Welcome, Spring! Stormwater Reminders

Category: Build-Remodel-Topics
03/13/2023

As spring approaches and snow starts to melt, HBA of F-M has gathered tips, resources, and information from several local city officials to assist in ensuring your jobsites comply with stormwater runoff ordinances.

STATEWIDE

Minnesota

Review homebuilder guidelines for erosion and sediment control.

DILWORTH

L. Peyton Mastera | City Administrator | 218-287-2313

Dilworth is taking a more proactive approach to stormwater violations and enforcement. With new ordinances adopted last year, we have streamlined our process for issuing citations. In September, we added stormwater to that process. Now, our city staff can administer fines and citations almost immediately when an issue occurs. This will allow for timelier cleanup and correction of errors.

Charges for violations are:

• $500 for the 1^st offense
• $1,000 for the 2^nd offense
• $1,500 for the 3^rd offense

We want to ensure our community is a clean and safe place to be. Following stormwater guidelines are a necessary part of that!

MOORHEAD

Andrea J. Crabtree Nayes, CFM  | Utilities Engineer | 218-299-5387

When building on a lot in the city of Moorhead, don’t forget to subdivide your lot from the original MPCA General Stormwater permit. When it comes time to close on a house, make sure to give the new homeowner the MPCA Homeowner Fact Sheet, leave the Best Management Practices (BMPs) in place and send the MPCA a Notice of Termination to close your subdivision permit. 

• Please keep your site neat and clean. Be part of the solution and not the problem.
• Remove tracking by the end of the working day.  If larger chunks are coming off equipment, those should be removed right away.
• BMPs must be in place to prevent sediment from leaving your site.
• Keep BMPs in proper working order. 
• Dispose of trash properly. Trash blows around and ends up in the stormwater ponds, ditches and neighbor’s yards. 
• Properly store chemicals to prevent pollution to the storm sewer system.

Please visit the city of Moorhead’s stormwater website or contact the stormwater staff for additional information. 

STATEWIDE

North Dakota

Review homebuilder guidelines for erosion and sediment control.

HORACE

Joel Luing, PE, Project Manager | 701-492-2972

The city of Horace has recently become an MS4 community much like the cities of Fargo and West Fargo. With being an MS4 we have most of the same requirements as the city of Fargo. This year the city will be increasing our efforts ensuring our contractors and residents are complying with the stormwater requirements.

Some of the main issues we will be focusing on are related to the required construction SWPPP’s (Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan). The city will be conducting routine checks of inlet protection, silt fences, and vehicle track-outs among other things. We ask all of our contractors to be courteous of our residents by keeping our streets and stormwater systems clean.

For more information please refer to the city of Horace website.

 FARGO

Kevin Morlan | Stormwater Technician | 701-476-6667

As the spring weather returns and the ground begins to thaw the city of Fargo is reminding homebuilders and commercial construction contractors that they will need to have best management practices for stormwater runoff in place to meet the requirements of the cities MS4 Discharge Permit.

Best management practices (BMPs) may include installing bio rolls or straw matting along back of curb at disturbed areas, temporary construction entrances, and Inlet protection. Operators must have a designated concrete washout if they are not washing out at the plant.

The most popular infraction annually is vehicle track-out so please provide a temporary construction entrance to reduce the amount of sediment entering the street. Track-out should be addressed as needed throughout the day and at the end of each working day.

Erosion & Sediment Control Permits for residential homebuilders are issued automatically when applying for a building permit. All commercial contractors will be permitted by storm sewer utility staff.

Inspections for residential construction will be conducted weekly throughout the construction season by storm sewer utility staff. Violations will be issued for non-compliance by email so be sure to provide the correct contact information associated with your Erosion & Sediment Control Permit.  All commercial sites will require at least one on-site inspection during the construction season.

WEST FARGO

Chad Zander | City Forester | 701-515-5400

Stormwater management is critical to preserving the quality of water in North Dakota. The city of West Fargo's storm sewer drains into the Sheyenne River and has a direct influence on our natural environment. Stormwater management also helps protect our homes from flooding and keeps water from damaging our property.

Any pollutants or sediment that enters the city storm sewer system can harm to the aquatic life in our rivers, animals along its banks, or the thousands of people in the state who use rivers for recreation or as a water supply. To help manage stormwater, the city of West Fargo has developed a storm water management program, which allows us to better regulate what enters our rivers.

The city of West Fargo would like to remind contractors and home builders that, as the ground thaws, all stormwater best management practices must be in place and maintained. Please ensure that your construction sites all have erosion control devices installed and are capable to handling stormwater runoff.

Spring is also a great time clean up any garbage that has been left over the winter. The most common violation in the springtime is tracking sediment into city streets. If the ground is soft and muddy the best option is to stay off until it has time to dry. Using your construction entrance will also help ensure sediment doesn’t get tracked into the street.

The city of West Fargo has a “mud ordinance” in which any sediment that is tracked into the street, causing a safety issue, can be ticketed. Large mud chucks must be removed immediately, and smaller sediment must be cleaned up by the end of the day.

Also please ensure that your contractors and subcontractors are aware of West Fargo’s parking restrictions and spring load restrictions.

compiled by Elizabeth Kosel, HBA Education & Public Affairs Coordinator