20-
mile per year reserve that can be used for walking in any basin(s) when the need is identified.
Figure 5-3 shows the new five-year (FY2018 – FY2022) stream walk plan and Figure 5-4
shows the sub-basins that were walked during FY2018 within the Sugar Creek, Little Sugar
Creek, Twelve Mile Creek, and Six Mile Creek watersheds.
The Inventory Program verifies the outfall data collected by the Stream Walk Program and
collects additional data on other components of the stormwater system such as catch basins,
inlets, pipes, etc. The Inventory Program also collects stormwater infrastructure data from the
analysis of new development and municipal project areas received from the EPM-SWS Design
and Engineering Teams, and EPM’s Engineering Services and Land Development divisions. All
inventory data receives QA/QC and is converted digitally into GIS.
During FY2018, the following activities were conducted as part of Stream Walk Program:
Four watersheds (Sugar, Little Sugar, Twelve Mile, and Six Mile Creeks) and 24 sub-
basins covering 199.10 stream miles were walked and assessed;
258 new outfalls were added to the inventory; and
117 previously inventoried outfalls received inventory QA/QC.
During FY2018, the following activities were conducted as part of the Inventory Program:
21 square miles of the MS4 area were inventoried; and
321 municipal and new private development projects were analyzed for additional
inventory.
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FIGURE 5-3
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FIGURE 5-4
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5.4 Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination Program
5.4.1 Outfall Inspection and Dry Weather Flow Detection
Each year, outfalls are inspected for physical condition, the presence of dry weather flows
(DWFs), and illicit discharges. These inspections are primarily conducted during Stream Walks
and Hot Spot Investigations. Standard Operating Procedures for these activities are documented
in the NPDES MS4 IDDE Manual and reviewed and updated annually. Outfall inspections also
occur during service request and field investigations, municipal facility inspections, and
industrial facility inspections.
Stream Walks
As discussed in Section 5.3, Stream Walks involve CMSWS staff walking the stream channel to
inspect outfalls, sample DWFs, and document a variety of other water quality related problems.
Various reasons make it impossible to sample all DWFs including very low flows (seepage),
frozen water and others. DWFs are sampled for physical parameters (temperature, conductivity,
pH, etc.), fecal coliform and total phosphorus. Fecal coliform samples are also collected from
areas where tributaries enter the channel being walked and staff document stream blockages,
areas of severe stream bank erosion, wetlands and new stream reference reaches as they observe
them.
During FY2018, the following Stream Walk activities occurred:
375 outfalls were inspected;
114 DWFs were detected at outfalls and 87 of these were sampled;
347 fecal coliform and 24 total phosphorous samples were collected;
12 fecal coliform sample results that exceeded the program action limit were
investigated; and
10 illicit discharges were detected and eliminated.
CMSWS staff also documented:
32 stream blockages;
35 areas of severe stream bank erosion; and
6 potential stream reference reaches.
Hot Spot Investigations
Hot Spot Investigations, a subset of the Illicit Discharge Elimination Program (IDEP), is a
program where CMSWS staff conducts outfall inspections in targeted basins with a higher
potential for illicit discharge activities based on criteria such as monitoring data, prior identified
illicit discharges, age of sanitary sewer infrastructure, commercial land use density, and others.
These activities and additional activities conducted under IDEP are discussed in more detail in
Section 5.4.3.
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During FY2018, a section of Briar Creek was the target basin and the IDEP program inspected
three minor outfalls (<36” in diameter) with one DWF detected.
In addition, during FY2018 CMSWS staff also inspected 80 outfalls as part of service requests
and field investigations, municipal facilities inspections, and industrial facility inspections.
5.4.2 Water Quality Monitoring
Water quality in-stream monitoring is used to identify problems and to track long and short-term
water quality trends. The two main monitoring programs used to support IDDE efforts are the
Fixed Interval and CMANN (Continuous Monitoring and Alert Notification Network) stream
monitoring programs. The Fixed Interval program conducts in-stream monitoring for various
chemical and physical parameters on a monthly basis and is discussed further in Section 10. The
CMANN program is an automated monitoring network that takes in-stream readings every 60
minutes at monitoring sites for dissolved oxygen, temperature, pH, conductivity, and turbidity.
This parameter data is transferred to a database in real-time using cellular telemetry. Figure 5-5
shows the monitoring locations for this program.
“Watch” and “Action” levels for the monitoring parameters are used as part of the program to
determine when follow-up investigations are needed to address potential problems. The Watch
and Action levels are based on state water quality standards and historical local data for the
chemical and physical parameters. Exceedance of these levels will trigger a field investigation.
During FY2018, 30 follow-up investigations were conducted which resulted in the discovery of
several water quality issues (water main breaks, elevated turbidity levels, etc.) and three illicit
discharges.
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FIGURE 5-5
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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5.4.3 Illicit Discharge Elimination Program (IDEP)
IDEP is a sub-set program of the overall IDDE program. It is a program that conducts illicit
discharge detection, investigation and outreach activities in areas where data and experience
shows the greatest likelihood of illicit discharges and/or poor housekeeping practices. This past
fiscal year, IDEP provided the following activities:
Hot Spot Investigations
Multi-Family Community Inspections
Business Corridor Runs
Industrywide Investigations
Pet Waste Flagging Campaign
Hot Spot Investigations includes inspection of outfalls and overland areas where analysis of
monitoring and service request data indicates a priority area(s). In these instances, experienced
IDEP staff investigate the stream, manholes and surrounding areas during ambient conditions
(>72 hours since a measurable storm event). If staff observes DWFs at outfalls and in manholes,
they then use visual and sensory cues and quick field tests (CHEMetrics K-1510 Ammonia test
kit) to sample for the presence of wastewater. If the Ammonia level is >1.0 ppm, then staff track
the DWF using fecal coliform sampling. Staff may also request smoke testing of sanitary
systems, conduct dye testing, and monitor suspect facilities to investigate. A variety of
investigation methods may be employed and IDDE protocol is used until the source is identified.
This year a sub-basin of the Briar Creek watershed was identified as the priority area or “Hot
Spot”, but intensive investigations also occurred in the Irwin Creek and Little Sugar Creek
watersheds. In the Briar Creek watershed, “sweet sewage smells” at 919 Colonade Drive led the
team to use a variety of investigations methods and ultimately to an industrial facility that was
issued an NOV for an illicit connection of sugar water into the storm drainage system. This
facility will be inspected by the Industrial Inspection Program during FY2019. In the Irwin
Creek Watershed, high bacteria levels in Stewart Creek (sub-basin of Irwin Creek) in past years
have led to the identification and correction of several cross connections, but bacteria levels have
remained high. This past year, the IDEP team used a number of investigation methods to survey
and sample this area. These investigations led the team to request a pipe video inspection for
approximately 5,800 feet of underground stormwater pipe system to be conducted during
FY2019. In the Little Sugar Creek watershed, a new location for a CMANN monitoring station
located at a major stormwater outfall draining downtown Charlotte, at 4th street, detected a
number of intermittent flows during dry weather. This led to a number of follow-up
investigations which did not determine an exact source. CMSWS is now evaluating if
conducting an underground pipe video inspection would be a feasible next step.
Multi-Family Inspections are inspections of privately maintained multi-family residential sewer
systems to look for signs of problems with the operation and maintenance of these systems.
CMSWS inspectors open manholes and look for obvious overflows and signs of pipe blockages
and/or previous problems (limed areas, toilet paper on ground, etc.). The communities selected
were based upon their sewer overflow history and their location within a hot spot or priority
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basin. During FY2018, twenty-two (22) multi-family inspections were conducted with no illicit
discharges discovered.
Business Corridor Runs are windshield
surveys conducted along streets
throughout the City that have a high
concentration of commercial businesses
where illicit discharges and poor
housekeeping are most commonly
found. These surveys allow staff to
quickly survey these business areas for
practices such as dumping wastewater
from mop buckets, mobile washers, oil
discharges from automotive practices,
and grease discharges at restaurants.
Staff will also inspect storm drain inlets
and outfalls when illicit discharges are
suspected.
This past year, 2,548 businesses and 371 catch basins were inspected. Six illicit discharges were
discovered and corrected with Notices of Violations issued. There were also eight
Environmental Notices distributed for poor housekeeping practices. Figure 5-6 shows cooking
grease overflowing from a restaurant grease bin discovered as a result of a Business Corridor
Run.
Industry-wide Investigations includes staff focusing on a specific industry for inspections. This
past fiscal year, the stone cutting industry was targeted. Staff gathered a list of 53 stone cutting
businesses within the City, inspected 34 facilities, and found and corrected seven illicit
discharges. This effort resulted in the issuance of seven NOVs and corresponding civil penalty
assessments. Staff plans to inspect the remaining 19 facilities during FY2019 to complete this
task.
The Pet Waste Flagging Campaign was a new activity conducted during FY2018 which used
both IDEP and Education staff. The goal of the campaign was to reduce the amount of pet waste
the public does not pick up and properly dispose. Greenways and parks known for pet waste
problems were targeted. The campaign designed small flags (similar to those used to mark
utilities) with messages of environmental and health risks that undisposed pet waste poses. Each
week throughout April, staff visited these areas to mark pet waste with the flags. These activities
were also combined with social media/on-line outreach, attendance at community events for pet
owners, and interviews with local TV and on-line media. Staff deployed 1,400 pet waste flags
and engaged with 64 residents during pet waste flagging. A number of media outlets featured
stories about the campaign.
Figure 5-6: An illicit discharge detected under the IDEP program
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Standard operating procedures have been developed to describe all IDEP program activities and
protocols and they are reviewed annually.
Figure 5-7 shows the locations where IDEP activities occurred during FY2018 and Figure 5-8
shows the business corridors evaluated during FY2018.
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FIGURE 5-7
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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FIGURE 5-8
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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5.5 Employee IDDE Training and Education
Employee IDDE Training and Education involves training municipal employees about the
detection of illicit connections and discharges, and the various methods for reporting suspected
pollution problems. Training is provided through a combination of the following methods:
Workshops
Staff meeting presentations;
In-person training sessions;
On-line training module; and
Other methods such as posters, fliers, light box displays, emails, websites, and displays
and information at employee gatherings
Workshops involve attracting target audiences and providing training presentations about topics
appropriate for their interests including stormwater BMPs. This training may also provide
continuing education credits to attract its attendance. Staff also provides displays to interact with
this audience one-on-one. The following workshops were attended by a number of people that
were city staff and from private industry:
Aquatic Pesticides and Stormwater BMP Workshop
Landscape Contractors Breakfast
Staff meeting presentations entails providing a ten-minute presentation at a regularly scheduled
staff meeting to provide information about identifying common illicit discharges in the
community, the importance of reporting them, and the various methods that can be used to report
them. Staff meeting presentations can also include workshops when internal staff attends and at
least ten minutes are dedicated to providing information about identifying and reporting illicit
discharges.
The following staff presentations were provided this past year:
EPM-SWS Construction Management Team - Seniors Inspectors and Supervisors
EPM-SWS construction inspectors staff meeting
Charlotte Water Department (CW) construction inspectors staff meeting
EPM-LD staff meeting
In-person training sessions are specially scheduled classroom style sessions that occur annually
and include a power point presentation and video covering:
Common illicit discharges in the community;
How to detect them when they enter surface water;
The importance of reporting them and the various ways they can report them as well as
more in-depth pollution prevention information related to their facility and field work;
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans;
Spill prevention and response (Figure 5-9);
Pollution prevention and the role of the employees to protect the environment and set an
example for the community; and
Results from recent facility inspections
Presentations are given by
CMSWS staff at all facilities
except those owned by the
Charlotte Area Transit System
(CATS) and the Airport.
Presentations provided by
CMSWS and CATS were
customized to reflect field work
pollution prevention practices
related to the audiences’ daily
work, the most recent facility
inspection and a three-minute Spill
Response Video which covered the
importance of spill response.
Presentations provided by the Airport were targeted at employees as well as contractors who are
then responsible for training their own staff.
The on-line training module provides a power point presentation and video that is very similar to
the in-person training session, but allows field or shift-work staff to take it when it’s convenient
for them.
Other methods used this past year to reach internal staff with messages of report pollution
included attendance at various City staff events and a Stormy Contest.
During FY2018, EPM-SWS staff also attended a City employee First Friday of the Month event
and an Earth Day event, both held in the lobby of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government
Center. These events provided the opportunity to engage employees with a table-top display
about stormwater pollution and reporting, distribute promotional products, and provide a hands-
on activity.
During FY2018, the Stormy’s Report Pollution Contest was sponsored by EPM-SWS and
entailed a month-long on-line contest for internal staff to win gift cards. Each week during the
month of June, an image of CMSWS’ mascot, Stormy the Turtle, catching an illicit discharger in
action was posted on internal e-mails and websites. These images linked to a Stormy website
where a different illicit discharge was highlighted each week and a link to a weekly contest of
questions was provided. The contest asked three questions about the information on the Stormy
website for a chance to win a gift card. The contest was promoted with the four weekly images
Figure 5-9: Spill Response Video used for Training
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on digital display boards in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center and Solid Waste
Services buildings and four weekly city-wide e-newsletters and Engineering department emails
(Figure 5-10).
During FY2018, a total of 1,670 employees were trained
from the following Employee IDDE Training and
Education activities:
168 employees were trained with staff meeting
presentations;
844 employees were trained with in-person training
sessions;
223 employees were trained with on-line training
modules;
90 employees were contacted during Earth Day and
First Friday events; and
345 employees participated in the Stormy Contest.
5.5.1 Commercial Sector Education and Outreach
Certain businesses can be frequent sources of illicit
discharges and connections. To improve compliance and
reduce the number and severity of illicit discharges coming
from the commercial sector, the City proactively provides
education to certain commercial business sectors each year.
During FY2018, CMSWS provided 15 two-page best practices publications and guidance
documents for commercial sectors available on-line. CMSWS also distributed these publications
as part of service requests, mailings, training sessions and public events. The following provides
a complete list of the commercial sector publications that have been developed:
Landscape Maintenance Concrete
Pressure Washers Horizontal Directional Drilling
Mobile Vehicle Detailers Painting
Food Service Industry Swimming Pools and Spas
Managers of Apartments and Condos Rooftop Work
Asphalt Sealing Stone Cutting
Carpet Cleaning Vehicle and Equipment Repair
Commercial Property Management Municipal Contractors
During FY2018, CMSWS provided additional outreach to the landscaping, concrete and paint,
and food service sectors as follows:
Figure 5-10: Stormy Contest image
highlights leaking grease bins.
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Landscape Contractors:
During FY2018, outreach was provided to
the landscaping sector through three events:
Presentation and display at the City’s
Landscape Contractor’s Breakfast
(Figure 5-11);
Display at the Carolina Green
Industry Network Landscaping
Tradeshow; and
Sponsorship of the second Aquatic
Pesticides and Stormwater BMP
Workshop.
The City’s Landscape Contractor’s Breakfast is an annual event organized by the City’s
Landscape Management division that targets landscape related service companies that already
have a contract with the City or have an interest in acquiring a contract. During FY2018,
CMSWS provided a presentation that covered common illicit discharges to the landscape
industry, city contract requirements related to landscaping and illicit discharges, and a brief
overview of stormwater BMP maintenance and advertisement of the Aquatic Pesticides and
Stormwater BMP Workshop. Staff also set up a landscape and water quality display with
promotional products and brochures at this event. The event was attended by approximately 75
people.
The Carolina Green Industry Network Landscaping Trade Show is an annual event held in Union
County attended by landscaping professionals from the region each year. During FY2018,
CMSWS partnered with the Regional Stormwater Partnership (RSWP) to provide a landscape
and water quality display and interactive prize wheel with landscaping questions and
promotional products. It is estimated that approximately 150 landscapers visited the display and
interacted with staff.
The Aquatic Pesticides and Stormwater BMP Workshop was provided for a second year in a row
through a partnership with Central Piedmont Community College, Carolina Green Industry
Network, the RSWP, NC State University (NCSU), and NCSU Cooperative Extension. The
workshop was a half-day event and targeted landscapers in the Charlotte region with information
about local water quality, common illicit discharges associated with landscaping, proper use and
safety associated with aquatic pesticides, beneficial and invasive aquatic plants, pond
management, and stormwater BMP inspection and maintenance. The workshop was held on
November 1, 2017 and attended by 104 people who represented municipal and private landscape
professionals, private country clubs/ golf courses, pond and lake management companies,
engineering firms, non-profit organizations, and interested residents.
Figure 5-11: Stormwater BMP presentation for the
Landscaper Contractor’s Breakfast
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Concrete and Paint Contractors:
During FY2018, CMSWS staff implemented an outreach plan specific to concrete and paint
contractors. After staff researched ways to reach these sectors directly, it was decided that
outreach would focus on residents hiring these contractors or seeing them at construction sites.
During the month of June 2018, paint and concrete dumping was the theme for two of the weekly
Stormy contests for City staff. A utility bill insert and social media posts were also used to reach
residents.
A total of six concrete testing firms under contract by EPM-SWS were also contacted via direct
mail due to issues observed at City projects.
:
Food Service – Restaurants:
Outreach to the food service sector
included setting up a display at the
Health Department’s Food Summit
workshop where over 100 people from
the food service sector attended. It also
included outreach through the Stormy
contest when images highlighting
dumping mop water and leaking grease
bins to thousands of city staff.
In addition, a new storm drain marker was designed that focuses on the message, “No Dumping
Mop Water” in English and Spanish (Figure 5-12). These new markers will be placed on catch
basins near restaurants where dumping would likely occur as part of IDEP Business Corridor
Runs next fiscal year.
5.5.2 Sanitary Sewer Overflows and Septic Systems
CMSWS works with two separate departments to reduce sources of bacteria from sanitary sewer
overflows (SSOs) and septic systems: CW and Mecklenburg County Groundwater and
Wastewater Services.
Sanitary Sewer Overflows: CW is the department responsible for operating the Municipal water
supply and sanitary sewer systems in the City. During FY2018, there were 164 SSOs (total
volume of 20,670,684 gallons) from the municipal sanitary sewer system. This is a decrease of
25% from FY2017. It is important to note that two overflows during FY2018 were caused by
large trees falling and accounted for 97.98% (20,231,505 gallons) of the total volume spilled.
Figure 5-13 summarizes the causes for these spills.
Figure 5-12: New Storm Drain Marker for Business Corridors
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51
In addition, the number of spills
per 100 miles of pipe system
continued to show a steady
decline. For example, during
FY2007 there were 10.8 SSOs
per 100 miles of pipe system
compared to 3.8 SSOs per 100
miles during FY2018. This
represents a 65% decrease over
the 11-year time frame.
The City works to decrease
SSOs in four main ways:
Infrastructure
maintenance and
inspections;
Commercial/restaurant/
industrial inspections;
Multi-family residential
outreach; and
The Grease Free
education campaign.
Infrastructure maintenance and inspection:
CW implements a number of infrastructure maintenance and inspection programs designed to
reduce inflow and infiltration and sanitary sewer losses. During FY2018, the following was
accomplished:
15.75 miles of sanitary sewer pipe were relined;
8,906 sanitary sewer system manholes were inspected;
374 manholes were rehabilitated, repaired or replaced;
392 miles of sanitary sewer pipe were treated with root control chemicals;
1,051 miles of sanitary sewer pipe were cleaned (including some multiple cleanings at the
same location);
513 service connections were replaced;
81 lift stations received preventative maintenance for a total of 2,676 work hours (not
including station checks, wet well cleaning, generator testing and emergency/ routine
repairs); and
107.6 miles of rights-of-way were cleared to maintain access to off-street sanitary
wastewater pipes and to help prevent root intrusions.
Figure 5-13: FY2018 SSOs by cause
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52
Commercial/restaurant/industrial inspections:
During FY2018, CW performed the following activities:
4,440 inspections of grease handling/ food service establishments occurred;
140 Notices of Deficiency (NOD) were sent to businesses of which 106 returned to
compliance and 34 were still under investigation at the time of the CW fiscal year report.
5 NOVs were sent to businesses.
CW continued to provide educational information about proper disposal of pipe-blocking
items (Flow Free education);
Inspectors mailed information to 1,236 customers near SSO sites and handed out
information to 2,107 customers at multi-family communities.
5,783 adults and children received presentations from staff;
Staff continued to distribute door-hangers to maintenance personnel and property
managers of multi-family communities.
More than 200 compliance inspections were conducted at facilities with wastewater pre-
treatment permits (Significant Industrial Users);
261 permit violations were recorded at Significant Industrial User facilities and 44 of
them were issued NOVs with civil penalties.
Multi-Family Residential Program:
Since 2009, CMSWS has been working with CW to prevent SSOs by providing mailings,
workshops and inspections for the multi-family residential sector. Each year, staff selects multi-
family residential communities to receive a mailing that explains the ten state regulatory
requirements for private sanitary sewer collection systems and the resources available from
CMSWS and CW to comply. These multi-family communities are selected based on monitoring
data such as surface water quality and the locations of SSOs and related service requests. Staff
then works with these communities to help them develop Operation and Maintenance (O & M)
Plans for their private sanitary sewer system. This includes providing resources such as
templates for their O&M plans and assisting with the development of a sanitary sewer system
map. These resources are also available on the City’s website.
CMSWS staff then conduct compliance inspections at those communities that were sent
information the year before. Staff also provides outreach activities to educate maintenance staff
and property managers about the regulations, how to comply with them and why it’s important.
Since 2010, the main avenue for this outreach has been an SSO workshop, although attendance
has been waning.
During FY2018, the program aimed to improve outreach to maintenance staff and property
managers about the SSO Workshop by partnering with the Greater Charlotte Apartment
Association (GCAA). Through this partnership there were two workshops held: The CMSWS
SSO Workshop and a GCAA Lunch n Learn. The workshops were both certified by the GCAA
to provide maintenance continuing education credits. They were both posted on the GCAA and
CMSWS websites and two sets of postcards advertising the SSO workshop were directly mailed
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
53
to the 200 multi-family communities that are located closest to problem SSO areas in the
municipal sanitary sewer system.
During FY2018, this program accomplished the following:
51 multi-family communities received informational letters
17 operation and maintenance plans were submitted by communities;
29 compliance inspections were conducted at multi-family sites, of these:
o 22 sites were found non-compliant
o 15 sites had developed an operation and maintenance plan
o only 7 of 15 sites were implementing their plan
24 personnel from multi-family residential communities attended the two training
workshops.
12 NOVs were issued to multi-family communities for illicit discharges and disposal of
sewage
Figure 5-14 shows the locations of the 51 multi-family communities sent compliance letters and
the 29 sites inspected for compliance during FY2018.
Septic Systems:
CMSWS works with Mecklenburg County Groundwater and Wastewater Services each year to
monitor discharges from septic systems. The County conducts the permitting, inspections,
education and enforcement activities related to septic systems and CMSWS reviews this
information to look for potential impacts on surface waters.
During FY2018, a total of 40 failing septic systems were discovered in the City, 12 were repaired
and 28 were connected to the municipal sanitary sewer system. These failures were not localized
to any particular watershed area. No follow-up field investigations or monitoring were deemed
necessary by CMSWS. Figure 5-15 shows locations of septic system failure activities during
FY2018 as well as the cumulative locations of septic failures since November 2006.
5.6 Public Reporting Hotline
The City, in cooperation with Mecklenburg County, operates a joint customer service hotline to
receive information about a variety of concerns. Citizens can dial 311 to report pollution,
flooding, and blockages to the drainage system as well as request other City/County services.
The 311 call center is staffed and open Monda y through Friday from 7 am to 7 pm to receive
calls. Citizens can also submit requests for service to 311 on-line anytime (24/7/365). The City
promotes this hotline throughout all of the activities provided as part of the Stormwater Public
Education and Outreach Program. EPM-Storm Water Services works with the 311 customer
service group to make sure calls are directed to appropriate personnel and/or are handled in a
timely manner. The hotline/help line is discussed further in sub-section 3.4.3.
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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FIGURE 5-14
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FIGURE 5-15
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
56
5.6.1 Public Education and Outreach
The City continued to maintain a public education and outreach program to inform businesses,
industries and the general public about illicit discharges and improper waste disposal and how
they impact the environment. This education and outreach program included instructions
regarding the proper method for reporting illicit discharges. The primary education and outreach
mechanisms used were:
Media campaign (included mass media and social media);
Website;
Utility bill inserts;
Handouts/brochures;
Public events; and
In-person education and training sessions.
Handouts and brochures were reviewed and revised as necessary and were distributed during the
performance of facility inspections, when responding to citizen requests for service, and at event
displays. These public education and outreach items for the IDDE Program were included as a
component of the Public Education and Outreach Program described in more detail in Section 3.
5.7 Service Requests and Documentation
Responding to service requests continued to be one of the most important methods for detecting
and eliminating illicit discharges and connections in the City. During FY2018, a total of 519
service requests related to surface water pollution were investigated. These included 31
emergency response situations that typically involve oil, fuel, or other hazardous material
releases, as discussed further in sub-section 8.5. All service requests were investigated and
follow-up was provided to ensure efforts were taken to remediate the discharge and restore
impacted areas. Enforcement activities were implemented as appropriate and are described in
more detail in sub-section 5.2. Table 5-2 shows the caller type sources for the 519 service
requests.
Table 5-2: FY2018 Service Request Source Summary
Caller Type Number of Service Requests*
Public Citizen 296
Business 14
Charlotte Fire Department staff 24
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department staff 2
Charlotte Storm Water Services staff 38
Charlotte Water Department staff 36
Mecklenburg County Storm Water Services staff 86
State – NCDEQ staff 9
Environmental Protection Agency 1
Other 13
TOTAL 519
* Source summary data includes all types of service requests within the City jurisdiction
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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The City utilizes the Cityworks® database platform to maintain electronic and hard copy files
documenting all IDDE activities including citizen requests. These were tracked from the original
call for service, through investigations and applicable enforcement actions, and until final
remedial work was completed.
The database stores information such as reporting party contact information, date, time,
investigator information, pollutant category, investigation reports, monitoring data, photos and
attachments, applicable enforcement information, and geo-location.
During FY2018, the following watershed areas recorded the highest number of activities
including service requests, emergency responses, and NOVs:
Little Sugar Creek;
Briar Creek;
Irwin Creek; and
Stewart Creek.
Figure 5-16 shows a summary report of a service request activity, and Figure 5-17 shows the
FY2018 spatial distribution of service requests within the City.
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FIGURE 5-16
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FIGURE 5-17
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5.8 Measurable Goals/Planned Activities for Future Program Years
Table 5-2 describes the various Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination program
BMPs and the Measurable Goals and Planned Activities for Future Program Years for each BMP
by permit term year.
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Table 5-2: BMP Measurable Goals for the Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination Program.
BMP BMP Description Measurable Goals
(by permit term year)
1 2 3 4 5+
Maintain
appropriate legal
authorities
Maintain adequate ordinances or other
legal authorities to prohibit illicit
connections and discharges and
enforce the approved IDDE Program.
Continue administration and enforcement of the Pollution Control Ordinance and IDDE Program. (On-going,
years 1 – 5+)
Maintain a Storm
Sewer System Base
Map
The permittee shall maintain a current
map showing major outfalls and
receiving streams.
Continue to maintain storm sewer map in GIS and update as necessary to show additional outfalls. (On-going,
years 1 – 5+)
Inspection /
detection program
to detect dry
weather flows at
MS4 outfalls
Maintain written procedures and/or
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
for detecting and tracing the sources of
illicit discharges and for remo ving the
sources or reporting the sources to the
State to be properly permitted. Written
procedures and/or SOPs shall specify a
timeframe for monitoring and how
many outfalls and the areas that are to
be targeted for inspections.
Maintain and update SOPs for detecting and eliminating illicit discharges and performing outfall inspections.
Roughly 20% of identified outfalls will be inspected each year, with extra emphasis on hotspot areas. (On-going,
years 1 – 5+)
Employee Training Conduct training for appropriate
municipal staff on detecting and
reporting illicit connections and
discharges.
Maintain an employee training program and conduct employee training. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Maintain a public
reporting
mechanism
Maintain and publicize reporting
mechanism for the public to report
illicit connections and discharges.
Establish citizen request response
procedures.
Maintain the public reporting hotline and publicize through the media outreach campaign.
(On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Documentation The permittee shall document the date
of investigations, any enforcement
action(s) or remediation that occurred.
Continue to maintain IDDE program records and databases to accurately document the activities in the program.
(On-going, years 1 – 5+)
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5.9 Program Assessment
The overall Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination Program was successfully implemented
during the annual report period. Table 5-3 shows a summary of the various items and
corresponding data results for activities conducted under the program.
Table 5-3: Program Summary
IDDE PROGRAM FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2017 FY2018
Stream miles assessed 227 230 209 229 198 199
Watershed sub-basins assessed 19 18 18 21 26 24
Outfalls inspected/inventoried/updated 763 1,364 1,265 820 669 599
Dry weather flows detected 102 240 103 88 97 114
Dry weather flows sampled 59 138 28 15 29 87
Citizen service requests responded to 362 355 432 476 507 519
Emergency spills responded to 49 31 47 43 41 31
Illicit discharges detected/corrected 448 578 723 829 470 368
Ordinance violations/NOVs issued 83 96 86 109 121 121
Penalty enforcements issued 1 3 6 7 7 13
Municipal employee IDDE training sessions 45 36 39 34 44 43
Municipal employees trained on IDDE 1,195 2,206 2,587 965 1,157 1,743
SSOs detected/referred 257 247 177 224 189 164
Septic system failures detected/corrected 22 38 38 26 28 40
The following is clarification of certain numbers provided in Table 5-3:
Outfalls inspected/inventoried/updated includes outfalls from stream-walks, IDEP
program, and municipal and industrial inspections;
Dry weather flows detected includes those from outfalls included in the bulleted item
above;
Illicit discharges detected includes those found during service requests (including
emergency response and private sewage system discharges), SSOs from the municipal
system, IDEP, septic failures, stream-walks, water quality monitoring, and municipal and
industrial inspections;
Employee IDDE training sessions includes classroom sessions, number of facilities
assigned the on-line training module, and employee training/outreach events;
Number of employee staff trained on IDDE includes all those trained during the sessions
described in the bulleted item above; and
Number of SSOs includes those from both municipal and private systems.
As part of a continual evaluation process, CMSWS started a new initiative during FY2018 called
“IDDE Think Tank Meetings.” These quarterly meetings were used to evaluate the effectiveness
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64
of current activities, identify new methods for identifying illicit discharges, and coordination of
program implementation. The following highlights some of the results:
Discussion of various initiatives to evaluate new technology for potential use in
identifying illicit discharges.
The purchase of drones, ammonia probes, and a FLIR iPhone camera (infrared
attachment) to assist in identifying illicit discharges;
Targeting granite and marble countertop facilities as part of IDEP;
Targeting stormwater outfall inspections and sampling in neighborhoods with old
infrastructure;
Implementation of the Pet Waste Flagging Campaign; and
Potential use of CMANN units and 24-hour fecal coliform monitoring at one site each
for Little Sugar Creek and Edwards Branch, to potentially identify illicit discharges.
The annual evaluation of the IDDE program also resulted in the following conclusions:
GIS analysis of illicit discharges continues to show that most of these occur in highly
urbanized areas of the City. As such, the IDEP program will continue to be implemented
as support for the Stream-Walk program in priority basins;
Education targeting the landscaping sector will continue to build upon efforts in previous
years;
Targeting multi-family residential communities with education and inspections will
continue as these communities are one of the largest sources of SSOs. CMSWS and CW
will discuss how to improve the program for FY2019 as numbers at workshops continue
to wane and compliance with state regulations related to maintaining private sewer
systems at multi-family residential communities is low;
The public and internal employee staff continues to be the number one source of illicit
discharge reporting. The public reporting hotline, public education campaigns, internal
education and service request response will continue to be a staple for IDDE efforts;
The Cityworks® database and use of smart phones for field data entry continues to
improve data entry, storage and query capabilities; and
The City’s vast and varied surface and stormwater monitoring program continues to be an
important resource for detecting illicit discharges.
Section 6: Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control Program
During the annual report period, the Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control program
conducted site evaluations and enforced the local ordinance per the SWMP. The following sub-
sections explain:
The BMPs implemented to meet program requirements;
Measures of success;
Future goals and planned activities; and
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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Program assessment.
6.1 BMP Summary Table
Table 6-1 provides information concerning the BMPs implemented to fulfill the requirements of
the Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control Program. Funding for the BMPs in this section
is covered by local land development fees.
Table 6-1: BMP Summary Table for the Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control Program.
BMP BMP Description Schedule (years) Responsible
Position 1 2 3 4 5
Erosion and
Sediment Control
Program
The permittee has a delegated Sediment and
Erosion Control Program. As such, to the extent
authorized by law, the permittee is responsible for
compliance with the Sediment Pollution Control
Act of 1973 and Chapter 4 of Title 15A of the
North Carolina Administrative Code. The
delegated Sediment and Erosion Control Program
effectively meets the maximum extent practicable
(MEP) standard for Construction Site Runoff
Controls by permitting and controlling
development activities disturbing one or more
acres of land surface and those activities less than
one acre that are part of a larger common plan of
development as authorized under the Sediment
Pollution Control Act of 1973 and Chapter 4 of
Title 15A of the North Carolina Administrative
Code.
X X X X X Land
Development
Division
Manager
Develop
requirements for
construction site
operators
The NCG010000 permit establishes requirements
for construction site operators to control waste
such as discarded building materials, concrete
truck washout, chemicals, litter, and sanitary waste
at the construction site that may cause adverse
impacts to water quality, as part of the Permittee’s
delegated program.
X X X X X Land
Development
Division
Manager
Public information
and reporting
The permittee shall provide and promote a means
for the public to notify the appropriate authorities
of observed erosion and sedimentation problems.
The permittee may implement a plan promoting
the existence of the NCDEQ, Division of Land
Resources “Stop Mud” hotline to meet the
requirements of this paragraph.
X X X X X Land
Development
Division
Manager
Plan reviews Implement construction site plan reviews as part of
the Permittee’s delegated program. For new
development and redevelopment projects to be
built within the permittee’s planning jurisdiction
by entities with eminent domain authority, the
permittee shall, to the maximum extent
practicable, coordinate the approval of the
construction site runoff control with the Di vision
of Land Resources of NCDEQ.
X X X X X Land
Development
Division
Manager
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66
6.2 Erosion and Sediment Control Program
The City has operated a soil erosion and sediment control program locally since 1983, which is
currently a delegated Sediment and Erosion Control Program under authority granted by the
North Carolina Sedimentation Commission. As such, to the extent authorized by law, the City is
responsible for compliance with the Sediment Pollution Control Act of 1973 and Chapter 4 of
Title 15A of the North Carolina Administrative Code. During FY2018 the program served to
provide added protection to surface water resources in the City by ensuring that builders and
developers followed minimum standards for erosion and sediment control per State and Local
guidelines.
The “City of Charlotte-Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Ordinance,” amended and
adopted by council in 2008, serves as the backbone of the program. Ordinance highlights
include the following requirements:
An approved soil erosion and sediment control plan for all qualifying land disturbances
of one acre or greater;
An on-site preconstruction conference prior to the installation of any measu res or
commencement of land disturbing activities;
Issuance of a grading permit prior to the commencement of land disturbing activities;
Weekly inspections at a minimum by the permit holder of erosion control measures
depending on sensitivity of receiving waters;
Inspections by the permit holder of measures after any rainfall event totaling one-half
inch or greater;
Documentation and maintenance of inspection records performed by the permit holder;
Maintenance and optimal performance of all measures for the life of the project
performed by the permit holder;
Requirements for controls to minimize erosion and prevent offsite sedimentation; and
Enhanced local erosion control requirements which were deemed essential for protecting
sensitive environmental features and were developed based on years of field experience
and observations.
The ordinance also provides EPM-LD staff with the following:
Authority to issue NOVs for practices and/or impacts contravening ordinance
requirements; and
Authority to issue civil penalties for violations of the Soil Erosion & Sedimentation
Control Ordinance.
6.2.1 Inspection Procedures
All construction sites that required a preconstruction meeting and approved plan were logged,
filed and placed in the queue for regular inspections. Staff goals were to visit and inspect every
logged site utilizing a scheduled inspection process. Sites that generated citizen complaints, had
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a history of non-compliance, or were in close proximity to a critical area (e.g., sites adjacent to
water features or within a water-supply watershed) were considered a priority for additional
inspections and follow-up.
6.3 Construction Site Requirements
The program requires that all land disturbing activities comply with ordinance requirements for
controlling erosion and sediment on site. As an additional requirement, and in compliance with
NPDES regulations, all construction sites one acre or greater must have an approved soil erosion
and sediment control plan designed specifically for the site as required by NPDES General
Permit NCG010000 for Construction Related Activities. After plan approval, responsible parties
were required to follow the approved plan for all phases of construction, as well as maintain
measures in a state that ensured optimal performance throughout the duration of construction
activities and until final site stabilization was achieved. Regular self-inspections were a
requirement for optimal performance and all sites were required to employ a competent person to
conduct inspections and maintain logbooks and documentation for ready-review by local or state
representatives.
6.4 Public Information and Reporting
The City’s Erosion Control Program maintains a website to assist with the dissemination of
information to the development community and the general public. In addition, the City
maintains an information/help line and citizens can dial 311 to report erosion, pollution,
flooding, and blockages to the drainage system as well as request other City/County services.
The 311 call center is staffed and open Monday through Friday from 7 am to 7 pm to receive
calls. Citizens can also submit requests for service to 311 on-line anytime (24/7/365). The help
line serves as a clearinghouse for general information and ensures that erosion control related
issues are directed to appropriate EPM-LD staff for resolution. Information sharing and inter-
department training between City and County agencies also ensures that problems, questions, or
requests for information from the general public can be processed and resolved quickly. The
City’s erosion control webpage can be viewed at:
http://charlottenc.gov/ld/Pages/default.aspx
6.4.1 Education and Training Materials
The City maintained an education and training program for developers, contractors and other
interested parties within the region. Although program policies and procedures dictated that self-
inspectors maintain a level of competence necessary to ensure compliance, the City took a
proactive role in providing local training and handout materials for affected parties.
In a cooperative effort with Mecklenburg County, the City maintained the Charlotte-
Mecklenburg Certified Site Inspector (CMCSI) training program, which to date has provided
training to over 5,840 individuals since its inception in 2003. CMCSI is a full day training
course that provides attendees with an understanding of the importance of water resources to our
community, the local and state requirements for controlling construction site runoff, principles of
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erosion control, common site problems, recommendations for conducting effective inspections,
and a certification exam. The CMCSI program was offered three times during FY2018,
providing training to 342 people (see Table 6-2).
In addition to the CMCSI education program, all developers, builders and responsible parties
received handouts and materials at preconstruction meetings and at other times as necessary to
explain ordinance requirements, minimum standards and other relevant information for the
financially responsible party and/or site operators.
Table 6-2: CMCSI Training Program Dates and Attendance – FY2018
Date Registered Attended
August 17, 2017 150 123
January 10, 2018 120 105
May 24, 2018 158 114
Totals 428 342
6.5 Plan Reviews
All land disturbing activity one acre or greater was required to obtain plan approval of the soil
erosion and sediment control plan prior to scheduling a preconstruction conference. Erosion
control plans submitted by the applicants were reviewed and approved by EPM-LD erosion
control staff.
All EPM-LD erosion control staff obtained and/or maintained their status as a Certified
Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control (CPESC) which provided accreditation for plan
review. Plans were reviewed for suitability of selected measures and to ensure that design
parameters and calculations were appropriately employed and minimum standards were
achieved.
6.6 Measurable Goals/Planned Activities for Future Program Years
Table 6-3 describes the various Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control BMPs and the
Measurable Goals and Planned Activities for Future Program Years for each BMP by permit
term year.
[THIS SPACE INTENTIONALLY BLANK]
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Table 6-3: BMP Measurable Goals for the Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control Program.
BMP BMP Description Measurable Goals
(by permit term year)
1 2 3 4 5+
Erosion and
Sediment Control
Program
The permittee has a delegated Sediment and Erosion
Control Program. As such, to the extent authorized by
law, the permittee is responsible for compliance with the
Sediment Pollution Control Act of 1973 and Chapter 4
of Title 15A of the North Carolina Administrative Code.
The delegated Sediment and Erosion Control Progra m
effectively meets the maximum extent practicable
(MEP) standard for Construction Site Runoff Controls
by permitting and controlling development activities
disturbing one or more acres of land surface and those
activities less than one acre that are part of a larger
common plan of development as authorized under the
Sediment Pollution Control Act of 1973 and Chapter 4
of Title 15A of the North Carolina Administrative Code.
Continue to implement the delegated Sediment and Erosion Control program and enforce the
City ordinance. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Develop
requirements for
construction site
operators
The NCG010000 permit establishes requirements for
construction site operators to control waste such as
discarded building materials, concrete truck washout,
chemicals, litter, and sanitary waste at the construction
site that may cause adverse impacts to water quality, as
part of the Permittee’s delegated program.
Continue requirements for BMPs and waste control through issuance of General Construction
Permit NCG010000. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Public information
and reporting
The permittee shall provide and promote a means for the
public to notify the appropriate authorities of observed
erosion and sedimentation problems. The permittee may
implement a plan promoting the existence of the
NCDENR, now NCDEQ, Division of Land Resources
“Stop Mud” hotline to meet the requirements of this
paragraph.
Continue to maintain reporting hotline and website. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Plan reviews Implement construction site plan reviews as part of the
Permittee’s delegated program. For new development
and redevelopment projects to be built within the
permittee’s planning jurisdiction by entities with
eminent domain authority, the permittee shall, to the
maximum extent practicable, coordinate the approval of
the construction site runoff control with the Division of
Land Resources of DENR.
Continue plan reviews to ensure program requirements are met. Coordinate with NCDEQ –
DEMLR as necessary. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
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70
6.7 Program Assessment
The overall Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control Program was successfully
implemented during the annual report period. Table 6-4 shows a summary of the various items
and corresponding data results for activities conducted under the program.
Table 6-4: Program Summary
CONSTRUCTION SITE RUNOFF PROGRAM FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2017 FY2018
Education workshops conducted 3 3 3 3 3 3
Citizens educated 307 356 367 425 383 342
Project/site plans reviewed 823 1,048 1,043 711 881 1,415
Erosion control citizen requests responded to 131 275 ~300 ~375 ~400 ~465
Site inspections conducted 3,142 2,852 2,323 2,948 3,853 4,097
NOVs issued 38 50 47 109 131 112
Penalty enforcements issued 24 40 32 41 45 46
Section 7: Post-Construction Stormwater Management Program
During the annual report period, the City conducted implementation of its Post-Construction
Stormwater Management program in accordance with the Post-Construction Stormwater
Ordinance (PCSO) and program administrative manual. The following sub-sections explain:
The BMPs implemented to meet program requirements;
Measures of success;
Future goals and planned activities; and
Program assessment.
7.1 BMP Summary Table
Table 7-1 provides information concerning the BMPs implemented to fulfill the requirements of
the Post-Construction Stormwater Management Program. Funding for the BMPs in this section
is covered by local stormwater utility fees and land development fees.
Table 7-1: BMP Summary Table for the Post-Construction Stormwater Management Program.
BMP BMP Description Schedule (years) Responsible
Position 1 2 3 4 5
Post-Construction
Stormwater
Management
Program
Maintain an ordinance (or similar regulatory
mechanism) and program to address stormwater
runoff from new development and redevelopment.
X X X X X
Water Quality
Program
Manager
Strategies which
include BMPs
appropriate for the
MS4
Maintain strategies that include a combination of
structural and/or non-structural BMPs implemented
in concurrence with ordinance above. Provide a
mechanism to require long-term operation and
X X X X X
Water Quality
Program
Manager
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71
maintenance of structural BMPs. Require annual
inspection reports of permitted structural BMPs
performed by a qualified professional.
A qualified professional means an individual
trained and/or certified in the design, operation,
inspection and maintenance aspects of the BMPs
being inspected, for example, someone trained and
certified by NC State for BMP Inspection &
Maintenance.
Deed Restrictions
and Protective
Covenants
The permittee shall provide mechanisms such as
recorded deed restrictions and protective covenants
so that development activities maintain the project
consistent with approved plans.
X X X X X
Water Quality
Program
Manager
Operation and
Maintenance Plan
The developer shall provide the permittee with an
operation and maintenance plan for the stormwater
system, indicating the operation and maintenance
actions that shall be taken, specific quantitative
criteria used for determining when those actions
shall be taken, and who is responsible for those
actions. The plan must clearly indicate the steps that
shall be taken and who shall be responsible for
restoring a stormwater system to design
specifications if a failure occurs and must include
an acknowledgment by the responsible party.
Development must be maintained consistent with
the requirements in the approved plans and any
modifications to those plans must be approved by
the Permittee.
X X X X X
Water Quality
Program
Manager
Educational
materials and
training for
developers
Provide educational materials and training for
developers. New materials may be developed by
the permittee, or the permittee may use materials
adopted from other programs and adapted to the
permittee’s new development and redevelopment
program.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
7.2 Post-Construction Stormwater Management Program
The City began development of its Post-Construction Stormwater Ordinance & Management
(PCSO) program in 2004 with participation in a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Stormwater
Stakeholders Group. The group consisted of representatives from the development and
environmental communities as well as local government staff, including EPM-SWS and EPM-
LD staff. The stakeholders were charged with making recommendations to the City and County
for the development of their respective post-construction stormwater ordinances. During 2006-
2007, the City worked to develop the ordinance, which was approved by City Council on
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72
November 26, 2007, effective July 1, 2008. In October 2011, the City Council approved
revisions to the ordinance that resulted in the following:
A mitigation fee for redevelopment where no increase in impervious coverage occurs;
Required minimum buffers for all projects; and
Minor text changes that did not affect the governance of the ordinance.
In October 2014, City Council approved an additional time extension of October 2011 revisions
until December 31, 2017. On July 1, 2016, part of the ordinance was revised to include a
modified version of this redevelopment mitigation option and removed the sunset date in the
ordinance.
The ordinance and post-construction program are designed to meet the stormwater management
and water quality protection requirements of NCGA Session Law 2006-246, as promulgated in
North Carolina Administrative Code at 15A 02H Sections .0126, .0150 - .0154 (NPDES) and at
15A 02H Section .1000 (Stormwater Management) to address post-construction stormwater
runoff from new development and redevelopment projects as required by the NPDES MS4
permit program and as specified and defined in the City’s Post-Construction Stormwater
Ordinance. The ordinance covers the entire jurisdictional area of the City. An administrative
manual has been developed to ensure successful implementation of the program.
7.3 Post-Construction BMP Strategies
BMP strategies for the City’s Post-Construction Stormwater Management program consisted
mainly of structural stormwater control measures (SCMs) such as sand filters, wet ponds,
wetlands, and bioretention areas. SCMs and design procedures are detailed in a local manual
developed by the City and County. SCMs are required on projects that have 24% or greater built
upon area as defined by the program. This threshold is reduced to 10-12% built upon area for
developments disturbing more than an acre and/or adding more than 20,000 sf of built upon area
in sensitive watersheds as defined by the ordinance. In addition, SCMs must be designed to:
Remove 85% of Total Suspended Solids (TSS) for the runoff volume generated from the
first 1-inch of rainfall;
Control the runoff volume from the 1-year – 24 hour storm event; and
Control the peak flow from the 10 and 25-year storm events for residential and
commercial development.
The program also required proper operation, maintenance, and inspection of SCMs as discussed
in later sub-sections. Green infrastructure practices such as rain gardens, pervious pavements,
vegetated conveyances, and rain water harvesting were allowed, depending on development
needs. Undisturbed natural areas and natural resource protection as well as tree preservation
requirements are part of the program. Additional requirements included:
70% Total Phosphorus removal in certain watersheds;
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Various buffer requirements and widths from 30 – 200 feet based on stream jurisdictional
determination; and
Design standards depending on watershed location and sensitivity.
All of these requirements combine to make a much more sound and protective ordinance and
program.
7.4 Deed Restrictions and Protective Covenants
As part of the PCSO program, the City required deed restrictions and protective covenants to
ensure that development projects remain consistent with approved plans. Streams and buffer
boundaries were required to be specified on all surveys and record plats. An operation and
maintenance agreement for SCMs was required to be referenced on record plats and recorded in
deeds. In addition, a maintenance easement was required to be recorded to provide access to
structural SCMs.
7.4.1 Setbacks for Built-Upon Areas
The PCSO program required a minimum of 30-foot buffers on all perennial and intermittent
streams draining less than 50 acres, and incrementally increased required buffer widths up to
100-feet for streams draining 640 acres or more. A special provision in the program required
200-foot buffers on all perennial streams and 100-foot buffers on all intermittent streams in the
Six Mile Creek watershed due to the potential presence of the federally endangered species,
Carolina Heelsplitter (Lasmigona decorata). These buffers were recorded on record plats as
noted in sub-section 7.4.
7.5 Operation and Maintenance Plan
The PCSO program required an operation and maintenance agreement executed by the
responsible party (owner) of each stormwater control measure (SCM). As part of the program,
the owner was required to:
Conduct annual inspections of SCMs;
Maintain proper records documenting operation and maintenance activities; and
Submit inspection reports to the City.
In the case of single family residential projects, at the request of the homeowner’s association the
City may assume the responsibility for operating, maintaining, and inspecting required SCMs
after an initial two-year period for SCMs that are constructed and functioning properly.
7.6 Education and Training Program
The City implemented an education and training program designed to provide developers and
designers with the information necessary to comply with the City’s Post-Construction
Stormwater Ordinance. Training included information on:
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74
Overall ordinance requirements;
Review processes;
Land development and SCM design requirements;
Deed restrictions and protective covenants;
Buffer requirements; and
Operation, maintenance, and inspection requirements for SCMs.
Education and training was accomplished by providing the following:
Website information;
Individual meetings with developers and designers;
Presentations at public meetings;
Periodic seminars and training sessions; and
Training City design staff.
A half-day Post-Construction Stormwater Ordinance education workshop was held on November
30, 2017 with 120 people in attendance. Attendees included representatives from local
government; engineering, land development and design firms; and survey companies. The
presentation topics included:
Background about City and County PCSOs;
City Redevelopment Mitigation Option;
Built Upon Area, As-Built Survey & Polaris Case Study;
Stormwater SCM Inspections;
Huntersville’s LID Ordinance; and
Question & Answer Session.
Another half-day workshop entitled “Aquatic Pesticides and Stormwater SCM Workshop” was
held on November 1, 2017 with 104 people in attendance. The workshop targeted landscapers in
the Charlotte region and included sessions on stormwater SCM inspection and maintenance and
beneficial and invasive aquatic plant identification. The workshop ended with an outdoor tour of
two wet ponds where inspection and maintenance items were pointed out and questions were
answered. Attendees represented municipal and private landscape professionals, private country
clubs/ golf courses, pond and lake management companies, engineering firms, and non-profit
organizations. This workshop is also discussed in Section 5.5.1.
7.7 Measurable Goals/Planned Activities for Future Program Years
Table 7-2 describes the various Post-Construction Stormwater Management Program BMPs and
the Measurable Goals and Planned Activities for Future Program Years for each BMP by permit
term year.
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Table 7-2: BMP Measurable Goals for the Post-Construction Stormwater Management Program.
BMP BMP Description Measurable Goals
(by permit term year)
1 2 3 4 5+
Post-Construction
Stormwater
Management
Program
Maintain an ordinance (or similar regulatory mechanism) and program to address
stormwater runoff from new development and redevelopment.
Maintain the City’s Post- Construction Ordinance (PCSO) and
implement and enforce the ordinance. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Strategies which
include BMPs
appropriate for the
MS4
Maintain strategies that include a combination of structural and/or non-structural BMPs
implemented in concurrence with (a) above. Provide a mechanism to require long -term
operation and maintenance of structural BMPs. Require annual inspection reports of
permitted structural BMPs performed by a qualified professional.
A qualified professional means an individual trained and/or certified in the design,
operation, inspection and maintenance aspects of the BMPs being inspected, for example,
someone trained and certified by NC State for BMP Inspection & Maintenance.
Continue PCSO program and ensuring proper BMP operation,
maintenance, and annual inspections. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Deed Restrictions
and Protective
Covenants
The permittee shall provide mechanisms such as recorded deed restrictions and protective
covenants so that development activities maintain the project consistent with approved
plans.
Continue to implement Deed Restrictions and Protective
Covenants through administration of the PCSO Program. (On-
going, years 1 – 5+)
Operation and
Maintenance Plan
The developer shall provide the permittee with an operation and maintenance plan for the
stormwater system, indicating the operation and maintenance actions that shall be taken,
specific quantitative criteria used for determining when those actions shall be taken, and
who is responsible for those actions. The plan must clearly indicate the steps that shall be
taken and who shall be responsible for restoring a stormwater system to design
specifications if a failure occurs and must include an acknowledgment by the responsible
party. Development must be maintained consistent with the requirements in the approved
plans and any modifications to those plans must be approved by the Permittee.
Continue to implement BMP operation, maintenance, and
inspection plan and procedures. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Educational
materials and
training for
developers
Provide educational materials and training for developers. New materials may be
developed by the permittee, or the permittee may use materials adopted from other
programs and adapted to the permittee’s new development and redevelopment program.
Continue to provide and update education/ training tools for
developers. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
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7.8 Program Assessment
The overall Post-Construction Stormwater Management Program was successfully implemented
during the annual report period. Table 7-3 shows a summary of the various items and
corresponding data results for activities conducted under the program.
Table 7-3: Program Summary
POST-CONSTRUCTION PROGRAM FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2017 FY2018
Site plans reviewed 57 96 103 121 145 145
SCMs added 38 97 109 151 171 127
SCM inspections conducted 27 93 6061. 7261. 1,0061. 1,5441.
NOVs issued 10 6 2582. 4152. 4042. 5702.
Education workshops conducted 1 4 5 2 1 1
Citizens educated 18 105 183 194 231 120
1. Includes Post-Construction and Peak Detention SCMs inspected.
2. “NOVs issued” includes Corrective Action Requests (CARs) and letters to remind the property owner that a yearly inspection report is due.
As illustrated in Table 7-3, there has been a significant increase in SCM inspections during
FY2018 over previous years. This has been an ongoing goal of the Post-Construction
Stormwater Management Program. As SCMs increase in the City it is the goal of the program to
continue with these efforts such that additional staff has been added to conduct inspections.
In addition, the number of NOVs and CARs issued during FY2018 was higher than FY2017;
however, relative to the number of inspections that were conducted during FY2018, this was
consistent.
The reduction in SCMs added is due to a shift in reporting from the number of SCMs approved
for construction to the number of SCMs constructed and as-built.
Section 8: Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping Program
During the annual report period, inspection, training, and program development activities were
conducted for municipal facilities and operations as part of the Pollution Prevention and Good
Housekeeping Program per the SWMP. The following sub-sections explain:
The BMPs implemented to meet program requirements;
Measures of success;
Future goals and planned activities; and
Program assessment.
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8.1 BMP Summary Table
Table 8-1 provides information concerning the BMPs implemented to fulfill the requirements of
the Pollution Prevention & Good Housekeeping Program.
Table 8-1: BMP Summary Table for the Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping Program.
BMP BMP Description Schedule (years) Responsible
Position 1 2 3 4 5
Operation and
maintenance program
for municipal
facilities and
operations.
Maintain and implement an operation and
maintenance program for municipal facilities
owned and operated by the permittee that have
been determined by the permittee to have
significant potential for generating polluted
stormwater runoff that has the ultimate goal of
preventing or reducing pollutant runoff.
X X X X X
Water Quality
Program
Manager
Site Pollution
Prevention Plans for
municipal facilities
and operations.
Maintain and implement Site Pollution Prevention
Plans for municipal facilities owned and operated
by the permittee that have been determined by the
permittee to have significant potential for
generating polluted stormwater runoff that has the
ultimate goal of preventing or reducing pollutant
runoff.
X X X X X
Water Quality
Program
Manager
Inspection and
evaluation of
municipal facilities
and operations.
Maintain an inventory of municipal facilities and
operations owned and operated by the permittee
that have been determined by the permittee to have
significant potential for generating polluted
stormwater runoff, including the MS4 system and
associated structural SCMs, conduct inspections
at facilities and operations owned and operated by
the permittee for potential sources of polluted
runoff, the stormwater controls, and conveyance
systems, and evaluate the sources, document
deficiencies, plan corrective actions, implement
appropriate controls, and document the
accomplishment of corrective actions.
X X X X X
Water Quality
Program
Manager
Spill Response
Procedures municipal
facilities and
operations.
Maintain spill response procedures for municipal
facilities and operations owned and operated by
the permittee that have been determined by the
permittee to have significant potential for
generating polluted stormwater runoff.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Prevent or Minimize
Contamination of
Stormwater Runoff
from all areas used
for Vehicle and
Equipment Cleaning
Describe measures that prevent or minimize
contamination of the stormwater runoff from all
areas used for vehicle and equipment cleaning,
including fire stations that serve more than three
fire trucks and ambulances. Perform all cleaning
operations indoors, cover the cleaning operations,
ensure wash water drains to the sanitary sewer
system, collect stormwater runoff from the
cleaning area and providing treatment or recycling,
or other equivalent measures. If sanitary sewer is
not available to the facility and cleaning operations
take place outdoors, the cleaning operations shall
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
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take place on grassed or graveled areas to prevent
point source discharges of the wash water into the
storm drains or surface waters.
Where cleaning operations cannot be performed as
described above and when operations are
performed in the vicinity of a storm drainage
collection system, the drain is to be covered with a
portable drain cover during cleaning activities.
Any excess standing water shall be removed and
properly handled prior to removing the drain
cover.
Facilities that serve three or fewer fire trucks and
ambulances and that cannot comply with these
requirements shall incorporate structural measures
during facility renovation.
Streets, roads, and
public parking lots
maintenance
The permittee shall evaluate BMPs to reduce
polluted stormwater runoff from municipally-
owned streets, roads, and public parking lots
within the corporate limits. Within 12 months of
permit issuance, the permittee must update its
Stormwater Plan to include the BMPs selected.
X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Streets, roads, and
public parking lots
maintenance
Within 24 months of permit issuance, the
permittee must implement BMPs selected to
reduce polluted stormwater runoff from
municipally-owned streets, roads, and public
parking lots identified by the permittee in the
Stormwater Plan.
X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Operation and
Maintenance (O&M)
for municipally-
owned or maintained
structural SCMs and
the storm sewer
system (including
catch basins, the
conveyance system,
and structural
stormwater controls).
Within 12 months of permit issuance, the
permittee shall develop and implement an
operation and maintenance program for structural
SCMs and the storm sewer system (including
catch basins, the conveyance system, and
structural stormwater controls).
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Staff training Maintain and implement a training plan that
indicates when, how often, who is required to be
trained and what they are to be trained on.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
8.2 Operation and Maintenance Program
The City continued to provide an extensive network of municipal operations designed to serve its
citizens and keep vital infrastructure functioning properly. A number of these operations impact
the storm drainage system directly, such as storm drainage system maintenance and street
sweeping, and indirectly, such as landscape management and municipal building maintenance.
The cumulative impact of all these operations can potentially be significant, so it is important to
maintain operation and maintenance programs to minimize impacts to the storm drainage system.
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EPM-SWS staff continued to work with various municipal operations to implement best
management practices to minimize negative impacts to the storm drainage system. This has been
accomplished through a process of observing field operations, updating best management
practices and SOPs, and training employees. Stormwater pollution prevention best management
practices have been developed for a total of ten field operations as follows:
Central Business District Maintenance Operations;
Landscape Management;
Facility Maintenance;
Road, Sidewalk and Facility Construction;
Street Sweeping;
Street Maintenance;
Water/Wastewater Utility Maintenance & Repair;
Traffic Engineering Operations;
Transit Amenities Maintenance; and
Hazardous Materials Operations.
During FY2018, EPM-SWS staff also accomplished the following activities related to improving
pollution prevention from City contractors and City field crews:
Met with EPM-SWS construction management staff and EPM-LD erosion control staff
several times to coordinate and develop the best procedures and methods for improving
contractor and subcontractor performance related to preventing illicit discharges, spills,
and implementing pollution prevention practices;
Continued to support the Surface Water Quality Protection section of EPM-SWS
construction contracts that includes requirements related to:
- Concrete washouts;
- Spill response and mobile fueling; and
- Erosion control and pollution prevention before street washing.
Sent letters to EPM-SWS geotechnical contractors and presented about what concrete
washouts should look like at a EPM-SWS construction inspector staff meeting;
Met with EPM - Engineering Services Division construction inspectors to discuss erosion
control efforts and to conduct the trial use of inlet filter mats as an alternative to silt sacs;
Conducted communications with CDOT regarding stormwater BMPs for street milling;
Conducted communications and meetings with CDOT and CW regarding stormwater
BMPs for slurry created during street cutting operations and applicable emergency water
main breaks;
Conducted communications and meetings with CW to discuss BMPs for water line
flushing;
Conducted communications and a meeting with City Solid Waste Services regarding
street sweeping discharges;
Conducted communications with CATS and City Code Enforcement regarding contract
language and stormwater BMPs related to graffiti removal;
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Provided recommendations to City Management and Financial Services for improving
spill response contract language;
Provided recommendations to EPM-Landscape Management Division for improving spill
response contract language; and
Provided landscape standards for use on EPM-SWS project design plan sheets regarding
pollution prevention practices.
Operation and maintenance of municipal facilities was managed through implementation of
Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans (SPPPs) and the municipal facility inspection program.
Those programs are discussed below in sub-sections 8.3, 8.4, 8.5 and 8.9. Operation and
maintenance of the municipal stormwater system is discussed separately in sub-section 8.8.
8.3 Municipal Facility Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans
SPPPs are developed for all 31 municipal facilities listed in Table 8-2 regardless of whether or
not they are required; however, SPPPs are not required or developed for fire stations. The SPPPs
are reviewed and updated annually with all documentation kept in the SPPPs, including site
maps. The SPPPs are used as an implementation guide for maintaining good housekeeping and
reducing stormwater pollution. All appropriate topics are covered in the SPPPs including:
Best management practices;
Facility inspections;
Facility monitoring;
Employee training;
Spill prevention and response;
Vehicle/equipment cleaning and fueling; and
Preventative maintenance.
Table 8-2: City Facilities within the Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping Program.
Municipal Facility Physical Address
Charlotte-Douglas International Airport 5501 Josh Birmingham Pkwy., Charlotte, NC 28208
CATS Bus Maintenance Operations Facility 3145 S. Tryon St., Charlotte, NC 28217
CATS Transit Maintenance Operations Center 901 N. Davidson St., Charlotte, NC 28202
CATS Transit Center 310 E. Trade St., Charlotte, NC 28202
CATS Light Rail Maintenance Facility – South Yard 3305 Pelton St., Charlotte, NC
CDOT - Traffic Engineering Operations Center 3701 Craig Ave., Charlotte, NC 28211
CDOT – Street Maintenance Division - Northwest
District 4411 Northpointe Industrial Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28216
CDOT – Street Maintenance Division - Northeast
District 6001 General Commerce Dr., Charlotte, NC 28213
CDOT – Street Maintenance Division - Southwest
District 4600 Sweden Rd., Charlotte, NC 28273
Charlotte Water Department - Irwin Creek WWTP 4000 Westmont Dr., Charlotte, NC 28217
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Municipal Facility Physical Address
Charlotte Water Department - Mallard Creek WWTP 12400 Hwy 29 N, Charlotte, NC 28262
Charlotte Water Department - McAlpine Creek
WWTP & Zone 3 Water/Wastewater Operations 12701 Lancaster Hwy, Pineville, NC 28134
Charlotte Water Department - McDowell Creek
WWTP 4901 Neck Rd., Huntersville, NC 28078
Charlotte Water Department - Sugar Creek WWTP 5301 Closeburn Rd., Charlotte, NC 28210
Charlotte Water Department - Franklin WTP 5200 Brookshire Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28216
Charlotte Water Department - Lee S Dukes WTP 7980 Babe Stillwell Rd., Huntersville, NC 28078
Charlotte Water Department - Vest WTP 820 Beatties Ford Rd., Charlotte, NC 28216
Charlotte Water Department – Zone 1
Water/Wastewater Field Operations 11609 Hord Dr., Huntersville, NC 28078
Charlotte Water Department – Zone 2
Water/Wastewater Field Operations 5730 General Commerce Dr., Charlotte, NC 28213
Charlotte Water Department – Zone 4
Water/Wastewater Field Operations 4100 W. Tyvola Rd., Charlotte, NC 28208
Charlotte Water Department – Catawba Pump
Station 12548 Pump Station Rd., Charlotte, NC 28216
Engineering & Property Management - Heavy
Equipment Shop 4600 Sweden Rd., Charlotte, NC 28273
Engineering & Property Management - Heavy Truck
Shop / Central Yard Truck Wash 829 Louise Ave., Charlotte, NC 28204
Engineering & Property Management - Light Vehicle
Shop 1031 Atando Ave., Charlotte, NC 28216
Engineering & Property Management - Small Engine
Repair Shop 701 Tuckaseegee Rd., Charlotte, NC 28208
Engineering & Property Management - 12th Street
Vehicle Garage 900 W 12th St, Charlotte, NC 28206
CFD - Fire Logistics 1200 Otts St., Charlotte, NC 28205
CMPD - Animal Control Shelter 8315 Byrum Dr., Charlotte, NC 28217
CMPD - Police and Fire Training Academy 1770 Shopton Rd., Charlotte, NC 28217
Solid Waste Services - Street Sweeper Facility &
Sanitation Packer Lot 829 Louise Ave., Charlotte, NC 28204
Landscape Management Operations 701 Tuckaseegee Rd., Charlotte, NC 28208
8.4 Municipal Facility Inventory and Site Inspections
All parcels of land owned or operated by the City continued to be examined to determine
whether they should be included in the Municipal Facilities Inventory within the Pollution
Prevention/Good Housekeeping Program. A Standard Administrative Procedure (SAP) is
followed when evaluating parcels for this inventory. Once included in the inventory, applicable
facilities receive:
Preparation and implementation of a SPPP;
Regular inspections; and
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Annual employee training.
All facilities included in the inventory are inspected annually with the exception of fire stations
which are inspected once every five years. The following are elements of all facility inspections:
Thorough assessment of facility operations and maintenance activities;
Evaluation of waste disposal and storage methods;
Evaluation of the stormwater drainage system, including catch basin inlets, structural
best management practices and outfalls;
Review of spill response and clean up procedures with recommended revisions as
appropriate;
Evaluation of housekeeping practices with recommended revisions as necessary to
eliminate potential pollution sources;
Evaluation of outdoor storage facilities and recommendations for elimination of potential
pollution sources;
Identification and elimination of dry weather discharges;
Review of SPPPs where applicable including outfall monitoring (if required by an
NPDES permit); and
Completion of a written report documenting findings and recommendations.
Follow-up inspections, communication and meetings with appropriate personnel are conducted
as necessary to eliminate potential pollution sources. The supervisor and other management
personnel of each facility are contacted and provided with a copy of the written report. Reports
include information about areas and equipment that have a potential for pollution,
recommendations for continuing good practices or making minor improvements, any
deficiencies requiring more significant improvements, and/or any illicit discharges observed.
All inspections are conducted following the procedures outlined in the Municipal Inspections and
Monitoring SAP which is reviewed and updated annually.
During FY2018 the following activities were conducted as part of the municipal facility site
inspections:
31 inspections were conducted;
22 pollution control ordinance deficiencies were detected (including six illicit
discharges); and
30 SPPP problems were noted.
Ordinance deficiencies and SPPP problems required corrective action by facility staff.
Figure 8-1 shows the locations of the facilities inspected during FY2018. (Note: Some CW
facilities are located outside the City limits.)
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FIGURE 8-1
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8.4.1 NPDES Stormwater Permitted Municipal Facilities Review
Twelve of the 31 municipal facilities discussed in sub-section 8.3 above have been issued
NPDES Stormwater permits (*Note: The airport’s permit is a combined stormwater/wastewater
individual permit). Table 8-3 shows these facilities.
Table 8-3: Municipal Facilities with NPDES Stormwater Permits
Municipal Operation Permit
Number
Certificate of Permit
Coverage Number
Address
CATS Transit Maintenance
Operations Center
NCG080000 NCG080029 901 N. Davidson Street
CATS Bus Maintenance
Operations Facility
NCG080000 NCG080710 3145 S. Tryon Street
Heavy Truck Shop, Truck
Wash & Street Sweeper
Yard
NCG080000 NCG080822 829 Louise Avenue
Heavy Equipment Shop NCG080000 NCG080840 4600 Sweden Road
Light Vehicle Maintenance
Shop
NCG080000 NCG080879 1031 Atando Avenue
12th Street Fleet
Maintenance
NCG080000 NCG080063
900 West 12th Street
Charlotte-Douglas
International Airport*
NC0083887 Not applicable 5501 Josh Birmingham Parkway
Irwin Creek WWTP NCG110000 NCG110008 4000 Westmont Drive
Mallard Creek WWTP NCG110000 NCG110114 12400 Highway 29 North
McAlpine Creek WWTP NCG110000 NCG110010 12701 Lancaster Hwy
McDowell Creek WWTP NCG110000 NCG110011 4901 Neck Road
Sugar Creek WWTP NCG110000 NCG110012 5301 Closeburn Road
Annual inspections were conducted at each facility listed in Table 8-3. The same inspection
items listed in sub-section 8.4 were reviewed at these permitted facilities. Emphasis was placed
on elimination of illicit discharges, good housekeeping improvements, and compliance with
permit and SPPP requirements, including inspections, monitoring and training. The SPPPs were
reviewed and updated annually as required. Environmental management personnel at the airport
and five wastewater treatment plants are responsible for updating the SPPPs at their facilities,
while staff of EPM-SWS reviewed and updated SPPPs for the other facilities listed in Table 8.3.
8.5 Municipal Spill Response Procedures
Numerous activities conducted by City employees, both in the field and at facilities, have the
potential to generate spills that may enter the MS4 and contaminate surface waters. Because of
that potential, Spill Prevention and Response Procedures have been developed for all facilities
(and associated field operations) listed in Table 8-2. These procedures are incorporated into the
facility SPPPs. The procedures and proper implementation of them was evaluated as part of the
annual inspections. Items that have been evaluated and incorporated into the procedures
included the following:
Product storage tanks/containers, exposure, and secondary containment;
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Flow path and potential for entry into the MS4;
Spill history, response to those spills, and documentation;
Activities that may generate spills;
Operating procedures to prevent spills;
Spill response procedures;
Spill response equipment and other countermeasures; and
Employee training.
In addition, as part of the overall IDDE program, CMSWS staff maintained a 24-hour emergency
response team that responds to environmental emergencies, including spills. Members of the
team act in an advisory role to the CFD Hazmat Unit. Once Hazmat secures a scene and
contains the spill, the team worked with the responsible party to ensure that spills were cleaned
up properly and had minimal impacts to the environment. The team’s actions are guided by a set
of written emergency response protocols.
During FY2018, the team responded to 31 emergency response calls, but none were related to
the municipal facilities listed in Table 8-2. Figure 8-2 shows a downward trend in the number of
emergency response calls from FY1995 through FY2018.
8.6 Vehicle and Equipment Cleaning Operations
The City recognizes the negative impacts that municipal vehicle and equipment wash water
runoff can have on stormwater and, ultimately, surface waters. Municipal employees washed the
majority of vehicles and equipment at commercial or municipal vehicle wash facilities that drain
to the sanitary sewer system. Vehicle and equipment washing at municipal facilities continued
to be assessed during annual inspections at all facilities listed in Table 8-2.
[THIS SPACE INTENTIONALLY BLANK]
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FIGURE 8-2
8.7 Streets, Roads, and Public Parking Lots Maintenance
Streets and parking lots can be a significant source of stormwater pollution. During previous
years, the City has implemented various BMPs to address these pollutants within the MS4 such
as cleaning catch basins. The City has evaluated additional types of BMPs that are considered to
best address polluted stormwater runoff from these sources. As a result of the evaluation, the
City implemented the following non-structural BMPs:
Street sweeping program;
Adopt-A-Street program;
Leaf and yard waste collection program;
Trash receptacles along downtown streets;
Trash receptacles and litter control activities at Park and Ride parking lots; and
Public education to address polluted stormwater runoff from municipally-owned streets
and public parking lots.
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8.8 Municipal SCMs and MS4 System Operation and Maintenance
During previous years, the City inventoried municipal structural SCMs and developed a list of
over 120 SCMs to be inspected at various frequencies based on the type of SCM. The list
continues to be updated as new SCMs are constructed. Routine maintenance activities for these
SCMs included:
Mowing;
Woody growth removal;
Cattail removal; and
Inlet and outlet clearing.
These inspection and maintenance activities have been conducted to ensure proper function of
structural SCMs. During FY2018, Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) were updated for the
program, and a meeting was held with all involved staff to review the SOP.
The EPM-Landscape Management Division and Building Services Division have primary
responsibility for conducting inspections and ensuring proper maintenance. Employees at certain
facilities where SCMs are located also assist with routine maintenance, such as grass mowing.
Standard inspection forms have been developed and were utilized to conduct and document
inspections. Completed inspection forms were provided to EPM-SWS SCM inspection and
maintenance coordinators, who then entered the information into the Cityworks® database. The
coordinators also worked with City staff responsible for inspections to ensure they were
completed as required.
The City conducted extensive cleaning and maintenance of the MS4 system during FY2018.
Work included, but was not limited to:
Catch basin cleaning (manually and with vacuum trucks);
Storm drain top cleaning;
Curb and gutter cleaning;
Culvert/channel cleaning;
Drainage structure installation and repair;
Ditch reshaping; and
Erosion control.
During FY2018, a total of:
80,714 catch basin tops were manually cleaned;
1,639 catch basins were vacuumed out;
2,975 catch basin tops were vacuumed;
22,726 linear feet of stormwater pipes were vacuumed out
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8.9 Employee/Staff Training at Municipal Facilities
Training was conducted for employees at all of the facilities listed in Table 8-2. The goal of
training was to inform employees of the actions necessary to reduce the discharge of pollutants
from their facilities/operations and protect water quality. Topics for this training included:
Description of common pollutants, their sources and water quality impacts;
Description of the actions that each facility should take to reduce discharges of
pollutants, with an emphasis on good housekeeping;
Description of effective spill prevention measures that should be employed at each
facility;
Discussion of typical pollution sources at municipal operations and specific actions that
should be taken to eliminate these sources and protect water quality;
Review of the facility SPPP, where applicable;
Explanation of the potential negative consequences of failing to control pollutants at
facilities; and
Overview of IDDE Program and how to report observed water quality problems.
High priority facilities were provided in-person classroom presentations while lower priority
facilities were assigned on-line training. More details about the classroom and on-line training
for municipal facilities is described in sub-section 5.5 as it is combined with education for
employees related to the identification and reporting of illicit discharges.
During FY2018, training was conducted as follows:
26 on-site training sessions were provided by CMSWS staff at 31of the municipal
facilities listed on Table 8-2;
Eight facilities elected to train their own staff (CATS S. Tryon, CATS Davidson, the five
wastewater facilities, and the airport);
251 employees from nine facilities were assigned an on-line training module.
Of those employees who were assigned the module, 177 completed it which is a 70.5%
completion rate. In addition, 43 employees elected to complete the training even though it was
not assigned to them. EPM-SWS staff works with facility management each year to have a
completion rate of 75% or higher for those employees assigned the training. During FY2019,
more emphasis will be placed on encouraging the CATS Light Rail and Landscape Management
facilities to improve their completion rates, as their numbers were among the lowest.
8.10 Measurable Goals/Planned Activities for Future Program Years
Table 8-4 describes the various Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping Program BMPs and
the Measurable Goals and Planned Activities for Future Program Years for each BMP by permit
term year.
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Table 8-4: BMP Measurable Goals for the Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping Program.
BMP BMP Description Measurable Goals
(by permit term year)
1 2 3 4 5+
Operation and maintenance program for
municipal facilities and operations.
Maintain and implement an operation and maintenance program for
municipal facilities owned and operated by the permittee that have
been determined by the permittee to have significant potential for
generating polluted stormwater runoff that has the ultimate goal of
preventing or reducing pollutant runoff.
Review and update Operation and Maintenance programs as
necessary. Continue operation and maintenance activities
per established procedures. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Site Pollution Prevention Plans for
municipal facilities and operations.
Maintain and implement Site Pollution Prevention Plans for municipal
facilities owned and operated by the permittee that have been
determined by the permittee to have significant potential for generating
polluted stormwater runoff that has the ultimate goal of preventing or
reducing pollutant runoff.
Review and update facility SPPPs as necessary. Continue
implementation of SPPPs. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Inspection and evaluation of municipal
facilities and operations.
Maintain an inventory of municipal facilities and operations owned
and operated by the permittee that have been determined by the
permittee to have significant potential for generating polluted
stormwater runoff, including the MS4 system and associated structural
SCMs, conduct inspections at facilities and operations owned and
operated by the permittee for potential sources of polluted runoff, the
stormwater controls, and conveyance systems, and evaluate the
sources, document deficiencies, plan corrective actions, implement
appropriate controls, and document the accomplishment of corrective
actions.
Review and update inventory of facilities for inspection.
Conduct inspections of applicable facilities and make
corrective actions where necessary. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Spill Response Procedures municipal
facilities and operations.
Maintain spill response procedures for municipal facilities and
operations owned and operated by the permittee that have been
determined by the permittee to have significant potential for generating
polluted stormwater runoff.
Review facility spill response procedures and update as
necessary. Continue implementation of procedures. (On-
going, years 1 – 5+)
Prevent or Minimize Contamination of
Stormwater Runoff from all areas used
for Vehicle and Equipment Cleaning
Describe measures that prevent or minimize contamination of the
stormwater runoff from all areas used for vehicle and equipment
cleaning, including fire stations that serve more than three fire trucks
and ambulances. Perform all cleaning operations indoors, cover the
cleaning operations, ensure wash water drains to the sanitary sewer
system, collect stormwater runoff from the cleaning area and providing
treatment or recycling, or other equivalent measures. If sanitary sewer
is not available to the facility and cleaning operations take place
outdoors, the cleaning operations shall take place on grassed or
graveled areas to prevent point source discharges of the wash water
into the storm drains or surface waters.
Review procedures for vehicle and equipment cleaning
operations and update as necessary. Ensure that corrective
actions are implemented where operations are found to not
be in compliance with the permit. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
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Where cleaning operations cannot be performed as described above
and when operations are performed in the vicinity of a storm drainage
collection system, the drain is to be covered with a portable drain cover
during cleaning activities. Any excess standing water shall be
removed and properly handled prior to removing the drain cover.
Facilities that serve three or fewer fire trucks and ambulances and that
cannot comply with these requirements shall incorporate structural
measures during facility renovation.
Streets, roads, and public parking lots
maintenance
The permittee shall evaluate BMPs to reduce polluted stormwater
runoff from municipally-owned streets, roads, and public parking lots
within the corporate limits. Within 12 months of permit issuance, the
permittee must update its Stormwater Plan to include the BMPs
selected.
Evaluate various types
of BMPs that would
best address polluted
stormwater runoff
from municipally-
owned streets and
parking lots and select
BMPs based on the
evaluation by Feb 28,
2014.
None (years 2 – 5+)
Streets, roads, and public parking lots
maintenance
Within 24 months of permit issuance, the permi ttee must implement
BMPs selected to reduce polluted stormwater runoff from municipally-
owned streets, roads, and public parking lots identified by the
permittee in the Stormwater Plan.
None Implement
BMPs selected
from year one
evaluation by
Feb 28, 2015.
Continue to
implement
selected BMPs.
(On-going, years
3 – 5+)
Operation and Maintenance (O&M) for
municipally-owned or maintained
structural SCMs and the storm sewer
system (including catch basins, the
conveyance system, and structural
stormwater controls).
Within 12 months of permit issuance, the permittee shall develop and
implement an operation and maintenance program for structural SCMs
and the storm sewer system (including catch basins, the conveyance
system, and structural stormwater controls).
Continue to implement structural SCM operation,
maintenance, and inspection program. Continue operation
and maintenance program for the MS4 system. (On-going,
years 1 – 5+)
Staff training Maintain and implement a training plan that indicates when, how often,
who is required to be trained and what they are to be trained on.
For facilities included in the municipal facility inspection
program, conduct staff training on SPPPs and Spill Response
Procedures according to the Training Plan. (On-going, years
1 – 5+)
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8.11 Program Assessment
The overall Pollution Prevention and Good Housekeeping Program was successfully
implemented during the annual report period. Table 8-5 shows a summary of the various items
and corresponding data results for activities conducted under the program.
Table 8-5: Program Summary
MUNICIPAL GOOD HOUSEKEEPING PROGRAM FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2017 FY2018
City owned parcels inventoried 90 75 130 56 43 34
Municipal facilities inspected1. 31 31 31 50 51 31
Municipal program evaluations 10 9 9 2 28 17
Problems detected/corrected at City facilities 45 55 56 43 15 52
Municipal facility employee training sessions 32 34 32 32 39 36
Municipal facility employees trained 925 891 1,118 760 1,808 1,743
1. Not all parcels are included in the municipal inspection program. See Sec 8.4
The following is clarification of numbers provided in Table 8-5:
Number of City owned parcels inventoried includes properties purchased in the previous
calendar year;
Number of municipal facilities inspected includes those at which CMSWS staff
conducted inspections ;
Municipal program evaluations include reviews (field observations, meetings, etc.) of
municipal field operations for development and/or implementation of stormwater
pollution prevention best practices;
Problems detected/corrected includes issues found during municipal facility inspections
that needed correction;
Employee training sessions includes classroom sessions (conducted by CMSWS, CW,
CATS, and the Airport) and number of facilities assigned the on-line training module;
and
Employees trained includes all employees who completed training as described in the
previous bullet.
The City maintains a very comprehensive Good Housekeeping and Pollution Prevention program
which has expanded in program depth and scope each year. With the frequency of inspections
and training received, municipal facility staff has grown in awareness and knowledge of
stormwater pollution prevention issues. However, with the large growth in the City, there is still
plenty of need for process improvement. Specific focus areas for this will include:
Continuing to develop and improve upon stormwater pollution prevention best
management practices among municipal field operations;
Municipal street and lot sweeping, with a specific focus on water quality improvement;
Comprehensive improvement in the spills program including training, written
procedures, cleaning, reporting, recording, and other elements;
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Contractor training and expectations;
Continuous improvement in inspection and maintenance of municipality-owned
structural SCMs; and
Increased communication and coordination with other departments and committees to
integrate more stormwater pollution prevention, green infrastructure, and other
stormwater measures into municipal projects and infrastructure.
Section 9: Industrial Facilities Evaluation and Monitoring Program
During the annual report period, inspection and monitoring activities were conducted under the
Industrial Facilities Inspection and Monitoring Program per the SWMP. The following sub-
sections explain:
The BMPs implemented to meet program requirements;
Measures of success;
Future goals and planned activities; and
Program assessment.
9.1 BMP Summary Table
Table 9-1 provides information concerning the BMPs implemented to fulfill the requirements of
the Industrial Facilities Program.
Table 9-1: BMP Summary Table for the Industrial Facilities Program.
BMP BMP Description Schedule (years) Responsible
Position 1 2 3 4 5
Maintain an
Inventory of
Industrial Facilities
Maintain an inventory of permitted hazardous
waste treatment, disposal, and recovery facilities,
industrial facilities that are subject to Section 313
of Title III of the Superfund Amendments and
Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA), industrial
facilities identified with an industrial activity
permitted to discharge stormwater to the
permittee’s MS4, or as identified as an illicit
discharge under the IDDE Program.
For the purposes of this permit, industrial activities
shall mean all permitted industrial activities as
defined in 40 CFR 122.26.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Inspection Program Identify priorities and inspection procedures. At a
minimum, priority facilities include those
identified above in subsection II.H.2.a.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
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BMP BMP Description Schedule (years) Responsible
Position 1 2 3 4 5
Evaluate Industrial
Facilities discharging
stormwater to the
City’s MS4
The Permittee is required to evaluate control
measures implemented at permitted hazardous
waste treatment, disposal, and recovery facilities,
industrial facilities that are subject to Section 313
of Title III of the Superfund Amendments and
Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA), industrial
facilities identified with an industrial activity
permitted to discharge stormwater to the
permittee’s MS4, or as identified as an illicit
discharge under the IDDE Program.
For permitted facilities, the municipality shall
establish procedures for reporting deficiencies and
non-compliance to the permitting agency. Where
compliance with an existing industrial stormwater
permit does not result in adequate control of
pollutants to the MS4, municipality will
recommend and document the need for permit
modifications or additions to the permit issuing
authority.
For the purposes of this permit, industrial activities
shall mean all permitted industrial activities as
defined in 40 CFR 122.26. For the purpose of this
permit, the Permittee is authorized to inspect the
permitted hazardous waste treatment, disposal, and
recovery facilities as an authorized representative
of the Director.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
9.2 Industrial Facility Inventory
An inventory of facilities is maintained showing those facilities that discharge to the City’s MS4
and have the potential to discharge significant pollutant loads. The inventory is used to select
each year’s facilities for inspection and monitoring. Facilities included in the inventory fit into
one or more of the following categories:
Hazardous waste TSD facility;
SARA Title III facility (TRI reporter);
NPDES Stormwater permitted facility;
Stormwater No Exposure Certificate facility;
Industrial Wastewater Pre-Treatment permitted facility; and
Facilities identified as having an illicit discharge under the IDDE Program.
The goal is to inspect all NPDES permitted facilities in the inventory every five (5) years, with
more frequent inspections conducted at facilities with previous compliance issues or facilities
that are deemed to have a higher potential for stormwater pollution. Non-permitted industrial
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facilities are selected for inspection based on the recommendation of CMSWS staff, citizen
complaints, or from viewing aerial photography that indicated potential pollution issues at a site.
During FY2018, a strategy was finalized and used for inspecting industrial facilities for
inspection. The new strategy focuses on establishing different priority tiers for NPDES-
permitted facilities based on several criteria that indicate a facility’s potential to impact surface
waters. The purpose of the priority tiers is to use program resources to conduct more frequent
inspections and follow-up activities at facilities that have a history of non-compliance with the
City’s Stormwater Pollution Control Ordinance or facilities that generally have a greater
potential to impact surface waters. To support this new prioritization strategy, CMSWS staff
developed a document detailing the goal of the strategy and the criteria for each priority tier,
created a flow chart that guides the ongoing prioritization of a facility, and updated the NPDES
database to assign an initial priority rank for each facility.
Vehicle maintenance facilities are also inspected as part of the Industrial Facility Inspection
program because they can potentially have poor housekeeping practices and illicit discharges.
Facilities are selected for inspection based on of a combination of targeting priority watershed
basins, aerial photography suggesting potential for stormwater pollution, and staff
recommendations. During FY2018, the watersheds prioritized for inspection were Irwin Creek,
Little Sugar Creek, and Sugar Creek.
9.3 Industrial Facilities Inspection Program
The purpose of the Industrial Facilities Inspection program is to evaluate activities at industrial
facilities that may impact stormwater discharges, and then work with problem facilities to reduce
identified stormwater pollution. To effectively accomplish the goals of the program, an
Industrial Facilities Inspection and Monitoring Procedures Manual is utilized. The manual
objectives are as follows:
Provide instructions and guidance about the selection of facilities for inspections, prepare
for and conduct industrial inspections and monitoring, collect vital information, write
reports and conduct follow-up activities;
Provide consistency for program implementation as a means of quality assurance and
control; and
Provide forms, templates and examples to aid in implementation of the program.
The manual also details the inspection process. Listed below are general tasks conducted as part
of an industrial inspection:
Thorough assessment of facility operations and maintenance activities;
Evaluation of waste disposal and storage methods;
Evaluation of the stormwater drainage system, including catch basin inlets, structural
best management practices and outfalls;
Review of spill response and clean up procedures;
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Evaluation of housekeeping practices with recommended revisions as necessary to
eliminate potential pollution sources;
Evaluation of outdoor storage facilities and recommendations for elimination of potential
pollution sources;
Identification and elimination of dry weather discharges;
Review of SPPP implementation where applicable, including outfall monitoring (if
required by permit);
Sampling/monitoring of site stormwater runoff and/or dry weather flows;
Evaluation of monitoring data results; and
Completion of a written report documenting findings and recommendations.
A standard inspection form is used for conducting all industrial facility inspections with the
exception of vehicle maintenance facility inspections which utilizes a separate inspection form.
For inspections at NPDES stormwater permitted facilities, any deficiencies related to NPDES
stormwater permit requirements are identified and included in the report, with a copy sent to the
NCDEQ. The understanding between the CMSWS and NCDEQ is that the State is responsible
for following-up on permit-related deficiencies and violations since they are the regulatory
authority for the issued permits. Facilities that are found without coverage under an appropriate
general stormwater permit category are also brought to the attention of NCDEQ. All facilities
where deficiencies were noted received follow-up correspondence and inspections from CMSWS
staff to assist with compliance.
During FY2018 the Industrial Facilities Inspection and Monitoring Program completed the
following activities:
43 industrial facilities (30 permitted and 13 non-permitted) and 15 vehicle maintenance
shops were inspected;
11 illicit discharges were identified and corrected;
Seven of the NPDES permitted sites were unsatisfactory and six of the non-permitted
sites were unsatisfactory.
Eight non-permitted facilities were observed to potentially be subject to an NPDES
stormwater required permit based on their SIC code, exposure of outdoor materials, and
the presence of at least one outfall onsite. CMSWS staff notified NCDEQ about those
facilities.
Of the 15 vehicle maintenance facilities inspected, 22 deficiencies were identified.
Tables 9-2 and 9-3 provide a list of the facilities inspected while Figures 9-1 and 9-2 show the
location of those facilities.
Table 9-2: FY2018 List of Industrial Facility Inspections
Facility NPDES Permit # Address
Refabco Incorporated NCG030385 200 E 27th St
Mallard Creek Polymers Incorporated NCG090006 14800 Mallard Creek Rd
Hunter Auto & Wrecker Service NCG100075 1114 N Davidson St
Lakeview Auto Parts Incorporated NCG100101 5500 Wilkinson Blvd
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Facility NPDES Permit # Address
Queen City Transfer Station NCG130079 3130 Jeff Adams Drive
Lucas Concrete Products, Inc. NCG140446 401 Rountree Road
Blythe Construction Inc. NCG160115 10500 Old Nations Ford Rd
Southern Metals Company NCG200347 2200 Donald Ross Rd
Wire Bond NCG030629 400 Roundtree Rd
Trane US, Inc. NCG030098 4500 Morris Field Dr.
Bendel Corporation NCG030234 4823 N Graham
Orbit Energy Charlotte NCG060387 600 Johnson Road
Contech Construct Prod-Mecklenburg NCG030391 4242 Raleigh St
A. O. Smith Water Systems NCG030486 4302 Raleigh St
Otto Industries NCG050149 12700 General Dr.
ADM Milling Co NCG060028 620 W 10th St
Snyder Production Center NCG060081 4901 Chesapeake Drive
Cargill Incorporated NCG060036 5000 S Blvd
Advantage Machinery Services Inc. NCG080286 3027 N Tryon St
Central Freight Lines NCG080323 7500 Statesville Rd
Novem Industries NCG210443 3901 North Graham Street
USF Holland Inc - CN NCG080792 5201 Sunset Rd
Elan Trading (dba South Resources) NCG200461 3826 Raleigh Street
Full Stream Recycling NCG130078 2214 North Graham Street
Blythe Brothers Asphalt Co, LLC NCG160221 10447 Old Nations Ford Road
Charlotte Turbine Generator Plant NCS000021 5101 Westinghouse Blvd
Ameristeel Corporation NCS000304 6601 Lakeview Rd
Jci Jones Chemicals Incorporated NCS000334 1500 Tarheel Rd
Nexeo Solutions, LLC NCS000315 3930 Glenwood Drive
Schaefer Systems International Inc NCG050427 10124 Westlake Drive
Non permitted:
SiteOne Hardscape Center
n/a
1615 East Westinghouse
Atlantic Ingredients / Atlantic Sweetener 512 Domino Court
IBC Beverage 3936 Corporation Circle
Pavestone LLC (Quikrete) 1101 Westinghouse Blvd
Kelly Pipe 11024 Nations Ford Road
JML Energy Resources 327 Old Hebron
Arborscapes 8924 Crump Road
Zachary Industrial 255 East Hebron Road
Sam Auto Salvage 2711 Wilkinson Blvd
MigWay Trucking 9349 China Grove Church Road
Streeter Trucking 6824 Old Statesville Road
Hunter Salvage Yard 5310 David Cox Road
Blythe Brothers Construction Yard 10447 Old Nations Ford Road
Table 9-3: FY2018 List of Vehicle Maintenance Facility Inspections
Facility Address
Royal Cab (fleet maintenance garage) 2000 North Tryon Street
Premiere Logistics and Auto LLC 110 West 27th Street
Advance Collision 2504 North Tryon Street
Taitt’s Tire and Automotive Service 2325 North Tryon Street
Uno's Used Tire and Auto Repair 905 East Sugar Creek Road
Los Angeles Auto Service 401 West 32nd Street
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Facility Address
Adams Truck Service 614 Atando Avenue
Escobar Auto Repair 122 Lambeth Drive
Jacintos Auto Center 2837 Sparta Avenue
Larry's Service Center 3730 Wilkinson Blvd
Teliwel Automotive Services 3837 Lousiana Avenue
Morningside II Auto Care 3020 Rozzelles Ferry Road
The Mechanic Man 539 State Street
Clyburn Motorspots and Collision 3032 Rozzelles Ferry Road
Fleet Truck Service 700 Griffith Road
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FIGURE 9-1
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FIGURE 9-2
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9.3.1 Industrial Facilities Monitoring Program
The purpose of the Industrial Facilities Monitoring Program is to monitor stormwater runoff
from select industrial facilities and identify and correct pollution sources related to industrial
activities. Facilities monitored consist of both those with and without an NPDES stormwater
permit. Facilities are selected based on input from the CMSWS inspectors who inspected these
facilities under the Industrial Inspections Program during the previous fiscal year. One outfall
from each of the following nine facilities was monitored during wet weather at least one time
during FY2018:
Full Stream Recycling;
DART Acquisitions;
Ferebee Asphalt Corporation;
Wise Recycling;
Sonoco Products Co.-Charlotte;
Southern Cast Foundry;
Safety Kleen Systems, Inc. (Goodrich Dr.);
Thomas Concrete of Carolina Inc; and
Starnes Pallet Service
All monitoring data from these facilities was reviewed and compared with permit benchmarks (if
applicable), past monitoring results from the CMSWS industrial monitoring program, and in-
stream state water quality standards. During FY2011, an SAP was developed for comparing
industrial stormwater monitoring results to these benchmarks.
Once data is reviewed, a letter summarizing the analytical sampling results is sent to each
monitored facility. Copies of this letter are also provided to NCDEQ for NPDES permitted
facilities for potential follow-up for permit deficiencies or recommendations for acquiring or
modifying a permit. For facilities with elevated pollutant levels, recommendations are made to
improve outdoor operations, housekeeping, material storage practices, and other measures that
should result in reduced pollutant runoff. Follow-up inspections are then conducted to ensure
that recommendations/requirements for eliminating pollution sources were implemented.
During FY2018, monitoring data from the above facilities showed pollutant levels in the
stormwater that were elevated when compared to CMSWS historical industrial monitoring data,
permit benchmarks, and NCDEQ in-stream water quality standards. The following summarizes
some results of this analysis:
CMSWS Industrial Monitoring Database:
o The highest values on record in the CMSWS database for turbidity, TSS and copper
were recorded at Wise Recycling; zinc, chromium, and lead were all at or above the
96th percentile.
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o The highest values on record in the CMSWS database for BOD and COD were
recorded at Full Stream recycling; fecal coliform, e-coli, and zinc were all at or
above 85th percentile.
o Turbidity values were in the 90th percentile and zinc was in the 80th percentile at
Starnes Pallet.
o Chromium values were in the 97th percentile and a pH limit violation was detected
at Thomas Concrete.
NPDES industrial permit benchmarks (four facilities had permit requirements to conduct
analytical monitoring):
o two permit effluent limitations were exceeded at Thomas Concrete. (effluent limits
applied for concrete process water)
o five permit benchmarks were exceeded at Wise Recycling.
North Carolina in-stream water quality standards (note that in-stream standards do not
apply to stormwater runoff, but are used as one basis of analysis)
o All nine facilities exceeded at least one parameter
o 89% of the facilities monitored exceeded the in-stream standard for copper
o 67% exceeded the in-stream standard for zinc.
o 56% exceeded the in-stream standard for turbidity.
All procedures for the Industrial Facilities Monitoring Program are outlined in the Industrial
Inspection Procedure Manual and reviewed annually.
9.4 Evaluation Measures
As discussed in sub-section 9.3, the appropriate evaluation measures that were implemented to
reduce polluted discharges to the City’s MS4 were industrial inspections and monitoring.
Inspection letters noted that the inspection was being conducted to satisfy both State and City
NPDES MS4 permit requirements. As pollution sources were identified through the inspection
and monitoring program, CMSWS worked with the NCDEQ and facility personnel to eliminate
the pollution sources. When violations of illicit discharge prohibitions and other applicable
regulations were identified, enforcement measures were implemented by the City or NCDEQ, as
applicable.
9.5 Measurable Goals/Planned Activities for Future Program Years
Table 9-4 describes the various Industrial Facilities Program BMPs and the Measurable Goals
and Planned Activities for Future Program Years for each BMP by permit term year.
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Table 9-4: BMP Measurable Goals for the Industrial Facilities Program.
BMP BMP Description Measurable Goals
(by permit term year)
1 2 3 4 5+
Maintain an
Inventory of
Industrial
Facilities
Maintain an inventory of permitted hazardous waste treatment, disposal, and
recovery facilities, industrial facilities that are subject to Section 313 of Title III of
the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA), industrial
facilities identified with an industrial activity permitted to discharge stormwater to
the permittee’s MS4, or as identified as an illicit discharge under the IDDE
Program.
For the purposes of this permit, industrial activities shall mean all permitted
industrial activities as defined in 40 CFR 122.26.
Maintain and update the industrial facility inventory as needed.
(On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Inspection
Program
Identify priorities and inspection procedures. At a minimum, priority facilities
include those identified above in subsection II.H.2.a.
Update current Industrial Inspection and Monitoring
Procedures and develop an inspection prioritization strategy.
(On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Evaluate
Industrial
Facilities
discharging
stormwater to
the City’s MS4
The Permittee is required to evaluate control measures implemented at permitted
hazardous waste treatment, disposal, and recovery facilities, industrial facilities that
are subject to Section 313 of Title III of the Superfund Amendments and
Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA), industrial facilities identified with an
industrial activity permitted to discharge stormwater to the permittee’s MS4, or as
identified as an illicit discharge under the IDDE Program.
For permitted facilities, the municipality shall establish procedures for reporting
deficiencies and non-compliance to the permitting agency. Where compliance with
an existing industrial stormwater permit does not result in adequate control of
pollutants to the MS4, municipality will recommend and document the need for
permit modifications or additions to the permit issuing authority.
For the purposes of this permit, industrial activities shall mean all permitted
industrial activities as defined in 40 CFR 122.26. For the purpose of this permit, the
Permittee is authorized to inspect the permitted hazardous waste treatment,
disposal, and recovery facilities as an authorized representative of the Director.
Conduct inspection activities based on established procedures
and prioritization strategy at 50 facilities for years 1 and 2; and
40 facilities in years 3 -5+. Conduct stormwater runoff
monitoring at 10 facilities for years 1 and 2; and 8 facilities in
years 3 -5+.
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9.6 Program Assessment
The overall Industrial Facilities and Monitoring Program was successfully implemented during
the annual report period. Table 9-5 shows a summary of the various items and corresponding
data results for activities conducted under the program.
Table 9-5: Program Summary
INDUSTRIAL FACILITIES PROGRAM FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2017 FY2018
Master industrial inspection site inventory 358 384 468 342 374 379
Industrial facilities inspected 51 51 50 40 41 43
Vehicle maintenance facilities inspected 15 20 21 15 16 9
Industrial facilities monitored 10 10 10 8 8 43
Industrial facility Notice of Deficiencies issued 13 7 7 5 9 15
Illicit discharges or connections
detected/corrected 3 0 0 3 5 17
The following is clarification of certain numbers provided in Table 9-5:
Site inventory includes industrial facilities with an NPDES Stormwater permit,
Stormwater No Exposure Certificate, CW pre-treatment permit and/or is a TRI submitter
or TSD facility; and
Number of industrial facility (not including vehicle maintenance facilities) deficiencies
with notices issued includes industrial facilities whose reports were issued as an NOV or
Unsatisfactory with regard to their compliance with the City’s Stormwater Pollution
Control Ordinance. Facilities with strictly NPDES permit compliance issues (e.g., lack of
required monitoring or training) were not counted in this number.
Section 10: Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Program
During the annual report period, monitoring activities were conducted per the Water Quality
Assessment and Monitoring program plan and the SWMP. The following sub-sections explain:
The BMPs implemented to meet program requirements;
Measures of success;
Future goals and planned activities; and
Program assessment.
10.1 BMP Summary Table
Table 10-1 provides information concerning the BMPs implemented to fulfill the requirements
of the Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Program.
Table10-1: BMP Summary Table for the Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Program.
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BMP BMP Description Schedule (years) Responsible
Position 1 2 3 4 5
Water Quality
Assessment and
Monitoring Plan
Maintain a Water Quality Assessment and
Monitoring Plan. The Plan shall include a schedule
for implementing the proposed assessment and
monitoring activities.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Water Quality
Monitoring
Maintain and implement the Water Quality
Assessment and Monitoring Plan submitted to
DWQ.
X X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
10.2 Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Plan
The City has been conducting water quality monitoring of streams and stormwater discharges
since the inception of its NPDES MS4 Permit Program in 1992. Initially, the monitoring
program focused mainly on identifying illicit discharges and especially SSOs, and therefore
included sampling for fecal coliform bacteria. Data was used to identify and eliminate these
illicit discharges to the MS4 and surface waters and proved to be highly successful. While
current water quality monitoring efforts continue to be used for this purpose, the program has
been expanded over the years to include a wider array of water quality parameters (Table 10-2)
with the additional goal of identifying short-term and long-term water quality trends and gauging
overall program effectiveness.
Table 10-2: Water Quality Monitoring Parameters.
Parameter Sample Type Frequency (Minimum)
Fecal Coliform Grab Quarterly
E-Coli Grab Quarterly
Total Phosphorus Grab Quarterly
Nitrite + Nitrate Grab Quarterly
Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen Grab Quarterly
Ammonia Nitrogen Grab Quarterly
Total Suspended Solids Grab Quarterly
Turbidity Grab Quarterly
Copper Grab Quarterly
Zinc Grab Quarterly
Chromium Grab Quarterly
Lead Grab Quarterly
Dissolved Oxygen In Situ Quarterly
Temperature In Situ Quarterly
Conductivity In Situ Quarterly
pH In Situ Quarterly
The City implements the Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Plan developed during the
previous permit term. The plan specifies the basic water quality monitoring program and
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activities to be performed on a quarterly basis at 15 stream sites within the major watersheds in
the City (Figure 10-1; Table 10-3). Monitoring is conducted for chemical and physical
parameters listed in Table 10-2 on a fixed interval monitoring basis.
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FIGURE 10-1
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Table 10-3: Description of City of Charlotte Water Quality Monitoring Sites.
Site # Stream Location
MY11B Mallard Creek Pavilion Blvd Bridge, S. of US Hwy 29
MY12B Back Creek Stream location, off of Wentwater Street, near Caldwell Rd.
MY13 Reedy Creek Reedy Creek Rd. Bridge, S. of Plaza Rd. Ext.
MY7B McKee Creek Reedy Creek Rd. Bridge, S. of Harrisburg Rd.
MC14A Long Creek Pine Island Dr. at End of Street at Golf Course
MC17 Paw Creek Hwy 74 Culvert, Between Sam Wilson & Little Rock Rd.
MC22A Irwin Creek Westmont Dr. Bridge, at Irwin Creek WWTP
MC27 Sugar Creek Hwy. 51 Bridge, E. of Downs Rd.
MC38 McAlpine Creek Sardis Rd. Bridge, Between Sardis Ln. & Sardis Rd. N.
MC40A Four Mile Creek Elm Ln. Bridge, S. of Hwy. 51
MC42 McMullen Creek Sharon View Rd. Bridge, Between Sharon Rd. & Colony Rd.
MC45 McAlpine Creek McAlpine Creek WWTP
MC47A Steele Creek Carowinds Blvd. Culvert, W. of Carowinds Amusement Park
MC49A Little Sugar Creek Hwy. 51 Bridge, W. of Carolina Place Mall
MC51 Six Mile Creek Marvin Rd. Bridge, S. of Ardrey Kell Rd.
10.3 Water Quality Monitoring Implementation
The City conducts a basic quarterly fixed interval monitoring program at the 15 monitoring sites
listed in Table 10-3. Following completion of monitoring activities at the end of each permit
reporting year (June 30th), monitoring data is visually assessed to determine whether water
quality trends are apparent. This can help to gauge the combined effectiveness of NPDES
program efforts. In addition to the basic monitoring required in the plan, the City also conducts
an enhanced monitoring program which includes additional parameters, sites and frequencies to
support other initiatives and management activities.
10.4 Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Plan Revisions
The City has reviewed the basic monitoring program plan and data generated during FY2018 and
proposes no major changes to that plan at this time.
10.5 Measurable Goals/Planned Activities for Future Program Years
Table 10-4 describes the Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Program BMPs and the
Measurable Goals and Planned Activities for Future Program Years for each BMP by permit
term year.
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Table 10-4: BMP Measurable Goals for the Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Program.
BMP BMP Description Measurable Goals
(by permit term year)
1 2 3 4 5
Water Quality
Assessment and
Monitoring Plan
Maintain a Water Quality Assessment
and Monitoring Plan. The Plan shall
include a schedule for implementing
the proposed assessment and
monitoring activities.
Maintain the WQ Assessment & Monitoring Plan and update as necessary. (On-going, years 1 – 5+)
Water Quality
Monitoring
Maintain and implement the Water
Quality Assessment and Monitoring
Plan submitted to DWQ.
Maintain and implement the monitoring plan and conduct WQ assessment and monitoring activities pe r the plan.
(On-going, years 1 – 5+)
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10.6 Program Assessment
The overall Water Quality Assessment and Monitoring Program was successfully implemented
during the annual report period. Table 10-5 shows a summary of the various items and
corresponding data results for activities conducted under the program.
Table 10-5: Program Summary
WATER QUALITY MONITORING PROGRAM FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2017 FY2018
Stream sites monitored1. 15 15 15 15 15 15
Stream samples collected1. 60 60 60 60 60 60
Laboratory sample analyses conducted1. 720 720 720 720 720 720
Stream physical measurements (DO, Temp, pH, Cond) 1. 240 240 240 240 240 240
IDDE problems detected/corrected through monitoring 0 1 0 2 0 1
1. Data reported is the minimum quarterly amount per the basic monitoring plan.
10.6.1 Water Quality Monitoring Program Evaluation
During FY2017, an evaluation of the enhanced water quality monitoring program was conducted
to determine whether any changes were needed to improve the cost-effectiveness of the program.
This evaluation resulted in the removal of enhanced program parameters Enterococcus and
several total metals (beryllium, selenium, cadmium, and silver) from the monitoring program.
Enterococcus was removed because it was determined to be unnecessary to collect in addition to
E. coli and fecal coliform. The total metals mentioned above were removed because they were
consistently below detection limits and water quality standards. Data analysis continued through
FY2018 but no additional changes to the monitoring program have been made.
10.6.2 Water Quality Trend Analysis
The City utilizes water quality data generated from various monitoring programs, including
NPDES MS4, to generate a Stream Use Support Index. This spatial index visually represents
water quality conditions by sub-basin and can be compared year by year to determine general
trends. The index map for calendar year 2017 is shown below in Figure 10-2. The map shows
general WQ conditions to be in the partially supporting to impaired category for the sub-basins
within the City.
Figure 10-3 shows time series graphs for each non-metal parameter in the monitoring plan for
the nine-year period from Jan 2009 to Jun 2018 (metals shown separately in Figure 10-4). Each
graph displays median analyte values across all sites for each particular fixed interval sampling
event (i.e., quarterly at minimum, though typically monthly). Additional analyses, considering
each analyte and watershed individually combined with normalization for flow conditions at the
time of sampling, will likely be needed to further discern water quality trends. These analyses
are ongoing, and may be reported in future annual reports.
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FIGURE 10-2
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FIGURE 10-3
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Figure 10-4 shows data for the metals included in the monitoring plan for the period of July
2010 through June 2018. These data have been plotted as the difference between individual
sample results and the acute dissolved standard at the sample’s hardness value to better illustrate
exceedances and non-exceedances on a temporal basis. As a result, the vertical axes represent
how far above or below the standard a given sample was, as opposed to showing absolute sample
concentrations. Samples collected prior to implementation of the dissolved metals standards are
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also shown relative to the current dissolved metals standards, as this gives a better picture of
historical toxicity.
The City has analyzed fixed interval samples for dissolved copper, dissolved lead, and dissolved
zinc since July 2015, given that historically total metals samples of those elements have
exceeded the new dissolved metals standards at least once. For chromium, which has never
exceeded the total metal standard or the more protective dissolved standard, the City continues to
analyze on a total basis. It can be seen from Figure 10-4 that copper is the only metal for which
the dissolved standard has been exceeded at any sites since coming into effect in 2015.
FIGURE 10-4
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Section 11: Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program
The City continued to fulfill the NPDES MS4 permit requirements regarding the TMDL
Program by implementing the following BMPs within the six minimum NPDES MS4 permit
measures. The BMPs are designed to reduce the TMDL pollutant of concern within the TMDL
assigned MS4 NPDES regulated waste load allocation to the maximum extent practicable (MEP)
within the impaired water bodies in the City’s jurisdiction that are subject to approved TMDLs.
The following sub-sections explain:
The BMPs implemented to meet program requirements;
Measures of success;
Future goals and planned activities; and
Program assessment.
11.1 BMP Summary Table
Table 11-1 provides information concerning the BMPs implemented to fulfill the Total
Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program requirements.
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Table 11-1: BMP Summary Table for Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program.
BMP
BMP Description Schedule (years) Responsible
Position 1 2 3 4 5
Identify, describe
and map
watershed, outfalls,
and streams
Within 24 months the permittee shall prepare a plan
that:
Identifies the watershed(s) subject to an
approved TMDL with an approved Waste Load
Allocation (WLAs) assigned to the permittee,
Includes a description of the watershed(s),
Includes a map of watershed(s) showing streams
& outfalls
Identifies the locations of currently known major
outfalls within its corporate limits with the
potential of contributing to the cause(s) of the
impairment to the impaired segments, to their
tributaries, and to segments and tributaries
within the watershed contributing to the
impaired segments and
Includes a schedule to discover and locate other
major outfalls within its corporate limits that
may be contributing to the cause of the
impairment to the impaired stream segments, to
their tributaries, and to segments and tributaries
within the watershed contributing to the
impaired segments.
X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Existing measures
Within 24 months the Permittee’s plan:
Shall describe existing measures being
implemented by the Permittee designed to
achieve the MS4’s NPDES WLA and to reduce
the TMDL pollutant of concern to the MEP
within the watershed to which the TMDL
applies; and
Provide an explanation as to how those measures
are designed to reduce the TMDL pollutant of
concern.
The Permittee shall continue to implement the
existing measures until notified by DWQ.
X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Assessment of
available
monitoring data
Within 24 months the permittee’s plan shall include
an assessment of available monitoring data. Where
long-term data is available, this assessment should
include an analysis of the data to show trends.
X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Monitoring Plan
Within 36 months the permittee shall develop and
submit to the Division a Monitoring Plan for the
permittee’s assigned NPDES regulated WLA as
specified in the TMDL. The permittee shall maintain
and implement the Monitoring Plan as additional
outfalls are identified and as accumulating data may
suggest. Following any review and comment by the
Division the permittee shall incorporate any
necessary changes to monitoring pla n and initiate the
plan within six months. Modifications to the
monitoring plan shall be approved by the Division.
Upon request, the requirement to develop a
X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
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Monitoring Plan may be waived by the Division if
the existing and proposed measures are determined
to be adequate to achieve the MS4’s NPDES WLA
to MEP within the watershed to which the TMDL
applies.
Additional
Measures
Within 36 months the permittee’s plan shall:
Describe additional measures to be
implemented by the permittee designed to
achieve the permittee’s MS4’s NPDES
WLA and to reduce the TMDL pollutant of
concern to the MEP within the watershed to
which the TMDL applies; and
Provide an explanation as to how those
measures are designed to achieve the
permittee’s MS4’s NPDES regulated WLA
to the MEP within the watershed to which
the TMDL applies.
X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Implementation
Plan
Within 48 months the permittee’s plan shall:
Describe the measures to be implemented
within the remainder of the permit term
designed to achieve the MS4’s NPDES
WLA and to reduce the TMDL pollutant of
concern to the MEP and
Identify a schedule, subject to DWQ
approval, for completing the activities.
X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Incremental
Success
The permittee’s plan must outline ways to track and
report successes designed to achieve the MS4’s
NPDES regulated WLA and to reduce the TMDL
pollutant of concern to MEP within the watershed to
which the TMDL applies.
X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
Reporting The permittee shall conduct and submit to the
Division an annual assessment of the program
designed to achieve the MS4’s NPDES WLA and to
reduce the TMDL pollutant of concern to the MEP
within the watershed to which the TMDL applies.
Any monitoring data and information generated from
the previous year are to be submitted with each
annual report.
X X X X Water Quality
Program
Manager
11.2 TMDL Watershed Plan
The City developed a TMDL watershed plan during February 2015 for the applicable identified
watersheds that are subject to an approved TMDL within the City’s jurisdiction as defined in
Part II, Sec J.1 and J.2 within the City’s current NPDES MS4 permit. The plan utilizes BMPs as
outlined in the permit within the six minimum NPDES MS4 permit measures that are designed to
reduce the TMDL pollutant of concern within the TMDL assigned MS4 NPDES regulated waste
load allocation to the MEP. In addition, per Part II, Sec J.3 within the City’s current NPDES
MS4 permit, the plan addresses the pollutant of concern for approved TMDLs that do not assign
a waste load allocation for the pollutant of concern to the municipal stormwater system by
evaluating strategies and tailoring BMPs within the scope of the six minimum permit measures
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to address the pollutant of concern to the MEP in the watershed(s) to which the TMDL applies.
The plan is available on the City’s website:
http://charlottenc.gov/StormWater/SurfaceWaterQuality/Documents/CLT%20NPDES%20MS4
%20TMDL%20Watershed%20Plan%20Updates%20-%20Feb%202017%20-%20FINAL.pdf
11.2.1 TMDL Watershed Identification
Section 303(d) of the federal Clean Water Act requires States to identify and establish a priority
ranking for water bodies that do not meet applicable water quality standards (303(d) list),
establish TMDLs for the pollutants causing impairment of these water bodies, and submit the list
of impaired waters and TMDLs to the USEPA. The TMDL process establishes the allowable
loadings of pollutants or other quantifiable parameters for a water body based on the relationship
between pollution sources and in-stream water quality conditions. The TMDL process is used by
States to establish water quality based controls to reduce pollutants from point and non-point
sources and restore and maintain the quality of the water resources in compliance with applicable
standards. In addition to the 303(d) list, the federal Clean Water Act requires States to submit a
report describing how well water bodies support designated uses (e.g., swimming, aquatic life
support, water supply), as well as likely causes and potential sources of impairment (305(b) list).
As part of the TMDL watershed plan development during FY2015, the City reviewed the
NCDEQ website to determine which TMDLs were in place within the City’s jurisdiction.
Currently, there are seven approved TMDLs applicable to multiple streams in the City, some of
which also include portions of Mecklenburg County. Table 11-2 and Figure 11-1 provide
information on, and a map of, these TMDLs and affected watersheds, respectively. Additional
information concerning these TMDLs is provided in the City’s TMDL Watershed Plan
referenced in section 11.2.
Table 11-2: City of Charlotte Streams with Approved TMDLs
Receiving Stream
Name
WQ
Classification
TMDL Approved TMDL Pollutant of Concern
Irwin Creek C February 1996 Dissolved Oxygen
Little Sugar Creek C February 1996 Dissolved Oxygen
McAlpine Creek C February 1996 Dissolved Oxygen
Lake Wylie WS-IV, B, CA February 1996 Chlorophyll-a
Irwin Creek C March 2002 Fecal Coliform
Little Sugar Creek C March 2002 Fecal Coliform
McAlpine Creek C March 2002 Fecal Coliform
Sugar Creek C March 2002 Fecal Coliform
McKee Creek C August 2003 Fecal Coliform
Irwin Creek C February 2005 Turbidity
Little Sugar Creek C February 2005 Turbidity
Long Creek C February 2005 Turbidity
McAlpine Creek C February 2005 Turbidity
Sugar Creek C February 2005 Turbidity
Steele Creek C May 2007 Fecal Coliform
Statewide All October 2012 Mercury
Source: 2017 NCDEQ – Division of Water Resources website:
http://deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/water-resources
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FIGURE 11-1
Charlotte Approved TMDL Streams
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11.2.2 Outfall Identification for TMDL Watersheds
As part of the development of the TMDL watershed plan, during FY2015 the City developed an
existing outfall inventory for the applicable TMDL watersheds. This inventory is maintained
using a GIS coverage to show existing outfalls within the TMDL watersheds that have the
potential of contributing to the cause(s) of the impairment to the impaired segments, to their
tributaries, and to segments and tributaries within the watershed contributing to the impaired
segments. Additional information on the outfall inventory is provided in the City’s TMDL
Watershed Plan referenced in section 11.2.
11.3 Identification of Existing Measures
As part of the development of the TMDL watershed plan, during FY2015 the City identified
existing programs and measures which are currently in use within the City’s NPDES MS4 permit
and water quality monitoring programs that are designed to address the assigned MS4 NPDES
regulated waste load allocation (WLA) and to reduce the TMDL pollutant of concern to the MEP
within the watershed to which the TMDL applies. Additional information on the existing
measures is provided in the City’s TMDL Watershed Plan referenced in section 11.2.
11.4 Assessment of Available Monitoring Data
Fixed interval surface water quality data collected from 2006 through 2018 have been analyzed
for all applicable TMDL watersheds and pollutants of concern in the City and County. These
data help to illustrate surface water quality trends in relation to the NC surface water quality
standards. The City’s current NPDES MS4 permit, effective March 1, 2013, states that the
“MS4 Permittee is not responsible for attaining water quality standards (WQS) and the Division
expects that attaining WQS will only be achieved through reduction of the TMDL pollutant of
concern from the MS4, along with reductions from all other point and nonpoint source
contributors.” It is infeasible to monitor every MS4 stormwater outfall to determine how
progress is being made toward achieving MS4 NPDES WLAs; therefore, the City will utilize
fixed interval surface water data to investigate water quality trends. The data presented below,
while illustrating how in-stream water quality has changed over time, unfortunately are not able
to distinguish MS4 contributions from other point and nonpoint sources that are not under the
control of the MS4. Consequently, increases in surface water contaminants observed in the data
do not necessarily indicate that MS4 contributions are also increasing.
11.4.1 Fecal Coliform
Data from the six watersheds listed as being subject to fecal coliform TMDLs in Table 11-2 are
discussed in this sub-section. Of the six watersheds listed in Table 11-2, a MS4 NPDES WLA
was only developed for McKee and Steele Creeks. According to Part II, Section J.3 of the City’s
NPDES MS4 permit, for approved TMDLs where a MS4 NPDES WLA for the pollutant of
concern is not assigned to the municipal stormwater system, the Permittee is still required to
“evaluate strategies and tailor BMPs within the scope of the six minimum permit measures to
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address the pollutant of concern in the watershed(s) to which the TMDL applies.” Watersheds
with and without MS4 WLAs are discussed in the subsections below.
11.4.1.1 McKee Creek
Fixed interval stream data for fecal coliform was collected at the CMSWS monitoring site
MY7B on McKee Creek. A summary of the data collected from January 2007 through July 2018
is provided in Figure 11-2. A total of 145 samples have been collected over this period under
the fixed interval monitoring program. Of these, 51% exceeded the 400 cfu/100mL State
standard with 90% confidence. Exceedances tended to be more frequent and more extreme
under wet weather influenced sampling conditions (meaning some precipitation within the
County in the 72-hour preceding the sampling event), however exceedances did occur under both
ambient and wet weather influenced conditions.
Figure 11-2: McKee Creek –MY7B - Overall Monitoring Data
11.4.1.2 Steele Creek Watershed
Fixed interval stream data for fecal coliform were collected at the CMSWS monitoring site
MC47A on Steele Creek. A summary of the data collected from January 2007 through July 2018
is provided in Figure 11-3. A total of 147 samples have been collected over this period under
the fixed interval monitoring program. Of these, 51% exceeded the 400 cfu/100mL State
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standard with 90% confidence. Exceedances tended to be more frequent and more extreme
under wet weather influenced sampling conditions (meaning some precipitation within the
County in the 72-hour preceding the sampling event), however exceedances did occur under both
ambient and wet weather influenced conditions.
Figure 11-3: Steele Creek –MC47A - Overall Monitoring Data
11.4.1.3 Sugar/Irwin Creek Watershed
There are two fixed interval monitoring locations in the Sugar Creek watershed, MC27 in
southern Mecklenburg County, and MC22A on Irwin Creek just before its confluence with Sugar
Creek. An assessment of available watershed and water quality data was conducted utilizing
fixed interval stream data for fecal coliform collected at these two monitoring locations. A
summary of the data collected from January 2007 through July 2018 is provided in Figures 11-4
and 11-5.
A total of 141 samples have been collected at MC27 over this period under the fixed interval
monitoring program. Of these, 42% exceeded the 400 cfu/100mL State standard with 90%
confidence. Exceedances tended to be more frequent and more extreme under wet weather
influenced sampling conditions (meaning some precipitation within the County in the 72-hour
preceding the sampling event), however exceedances did occur under both ambient and wet
weather influenced conditions.
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Figure 11-4: Sugar Creek –MC27 - Overall Monitoring Data
During the same period, a total of 138 samples were collected at MC22A under the fixed interval
monitoring program. Of these, 44% exceeded the 400 cfu/100mL State standard with 90%
confidence. Exceedances tended to be more frequent and more extreme under wet weather
influenced sampling conditions (meaning some precipitation within the County in the 72-hour
preceding the sampling event), however, since 2008 there has been a decrease in the frequency
of exceedances during ambient conditions compared to 2006-2007 (Figure 11-5).
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Figure 11-5: Irwin Creek –MC22A - Overall Monitoring Data
11.4.1.4 Little Sugar Creek Watershed
There are two monitoring locations on Little Sugar Creek, MC49A in southern Mecklenburg
County just outside the City, and MC29A-1 just downstream of downtown area of the City. An
initial assessment of available watershed and water quality data was conducted utilizing fixed
interval stream data for fecal coliform collected at these two monitoring locations. A summary
of the data collected from January 2007 through July 2018 is provided in Figures 11-6 and 11-7.
A total of 142 samples have been collected at MC49A over this period under the fixed interval
monitoring program. Of these, 53% exceeded the 400 cfu/100mL State standard with 90%
confidence. Exceedances tended to be more frequent and more extreme under wet weather
influenced sampling conditions (meaning some precipitation within the County in the 72-hour
preceding the sampling event), however exceedances did occur under both ambient and wet
weather influenced conditions.
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Figure 11-6: Little Sugar Creek –MC49A - Overall Monitoring Data
A total of 142 samples have been collected at MC29A-1 over this period under the fixed interval
monitoring program. Of these, 53% exceeded the 400 cfu/100mL State standard with 90%
confidence. Exceedances tended to be more frequent and more extreme under wet weather
influenced sampling conditions (meaning some precipitation within the County in the 72-hour
preceding the sampling event), however exceedances did occur under both ambient and wet
weather influenced conditions.
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Figure 11-7: Little Sugar Creek –MC29A-1 - Overall Monitoring Data
11.4.1.5 McAlpine Creek Watershed
There are two monitoring locations on McAlpine Creek, MC45B just downstream of the NC/SC
border, and MC38 downstream of the confluence with Campbell Creek and Irvins Creek. An
initial assessment of available watershed and water quality data was conducted utilizing fixed
interval stream data for fecal coliform collected at these two monitoring locations. A summary
of the data collected from January 2007 through July 2018 is provided in Figures 11-8 and 11-9.
A total of 137 samples have been collected at MC45B over this period under the fixed interval
monitoring program. Of these, 30% exceeded the 400 cfu/100mL State standard with 90%
confidence. Exceedances tended to be much more frequent under wet weather influenced
sampling conditions (meaning some precipitation within the County in the 72-hour preceding the
sampling event), however exceedances did occur under both ambient and wet weather influenced
conditions.
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Figure 11-8: McAlpine Creek –MC45B - Overall Monitoring Data
A total of 141 samples have been collected at MC38 over this period under the fixed interval
monitoring program (Figure 11-9). Of these, 48% exceeded the 400 cfu/100mL State standard
with 90% confidence. Exceedances tended to be much more frequent and more extreme under
wet weather influenced sampling conditions (meaning some precipitation within the County in
the 72-hour preceding the sampling event), however exceedances did occur under both ambient
and wet weather influenced conditions.
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Figure 11-9: McAlpine Creek –MC38 - Overall Monitoring Data
11.4.1.6 Fecal Coliform Summary
The State standard for fecal coliform is exceeded by more than 10% with 90% confidence for all
watersheds with a fecal coliform TMDL identified above, based on fixed interval data collected
between 2006 and 2018. These exceedances are more common in wet weather influenced
conditions but exceedances did occur during ambient conditions in each of these watersheds.
11.4.2 Turbidity
As discussed in sub-section 2.2, the turbidity TMDL developed in 2005 included five Charlotte-
Mecklenburg watersheds but only developed a WLA for turbidity for Long Creek since the water
quality data assessment performed for the TMDL demonstrated that the remaining four
watersheds had less than a 10% exceedance rate of the 50 NTU State standard. Therefore, this
sub-section includes an assessment of turbidity data only for Long Creek.
11.4.2.1 Long Creek Watershed
An initial assessment of available watershed and water quality data was conducted utilizing
stream data for turbidity collected at the CMSWS monitoring site MC14A on Long Creek. A
summary of the data collected from July 2006 through July 2018 is provided in Figure 11-10. A
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total of 138 samples were collected during this period, with 16% exceeding the 50 NTU State
standard with 90% confidence. These exceedances all occurred under wet weather influenced
conditions.
Figure 11-10: Long Creek –MC14A - Overall Monitoring Data
11.4.3 Dissolved Oxygen
As stated in sub-section 2.3, the 1996 dissolved oxygen (DO) TMDL for Irwin Creek, McAlpine
Creek, and Little Sugar Creek did not include a MS4 NPDES WLA. Nevertheless, since the
City’s NPDES MS4 permit states in Part II, Section J.3, for approved TMDLs where a MS4
NPDES WLA for the pollutant of concern is not assigned to the MS4, the Permittee is still
required to “evaluate strategies and tailor BMPs within the scope of the six minimum permit
measures to address the pollutant of concern in the watershed(s) to which the TMDL applies.”
For this reason, the dissolved oxygen data is provided below in Figures 11-11 through 11-15.
Unlike the other parameters, for dissolved oxygen the State standard is violated when
concentrations go below the standard rather than exceeding the standard. Based on the fixed
interval sampling conducted between July 2006 and July 2018, there have been no violations of
the instantaneous State standard of 4 mg/L in any of the DO TMDL watersheds. The 2016 NC
Integrated Report categorizes each of these watersheds as 1i for DO, meaning that they have a
TMDL but are not impaired and are supporting their designated uses.
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Figure 11-11: Irwin Creek–MC22A - Overall Monitoring Data
Figure 11-12: McAlpine Creek –MC45B - Overall Monitoring Data
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Figure 11-13: McAlpine Creek –MC38 - Overall Monitoring Data
Figure 11-14: Little Sugar Creek –MC49A - Overall Monitoring Data
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Figure 11-15: Little Sugar Creek –MC29A-1 – Overall Monitoring Data
11.4.4 Chlorophyll a
As stated in sub-section 2.4, Mecklenburg County is responsible for providing annual assessment
reports for the Lake Wylie chlorophyll-a TMDL under their NPDES MS4 permit program.
11.4.5 Mercury
NCDEQ did not consider it necessary to include an MS4 NPDES WLA for mercury in their
statewide TMDL. For this reason, mercury data is not analyzed under the City’s TMDL
Watershed Plan.
11.5 Monitoring Plan for Assigned MS4 NPDES Regulated Waste Load Allocation
As part of the TMDL watershed plan, during FY2016 the City developed a monitoring plan for
each pollutant of concern with an assigned MS4 NPDES regulated WLA within each watershed
with an approved TMDL within the City’s jurisdiction. The purpose of the monitoring plan is to
guide activities for data collection and assessment of pollutants of concern as well as to evaluate
the effectiveness of achieving the regulated waste load allocation (WLA) identified within the
TMDL. In developing the monitoring plan, sample locations were selected to assess water
quality conditions within each TMDL watershed. Additional information concerning the
monitoring plan is provided in the City’s TMDL Watershed Plan referenced in section 11.2.
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11.6 Identification of Additional Measures
As part of the TMDL watershed plan, during FY2016 the City identified additional measures for
implementation within the City’s MS4 permit program that are designed to achieve the assigned
MS4 NPDES regulated WLA and to reduce the TMDL pollutant of concern to the MEP within
the watershed to which the TMDL applies. The plan also discusses how the additional measures
are designed to reduce the TMDL pollutant of concern. Additional information concerning these
measures is provided in the City’s TMDL Watershed Plan referenced in section 11.2.
11.7 Implementation of Additional Measures
During FY2017 the TMDL watershed plan was updated to discuss the implementation of the
additional programs and measures identified in sub-section 11.6. Additional information
concerning these measures is provided in the City’s TMDL Watershed Plan referenced in section
11.2 above.
11.8 Tracking Incremental Success
During FY2017, various BMP data parameters were identified to track incremental success
within the TMDL watershed plan. These parameters and corresponding data for FY2018 are
shown in sub-section 11.10 below.
11.9 Measurable Goals
Table 11-3 describes the various Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program BMPs and the
Measurable Goals for each BMP by permit term year.
[THIS SPACE INTENTIONALLY BLANK]
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Table 11-3: BMP Measurable Goals for Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program.
BMP BMP Description Measurable Goals
(by permit term year)
1 2 3 4 5+
Identify, describe
and map
watershed, outfalls,
and streams
Within 24 months the permittee shall prepare a plan that:
Identifies the watershed(s) subject to an approved
TMDL with an approved Waste Load Allocation
(WLAs) assigned to the permittee,
Includes a description of the watershed(s),
Includes a map of watershed(s) showing streams &
outfalls
Identifies the locations of currently known major
outfalls within its corporate limits with the potential of
contributing to the cause(s) of the impairment to the
impaired segments, to their tributaries, and to
segments and tributaries within the watershed
contributing to the impaired segments and
Includes a schedule to discover and locate other major
outfalls within its corporate limits that may be
contributing to the cause of the impairment to the
impaired stream segments, to their tributaries, and to
segments and tributaries within the watershed
contributing to the impaired segments.
None Develop TMDL
Watershed Plan
per requirements
of the MS4
permit by Feb
28, 2015.
Update TMDL Watershed Plan as necessary. (On-going, years
3 – 5+)
Existing measures
Within 24 months the Permittee’s plan:
Shall describe existing measures being implemented
by the Permittee designed to achieve the MS4’s
NPDES WLA and to reduce the TMDL pollutant of
concern to the MEP within the watershed to which the
TMDL applies; and
Provide an explanation as to how those measures are
designed to reduce the TMDL pollutant of concern.
The Permittee shall continue to implement the existing
measures until notified by DWQ.
None Identify existing
measures within
TMDL plan by
Feb 28, 2015.
Continue to implement existing measures per TMDL plan.
(On-going, years 3 – 5+)
Assessment of
available
monitoring data
Within 24 months the permittee’s plan shall include an
assessment of available monitoring data. Where long-term
data is available, this assessment should include an
analysis of the data to show trends.
None Conduct a
review and
assessment of
available
monitoring data
by Feb 28, 2015.
Continue to review and assess monitoring data as it becomes
available. (On-going, years 3 – 5+)
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Monitoring Plan
Within 36 months the permittee shall develop and submit
to the Division a Monitoring Plan for the permittee’s
assigned NPDES regulated WLA as specified in the
TMDL. The permittee shall maintain and implement the
Monitoring Plan as additional outfalls are identified and as
accumulating data may suggest. Following any review and
comment by the Division the permittee shall incorporate
any necessary changes to monitoring plan and initiate the
plan within six months. Modifications to the monitoring
plan shall be approved by the Division. Upon request, the
requirement to develop a Monitoring Plan may be waived
by the Division if the existing and proposed measures are
determined to be adequate to achieve the MS4’s NPDES
WLA to MEP within the watershed to which the TMDL
applies.
None None Develop
monitoring
plan for each
TMDL
watershed for
the TMDL
pollutants of
concern by
Feb 28, 2016.
Complete monitoring
activities specified in
the plan by June 30,
2017. Assess
monitoring data
collected under the
monitoring plan to
determine
effectiveness of
Water Quality
Programs by
December 31, 2017.
Update monitoring
plan as necessary
based on data review
and assessment
activities.
Complete monitoring
activities specified in
the plan by June 30,
2018. Assess
monitoring data
collected under the
monitoring plan to
determine
effectiveness of
Water Quality
Programs by
December 31, 2018.
Update monitoring
plan as necessary
based on data review
and assessment
activities.
Additional
Measures
Within 36 months the permittee’s plan shall:
Describe additional measures to be implemented
by the permittee designed to achieve the
permittee’s MS4’s NPDES WLA and to reduce
the TMDL pollutant of concern to the MEP within
the watershed to which the TMDL applies; and
Provide an explanation as to how those measures
are designed to achieve the permittee’s MS4’s
NPDES regulated WLA to the MEP within the
watershed to which the TMDL applies.
None None Determine
additional
measures that
may be needed
to achieve
assigned MS4
NPDES
regulated
WLA and
address TMDL
pollutant of
concern by
Feb 28, 2016.
Continue to evaluate and update additional
measures per TMDL plan, as needed. (On-
going, years 4 – 5+)
Implementation
Plan
Within 48 months the permittee’s plan shall:
Describe the measures to be implemented within
the remainder of the permit term designed to
achieve the MS4’s NPDES WLA and to reduce
the TMDL pollutant of concern to the MEP and
Identify a schedule, subject to DWQ approval, for
completing the activities.
None None None Develop an
implementation plan
for identified
additional measures
that may be needed to
achieve assigned
MS4 NPDES
regulated WLA and
address TMDL
Continue to
implement additional
measures per the
plan.
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pollutant of concern
by Feb 28, 2017.
Incremental
Success
The permittee’s plan must outline ways to track and report
successes designed to achieve the MS4’s NPDES regulated
WLA and to reduce the TMDL pollutant of concern to
MEP within the watershed to which the TMDL applies.
None None None Develop a
methodology to track
and report data and
successes for
identified additional
measures that may be
needed to achieve
assigned MS4
NPDES regulated
WLA and address
TMDL pollutant of
concern by June 30,
2017.
Continue to track and
report successes per
the plan.
Reporting The permittee shall conduct and submit to the Division an
annual assessment of the program designed to achieve the
MS4’s NPDES WLA and to reduce the TMDL pollutant of
concern to the MEP within the watershed to which the
TMDL applies. Any monitoring data and information
generated from the previous year are to be submitted with
each annual report.
None Prepare an annual assessment of activities and data analysis for the TMDL
watershed plan. Provide this information in the NPDES MS4 permit annual report.
(On-going, years 2 – 5+)
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11.10 Program Assessment and Reporting
The overall TMDL Program and Watershed Plan were successfully implemented during the
annual report period. Table 11-4 shows a summary of the various BMPs implemented and
corresponding data results per TMDL watershed for the report period. BMPs that apply to the
City or a program as a whole, such as television advertisements, cannot be differentiated by
watershed and are therefore reported as “Citywide.” Additional information concerning these
BMPs is provided in the City’s TMDL Watershed Plan referenced in sub-section 11.2.
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Table 11-4: TMDL Program Summary for FY2018
TMDL WATERSHED BMP Citywide Irwin Lake Wylie Little Sugar Long McAlpine McKee Steele Sugar
Public Education and Outreach
Utility bill inserts 113,912 68,985 125,077 73,105 330,703 9,038 38,413 53,167
Environmental notices and brochures distributed 116
Media advertisements (TV and radio) 731
Pet waste messages 0
Pet waste receptacles 120
Website inquiries 275,595
Social media posts 1,389
Social media responses 1,458
Public requests to hotline 8,329
CMCSI education workshops conducted 3
Citizens educated at CMCSI workshops 342
Public events 35
Attendees at public events 4,394
Public presentations 16
Citizens educated at public presentations 690
School presentations 3 01. 2 5 1 01. 12 01.
Students educated 77 01. 340 372 95 01. 387 01.
Fats Oils & Grease (FOG) brochures distributed 2,107
FOG presentations 15
Citizens educated on FOG program 5,783
Public Involvement
Storm drains marked 430 01. 154 6 921 41 39 214
Adopt-A-Stream trash removed (lbs.) 10,620 01. 26,540 340 8,360 01. 1,625 1,680
Adopt-A-Stream miles cleaned 25 01. 46 2 34 01. 7 6
Big Spring Clean trash removed (lbs.) 755 100 275 01. 55 01. 01. 01.
Big Spring Clean stream miles cleaned 4 1 2.5 01. 3 01. 01. 01.
Volunteer Monitoring samples 01. 01. 1 01. 2 01. 01. 01.
Trees planted 1,550
Adopt-A-Street bags of trash collected 1,293
1. Activity not conducted in this watershed during fiscal year 2018.
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TMDL WATERSHED BMP Citywide Irwin Lake Wylie Little Sugar Long McAlpine McKee Steele Sugar
Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination (IDDE)
Stream walk miles inspected 01. 01. 65 01. 01. 01. 01. 92
Stream walk outfalls inspected 01. 01. 176 01. 9 01. 01. 132
Dry weather flows detected 01. 01. 56 01. 2 01. 01. 38
Dry weather flows sampled 01. 01. 56 01. 4 01. 01. 45
Stream walk IDDE problems detected/corrected 01. 01. 4 01. 0 01. 01. 5
Multi-family sewer system inspections 1 01. 17 1 6 01. 1 2
Multi-family sewer system O&M plans prepared 01. 01. 9 01. 5 1 1 1
Multi-family sewer system personnel trained 12
Stormwater pollution ordinance violations/NOVs issued 19 4 39 8 13 1 3 18
Stormwater pollution ordinance penalty enforcements
issued 2 01. 2 1 2 01. 01. 5
Septic system failures detected/corrected 5 1 6 8 10 1 1 3
Municipal employees trained on IDDE 1,723
Sanitary sewer ordinance NOVs issued 42
Sanitary sewer system pretreatment inspections 200
Sanitary sewer system FOG inspections 4,400
Sanitary sewer system miles cleaned 1,168
Sanitary sewer system ROW miles cleared 107
Sanitary sewer system miles re-lined 15
Sanitary sewer system manholes inspected 8,906
Sanitary sewer system lift stations maintained 81
Sanitary sewer system overflows corrected 164
IDEP business corridor inspections 128
IDEP outfall inspections 1 01. 2 01. 01. 01. 01. 01.
IDEP problems detected/corrected 4 01. 5 1 01. 01. 01. 2
IDEP fecal sampled collected 01. 01. 01. 01. 01. 01. 01. 01.
Citizen service requests responded to 66 1 180 29 94 2 12 35
1. Activity not conducted in this watershed during fiscal year 2018.
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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TMDL WATERSHED BMP Citywide Irwin Lake Wylie Little Sugar Long McAlpine McKee Steele Sugar
Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control
Erosion control ordinance NOVs issued 5 2 23 01. 38 01. 01. 01.
Erosion control ordinance penalty enforcements issued 5 5 7 01. 1 1 01. 01.
Project/site plans reviewed 96 73 177 40 84 15 52 81
Sites inspected 21 362 947 87 406 50 135 196
Post-Construction Stormwater Management
Post-Construction ordinance NOVs and CARs issued 570
Post-Construction education workshops conducted 1 Citizens educated at Post-Construction workshops 120
Project/site plans reviewed 145
Buffer protected/added (acres) 57
Buffer mitigation plans approved 1 1 5 01. 4 01. 2 2
SCMs added 5 1 13 3 16 01. 3 3
SCMs inspected 114 64 130 95 37 1 111 205
Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping
City facilities inspected 10 1 8 2 8 1 1 8
Stormwater pollution prevention plans implemented 10 01. 8 01. 2 01. 01. 5
Spill prevention response plans implemented 10 0 8 01. 2 01. 01. 5
Catch basin tops cleaned (manual or vacuum) 83,688
Catch basins cleaned (manual or vacuum) 1,639
Pipe cleaned (manual or vacuum) 22,037
Street sweeping (miles swept) 57,449
Street sweeping debris/ROW trash removed (tons)2. 3,199
Yard waste collected (tons) 55,889 City street ROW dead animal removal (tons) 31
1. Activity not conducted in this watershed during fiscal year 2018.
2. Tonnage includes debris/trash picked up from street sweepers and street
ROW debris/trash collected by hand.
City of Charlotte – MS4 Stormwater Management Program – FY2018 Annual Report
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TMDL WATERSHED BMP Citywide Irwin Lake Wylie Little Sugar Long McAlpine McKee Steele Sugar
Industrial Facilities
Industrial facilities inspected 9 01. 10 3 01. 01. 01. 14
Vehicle maintenance facilities inspected 3 01. 8 01. 01. 01. 01. 4
Industrial facilities monitored 5 01. 2 01. 01. 01. 1 1
Illicit discharges or connections detected/corrected 4 01. 6 1 01. 01. 01. 4
Water Quality Monitoring
Fixed interval TSS samples collected 13 13 53 13 66 13 13 26
Fixed interval Turbidity samples collected 13 13 53 13 66 13 13 26
Fixed interval Dissolved Oxygen samples collected 12 12 45 12 57 12 12 24
Fixed interval Fecal Coliform samples collected 18 13 66 18 80 16 16 34
CMANN Turbidity observations/readings2. 7,496 7,228 57,940 7,044 18,533 6,364 12,020 10,761
CMANN Dissolved Oxygen observations/readings 2. 7,305 8,289 66,273 7,894 29,780 7,807 18,794 11,631
Action/watch level follow-up investigations conducted3. 2 01. 3 2 2 01. 01. 1
1. Activity not conducted in this watershed during fiscal year 2018.
2. CMANN is an automated monitoring network that collects data readings typically once per hour (select sites collect readings every 15 min.). Data reported is QA/QC accepted data only.
3. Includes Fixed Interval and CMANN program investigations.
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