Illinois-American Water Company & Great River’s Land Trust

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Water Quality Trading – Point Source for Non-point Source Sediments: Piasa Creek Watershed Project Illinois-American Water Company & Great River’s Land Trust

description

Water Quality Trading – Point Source for Non-point Source Sediments: Piasa Creek Watershed Project. Illinois-American Water Company & Great River’s Land Trust. Legend of the Piasa Bird. Location of Alton IL. Great River Road Scenic Highway. “Old” Alton Water Treatment Facility. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Transcript of Illinois-American Water Company & Great River’s Land Trust

Page 1: Illinois-American Water Company & Great River’s Land Trust

Water Quality Trading – Point Source for Non-point Source Sediments:Piasa Creek Watershed Project

Illinois-American Water Company & Great River’s Land Trust

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Legend of the Piasa Bird

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Location of Alton IL

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Great River Road Scenic Highway

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“Old” Alton Water Treatment Facility

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“Wet” Alton Water Treatment Facility

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“New” Alton Water Treatment Facility

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The Challenge

Old facility

– Site specific exemption

– Non-standard NPDES permit

– Direct discharge allowed

– Exempt from TSS and total iron effluent standards

New facility

– “Old” regulatory relief does not apply

– Must apply for/justify new relief

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The Regulators

IL Pollution Control Board (IPCB)

– Writes environmental law

– Arbitrates contested issues

IL EPA

– Administers/enforces environmental law

– Writes/issues NPDES permit

– Cannot write a permit that IL law does not allow for

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The Stakeholders

Owner, Illinois-American Water Company

Regulators, IEPA, IPCB

Local Interest Groups (economic, aesthetic)

Environmental groups (local, state, national)

Customers

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The Study (SSIS)

Site Specific Impact Study

ENSR environmental engineers

Consider all regulatory tests (BPJ,BPT, BCT)

Compare residual management control technologies

Two Alternatives

– Lagoons, dewatering, landfilling

– Direct discharge

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The comparisonLagoon & Landfill

– $7.4 million capital costs, $0.42 million annual O&M

– Avg 4 trucks/day on Scenic Route 3

– 8,800 yd3/yr of landfill space

– Local Opposition

Direct Discharge

–No water quality impacts

–No landfill depletion

–No aesthetic impacts on area

–No cost

–No brainer (?)

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The Impacts

SSIS findings:

– TSS impact insignificant

– 91% of solids originate from river

– Metals nil (note reliance on PAS)

– No harm to aquatic life

– No unnatural buildup

– Mussel survey no problems

IEPA – nope!

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The Solution

Partnership with Great Rivers Land Trust (GRLT)

– Piasa Creek Watershed Plan

– Sustainable reduction in overall sediment loading to the Mississippi River

– IL-AWC contribution of $4.15 million over 10-year period

– Minimum 2:1 reduction (6600 ton/year)

Regulatory Approval

– IEPA, IPCB

– Adjusted Standard AS 99-6 written into IL law

– Terms of AS 99-6 and contract w/GRLT written into special conditions of NPDES permit

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Great Rivers Land Trust

Local Non-Profit Organization

Primary Mission:

– Preservation of scenic and ecologically valuable land along the Alton Lake Heritage Corridor, 20,000 acres

– Land preservation efforts accomplished through easements and land acquisitions

– Goal: 5,000 to 10,000 acres protected in next 10 years

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Piasa Creek Watershed Plan

Primary Objective:

– “To enhance and restore the natural non-point source pollutant mitigation functions of the watershed”

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Piasa Creek Watershed

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Watershed Major Problem Areas

Planning and Regulation

Sewage

Stormwater Runoff and Erosion

– Uncontrolled urbanization

– Sediment

– Road salts, fertilizers, pesticides

– Septic tank effluent

– Other pollutants

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Meeting the Objective

Land acquisition and conservation easements

Grassed waterways

Filter strips

Storm water detention basins

Terraces

Grade control structures

Stream bank stabilization

Educational programs (communities, schools, landowners)

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Project Timeline

Year 1 (2001): Update 1995 plan, identify potential sediment reduction sites, contact landowners.

Years 2-5: Install sediment control structures.

Year 6: IEPA review.

Years 6-10: Installation of sediment control structures continues. Achieve 2:1 suspended solids reduction.

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Project Metrics

Goal 6600 tons/year sediment reduction

Use accepted sediment control practices

Sediment savings estimated in partnership with SWCD

Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation

Resource inventory worksheets for each project

Projected year-end 2003: 2613 tons/year

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Streambank Erosion

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Streambank Stabilization

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Storm water basins

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Erosion control

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Boy Scout Lake

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The Benefits

Avoid capital and O&M $ for lagooning, landfilling

Rate impact on customer reduced

No sludge hauling trucks along the Great River Road

Save landfill space

Reduced net sediment load to the river

Precedent/model for other creative beneficial partnerships

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Questions?

Brent Gregory, Director Water QualityIllinois-American Water Company

[email protected]