Repairing A Stormwater Management Facility
Stormwater Facility Management Case Study

Location and Acreage:
Morrisville, NC | 1-Acre

Project Timeframe: 
Winter 2014

Project Manager:
Trent Nelson, Business Development Consultant

Site Description:
A one-acre stormwater management facility was cited by the local municipality as being non-complaint with local, state, and federal stormwater regulations. The municipality began fining the community for non-compliance and requested the stormwater management facility be repaired per an engineer’s specifications. The community hired SOLitude Lake Management to repair and complete the work in accordance with the approved plans.

Scope of Work:
The following items were carried out to bring the stormwater management facility into compliance. The stormwater construction crew worked off of the approved engineer’s plans, which needed to be signed by the engineer once completed.

1. Remove vegetation, re-grade, apply seed and wheat straw, and install riprap on all slopes to stabilize the stormwater facility area and meet the Maintenance Plan specifications submitted to the municipality by a stormwater engineer.
2. Cut and remove overgrown woody vegetation on side slopes, berm and basin floor, including a swale located on the east side of the basin. Load and haul vegetation to a certified recycling and fill facility.
3. Fill in channelization observed cutting through the basin floor and re-install riprap dissipater pads using an appropriate geo-textile fabric.
4. Remove woody and nuisance vegetation from the emergency spillway and reestablish the riprap dissipater spillway. 
5. Re-grade the basin floor to the grades specified on the engineer’s plans approved by the municipality.
6. Clear and grub existing channel per the approved plans. Armor swale (approx. 150' long by 20' wide) located on east side of basin with a riprap apron per design specifications using class 1 rip rap and a woven geo-textile fabric.
7. Apply appropriate seed, wheat straw and tack disturbed areas with an erosion control matting as directed in the approved plans.
8. Ensure project is completed and compliant with the approved plans and communicate with the client, municipality, engineer, and construction crew during each phase of the stormwater BMP compliance repair.

Project Description:
The large stormwater management facility has not been maintained since its completion over ten years ago. The local municipality discovered the oversight and required the community to hire a stormwater engineer to create a plan that is complaint with the North Carolina stormwater management facility manual and Federal NPDES regulations. The municipality put a time restriction on when the repairs needed to be completed. The municipality ultimately fined the community for not adhering to the request in the time allotted. The repair and compliance work was then approved with an immediate start date required, even though the work was recommended to be performed in warmer months to allow the area to dry and reduce the risk of heavy equipment becoming stuck and having access issues.

The project moved forward as directed by the municipality, which now has 90% of its stormwater BMPs in compliance with federal regulations. Although there were weather delays, the project was completed on time and the engineer, municipal inspector, and client signed off on the project’s completion within the estimated timeline. Once the stormwater management facility was deemed compliant, the community no longer had to worry about being fined for stormwater non-compliance.