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OKI GROUNDWATER COMMITTEE

March 23, 2011 - 10:00 A.M. OKI Board Room

720 East Pete Rose Way (at the corner of Eggleston Avenue)*

AGENDA

1. Welcome/Introductions

2. Announcements

3. Update on Local Groundwater Management Efforts

Frank Bell, Mike Ekberg, Mark Koch, Bill Gollnitz, Tim McLelland

4. OKI Staff Updates

5. Ohio’s Balanced Growth Initiative and What It Means for Source Water Kirby Date, Cleveland State University 6. Other Business

ADJOURNMENT

** SEE the MAP and DIRECTIONS on the REVERSE HARD COPY (or in separate attachment to email)

Ohio Balanced Growth

Program

Overview – Watershed Planning

and Best Local Land Use

Practices Kirby Date, AICP, Cleveland State University

balancedgrowth.ohio.gov

Balanced Growth in Ohio

• Linking Land Use and Water Resources

• Planning Framework

– Document

– Projects

– Planning Process

• Best Local Land Use Practices

- Recommendations for local government

- Case Studies

- Statewide Program


Land Use & Lake Erie

• Lake Erie Protection & Restoration Plan

– 2000

– Outlined serious land use problems that

diminish the health of the lake, and limit its

benefits to the people of Ohio

• Balanced Growth Blue Ribbon Task

Force

– 2002-2004


Balanced Growth Blue Ribbon Task Force

• 2004 – Reported to the Ohio Lake

Erie Commission on how to:

“develop strategies that will balance the protection of Lake Erie with

continued economic growth”


Linking Land Use and Lake Erie

A Planning Framework

Best Local Land Use Practices


Balanced Growth Watershed Planning

• voluntary

• locally led

• incentive-based

• support through alignment of state

policies and programs


Watershed Planning Partnerships

• Piloted in 2006 for 3 years with OWDA $

– Pilot Watersheds

• Chagrin River (Chagrin River Watershed Partners)

• Chippewa Creek (Cuyahoga River Community Planning Organization)

• Swan Creek (Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments)

• Upper West Branch of Rocky River (Medina SWCD)

– It was a test: Will it work?

– All four of the initial projects received full state

endorsement by 9/09: Yes, it can work.


State of Ohio Partners

Ohio Lake Erie Commission

Dept of Agriculture

Dept of Development

Dept of Health

Dept of Natural Resources

Dept of Transportation

Environmental Protection

Agency

Ohio Water Resources

Council

Office of the Governor

Public Works Commission

Public Utilities Commission

Ohio Water Development

Authority


Not pictured: Big Creek (Cuyahoga)


Priority Conservation Area

• Locally designated areas targeted for protection and restoration

• Critically important ecological, recreational, heritage,

agricultural, and public access areas


Priority Development Area

• Locally designated areas targeted for development or redevelopment

• Maximize development potential and efficient use of infrastructure

• Promote revitalization of existing urban areas


Priority Agricultural Area

• Locally designated areas targeted for agriculture

• Protect critical farmland and efficiently use infrastructure

• Optional designation based on local desire


Watersheds with low or moderate sensitivity to hydrodynamic changes from development.

Currently developed.

Within 500 feet of major interchange/intersection.

Served/planned to be served by sanitary sewer.

Zoned for high density land use, commercial, or retail.

Impervious cover

Greater than 20% and zoning indicates future development.

Greater than 30%

Groundwater pollution potential data shows low potential for pollution.

Example: PDA Criteria


Priority Conservation Areas: Areas for open

space protection & conservation development

Designate areas for conservation development

Fee simple or conservation easements


Watersheds with high or moderate sensitivity to hydrodynamic changes from development.

Wetlands and riparian areas.

Current land use is conservation or passive recreation.

Threatened or endangered species present.

Areas with high quality cultural resources.

Steep slopes.

High quality streams (CWH, EWH, State Scenic, brook trout).

Groundwater pollution potential data shows moderate to high pollution potential.

Example: PCA Criteria


Review and Endorsement

– sig ifica t local support prior to e dorse e t: 75% of…

• population

• land area

• number of communities


Balanced Growth Strategy

• State activity to update and improve Balanced

Growth Program

• Action Items adopted at June 23, 2010 Lake Erie

Commission meeting

– Draft Balanced Growth Strategy is also available

• Highest priority action: updating and enhancing

the special incentives available to participating

communities with state endorsed Watershed

Balanced Growth Plans


Special Incentives

These 16 programs contain specific special incentives for Balanced Growth participating communities.

Red: extra points on applications

Blue: special consideration in application process

Green: percentage point discounts

There are 17 additional state programs that have been proposed to include special incentives.

• Ohio New Markets Tax Credit

• Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund – Sustainable Reinvestment Pilot Track

• Water Supply Revolving Loan Account

• Clean Water Act Section 319 Implementation Grants

• Water Resource Restoration Sponsor Program (WRRSP) of the Water Pollution Control Loan Fund

• Water Pollution Control Loan Fund

• Ohio Coastal Management Assistance Grant Program

• Land & Water Conservation Fund

• Nature Works

• Watershed Coordinator Grant Program

• Market Development Grant

• Lake Erie Protection Fund

• Section 208 Planning (State Water Quality Management Plan)

• Dam Safety Loan Program

• Fresh Water Loan Group

• Community Assistance Loan Program


Middle East Fork Watershed

• 56 mi2 (35,900 acres)

• 19,181 Residents

• Participating Jurisdictions

•Tate Township

•Monroe Township

•Village of Amelia

•Village of Batavia

•Clermont County

•ODNR, East Fork

State Park

•US Army Corps

•Union Township

•Stonelick Township

•Jackson Township

•Batavia Township

•Pierce Township

•Williamsburg Township

EAST FORK LMR WATERSHED


Balanced Growth Planning

• Watershed Planning Partnership (58 Members) – Board of County Commissioners

– Township Trustees

– Village Mayors

– Township Administrators

– Township Zoning Administrators

– County Planning Commission

– Local Gov’t Depart e ts

– Local Developers

– Local Farmers

– Residents, Large Landowners


Balanced Growth Planning – Spring 2010: Balanced Growth kick-off meeting

– Summer/Fall 2010: Develop criteria to identify Priority Co servatio Area’s,

Priority Agricultural Area’s, Priority Develop e t Area’s

– Fall/Winter 2010: Create draft aps ide tifyi g PCA’s, PDA’s, PAA’s

» Explore potential local incentives

– Winter/Spring 2011: Develop implementation tools/practices (incentives)

– Spring/Summer 2011: Develop Draft Watershed Balanced Growth Plan

– Summer/Fall 2011: Revise plan and submit for local endorsement

– Winter 2011: Submit plan for State endorsement


Balanced Growth Planning

Goals and Objectives

Criteria

Implementation Tools/ Strategies

(Incentives)

Final Plan

Maps


• Contact Information

Clermont Soil and Water Conservation District

P.O. Box 549

Owensville, OH 45160

Ph: 513-732-7075

Paul Berringer

[email protected]

Becky McClatchey

[email protected]

Website: http://clermontswcd.org/balancedgrowth.aspx

mailto:[email protected]





http://clermontswcd.org/balancedgrowth.aspx


Linking Land Use and Lake Erie

A Planning Framework



• Location of development for minimum impact

• Management and control of storm water and

erosion

• Protection of stream and wetland areas so

they can do their job as storm water

infrastructure

• Protection of scenic, historic and natural

resources to help retain our “great place”

Local Governments Can Have a Big

Impact on Watershed and Community

Quality


Top Priority


1. COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING

• Have a comprehensive plan that meets minimum standards; update it every 3 to 5 years


2. COMPACT

DEVELOPMENT

• Apply Compact

Development where

appropriate

Top Priority



Compact Development

• Residential, commercial

or mixed use

• Strong neighborhood

design

• Pedestrian walkability

• Range of housing choices

• Range of transportation

choices


3. STORM WATER MANAGEMENT Adopt storm water management and erosion control regulations for design and construction

Top Priority



4. STREAM AND WETLAND SETBACKS

• Provide as appropriate through floodplain or zoning provisions

Top Priority



Stream And Wetland Protection

• Distance driven, similar to front and side yard set backs

• Improves storm drainage infrastructure function of creeks and waterways, protects property from flooding

• Width determined by drainage area of the sub watershed, or wetland category

• Typical provisions apply (variances, grandfathering, enforcement)


5.CONSERVATION

DEVELOPMENT

• Apply Conservation

Development, with

adequate standards,

where appropriate

Top Priority



Conventional Conservation Development

•40-50% Permanent Open Space

•Quality Open Space

•Resource Protection

•Appropriate Development Intensity


Stream setback in a conservation

development


6. MEADOW

PROTECTION

(NATURAL AREAS

ESTABLISHMENT)

• Allow natural

meadows, succession

under controlled

conditions

Top Priority



Comprehensive Planning

Conservation Development

Compact Development

Transfer of Development Rights

Steep Slope Protection

Historic Preservation

Source Water Protection

Woodland Protection

Access Management

Brownfields Redevelopment

Scenic Protection

Agricultural Protection


11 Guidance Documents


Statewide BLLUP Program 2011+ Year

• State Agency Steering Committee – project oversight

• Broad review of BLLUP documents

• Ohio Regions Strategies – identify local providers and needed support for their missions

• Message and Materials Development – statewide relevance

• Network Development – statewide network of providers and others to provide support, education, training, materials, message

• Ongoing case study, research, and workshop development


Best Local Land Use Practices – Resources

Available

• Web site www.balancedgrowth.ohio.gov

• Best Local Land Use Practices document – issues, guidance, recommendations

• Model and Example regulations

• Education and technical workshops

• Case studies

• DVD for elected officials and business interests

• Ongoing technical assistance

http://www.balancedgrowth.ohio.gov/


Questions: Source Water Protection

• What role does groundwater play in this area?

Residential/business/industry/agriculture?

• How is source water protection handled in local zoning?

• What is the status of local source water protection plans?

• What are the key issues/roadblocks you are facing?

• What would you like to see us recommend to local

governments with regard to source water protection?

• Who else should we talk to?


Ed Hammett

Executive Director

Sandra Kosek-Sills

Environmental Specialist

[email protected]

419.245.2514

Gail Hesse

Administrator

[email protected]

614.644.2146

Kirby Date, AICP


Program Manager

216.687.5477

[email protected]




1

OKI GROUNDWATER COMMITTEE MEETING SUMMARY

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

OKI Board Room – 10:00 a.m.

Attendees:

Bruce Whitteberry, Chair, Greater Cincinnati Water Works Jack Thornsberry, Butler County Water & Sewer Department Frank Bell, Village of Indian Hill John Bui, City oh Hamilton Dave Combs, City of Trenton Dave Crouch, City of Fairfield Kirby Date, Cleveland State University Frank Divo, Southwestern Ohio Water Company Mike Ekberg, Miami Conservancy Carl Gatton, Warren County Water and Sewer Department William Gollnitz, Tetra Tech/EarthWorks Ralph Johanson, GRW Engineers, Inc Brad King, Warren County Public Health Mike Lippert, City of Wyoming Kevin McIntyre, Village Felcity Tim McLelland, Hamilton to New Baltimore Groundwater Consortium Matt Newman, City of Milford Water Department Tim Neyer, Clermont County Water Resources Department Norma Pennock, Southwest Regional Water District Greg Petredis, City of Hamilton Bruce Pletsch, Miami Conservancy Richard Renneker, Committee Member Scott Riegert, Parsons Jeff Schick, Leggette, Brashear & Graham, Inc. Clifford Shrive, Stantec David Weihrauch, City of Oxford OKI Staff

Gayle Foster, Bruce Koehler, Robert Lakeberg, Jane Wittke Welcome and Introductions

Bruce Whitteberry called the meeting to order at 10:07 a.m. and those attending introduced themselves. He announced the date for the next meeting would be May 25 or June 8.

Local Groundwater Management Updates

Frank Bell from the Village of Indian Hill presented information on their water system and upcoming plans. The plant is located in Hamilton County on HWY 126 near Milford. The plant serves three communities: Indian Hill, Madeira and Terrace Park, with 5400 service connections and a population of 15,000. Indian Hill has 9 wells and an ion exchange water treatment plant with a capacity of 6 million gallons per day (MGD) and an average daily demand of 2 MGD. A new chemical feed building enables all the chemicals to be delivered in bulk, which has safety benefits for the operators who no longer have to handle them.

2

The distribution system is comprised of 110 miles of pipeline (ranging from 4-inch pipe to 20-inch pipe) with one elevated tank and one booster station. Storage tanks hold 3.2 million gallons and 95% of water meters are radio read. Indian Hill has several emergency connections for water with Greater Cincinnati Water Works. There is a laboratory onsite and all tests, with the exception of bacterial tests, are performed in- house. Future projects will include inspection of the underground storage tanks in the spring and the approval of a source water protection plan. Two wells will be rehabilitated and there will be an upgrade on the SCADA System. Indian Hill is also participating in a Power Share Program with Duke Energy. The Power Share Program allows Duke Energy to tap into the plant’s electricity during emergency episodes or extreme peaks, while the plant could work from a backup generator for up to eight hours. For participating in the program, Duke compensates Indian Hill $5,000 a year.

Mike Ekberg of the Miami Conservancy District (MCD) shared new features on the www.miamiconservancy.org website. The new features provide more water quantity and water quality data in real time. Mike demonstrated the Preserve Our Water webpage which shows water quality monitoring sites in the Great Miami basin, along with parameters being monitored and data from the sites. The water data includes U.S. Geological Survey real-time data links to the USGS stream gauging network website. The Groundwater Levels link webpage provides recently measured groundwater elevation data collected from MCD observation wells. The Groundwater Quality section provides recently measured and historical groundwater chemistry data collected from MCD monitoring wells. Real-time test results from MCD monitoring wells can be found in the Real-time Groundwater Quality section. Trends in water levels can also be found in real-time data form on the same section. MCD partnered with the Hamilton to New Baltimore Groundwater Consortium to conduct sampling for organic compounds in the Great Miami River and the headwater streams. They also sampled some monitoring wells, production wells, and two wastewater outfalls. The outcomes of testing, which included testing for pharmaceuticals, will be published in a report that will be released later this year. Mike also emphasized that MCD recently released a Request for Proposals for local source water protection projects, and is particularly interested in such projects for central to western Hamilton County. Mike reported that MCD typically funds these projects at levels from $10,000-$50,000. Bill Gollnitz of Tetra Tech/EarthWorks announced that he is now chairing the American Water Works Association’s Groundwater Committee and would welcome participation from OKI’s Groundwater Committee members. The AWWA committee’s main function is to produce technical materials, and it is now working on updating Manual 21 for Groundwater, with the fourth edition going to print by the end of the year. The committee is also working on a manual on Aquifer Storage and Recovery which is being written by Dr. Fred Bloetscher. One of the issues Bill would like to work on with AWWA is the hydraulic fracturing of Marcellus shale for extracting natural gas, which is affecting surface water and groundwater in Pennsylvania, New York and West Virginia. The frac water contains high quantities of chlorides and bromides that are often disposed of improperly. There will be an AWWA annual meeting in June in Washington D.C. The AWWA Groundwater Committee will meet in Room 125 of the Washington Convention Center on Monday, June 13. If you are planning on going to the conference, you are welcome to attend the committee meeting. If you would like to volunteer you can do so by registering at the website http://www.awwa.org/Membership/Content.cfm?ItemNumber=3427&navItemNumber=1428.

3

Tim McLelland with the Hamilton to New Baltimore Groundwater Consortium reported on the progress of the Miller Coors wetland project. The Consortium worked with Ohio EPA, Representative Derickson and the Butler County Soil and Water Conservation District to make sure the wetlands project would be implemented. The project should start in the early spring. There is an investigation underway of sand and gravel mining in the Great Miami River in Hamilton County, where permits had been issued to a farmer to mine sand and gravel to assist with irrigation on his farm. Unfortunately, Tim observed large trucks from a local mining company hauling sand and gravel in large quantities when farming or irrigation were not taking place back in January. The Consortium is working to get to the bottom of what is going on with the permit, the farmer and the mining company. The Consortium’s well sealing project has been concluded after two years of operation. The Consortium received a grant from the Miami Conservancy District to seal abandoned wells; as a result, 13 wells were sealed, including a variety of hand dug wells that had previously been unrecorded. Tim also announced that the City of Hamilton donated three hundred cases of bottled water to the earthquake relief effort in Japan. He is urging other water systems to follow suit and donate to this much needed effort. The Consortium is working with the Miami University, Hamilton Campus, to drill a well on the campus as a part of a demonstration project for the Children’s Water Festival. The Consortium is also partnering with the Butler County Drug Coalition to set up a pharmaceutical take-back program, so that people can turn in pharmaceuticals safely instead of disposing of them at home. OKI Staff Updates

Gayle Foster reported that contact hour certificates were not available at this meeting due to printing problems. Certificates will be available at the next meeting. Bruce Koehler extended an invitation to Groundwater Committee members to attend the Regional Conservation Council Annual meeting on Monday, April 4, 2011 from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm, to be followed by a catered dinner. Bruce reported that Congressman Chabot will canoe the Mill Creek with the Mill Creek “Yacht Club” on April 18. Jane Wittke summarized OKI’s work on an update to Water Quality Management Plan for Dearborn County, Indiana. She explained that Water Quality Management Plans are required under Section 208 of the federal Clean Water Act. OKI began data collection in February of 2010. The planning process has involved OKI, Dearborn County Government GIS, and the Dearborn County Plan Commission. OKI has also worked with an advisory group representing the county board of commissioners, county council, all the incorporated communities in the county, sewage treatment providers, the health department, the soil and water conservation district, the chamber of commerce, Oxbow, and watershed groups. Jane explained that the plan update describes current water quality problems; identifies management needs and approaches to solving water quality problems; and identifies areas where population trends and anticipated land use changes indicate probable needs for increased wastewater treatment. The plan update will also clarify which wastewater management agencies are designated to provide treatment in which areas. The plan will enable the state of Indiana to comply with federal law in issuing wastewater discharge permits. The plan addresses both nonpoint sources (diffuse runoff from land into water), and point sources that come from a specific point like a wastewater effluent pipe. Dearborn County’s biggest water quality problem is the number of concentrations of failing on-site wastewater treatment systems, such as septic tank-leach field systems, which discharge raw waste that ends up in streams.

4

Ohio’s Balanced Growth Initiative and What It Means for Source Water

Kirby Date, AICP, Cleveland State University presented an overview of the Ohio Balanced Growth Program. The roots of the program date to the 1990’s, when Ohio Lake Erie Commission agencies collaborated on a Lake Erie Protection & Restoration Plan. As a result of this plan, the state convened a Balanced Growth Blue Ribbon Task Force in 2002 to look at how land use policies and strategies could become more effective in sustaining Ohio’s water resources. The state task force included a group of experts representing a wide array of stakeholder groups, who concluded that balanced growth planning will work if it is voluntary, locally led, incentive-based, and supported through alignment of state policies and programs. A partnership between the Ohio Lake Erie Commission and the Ohio Water Resources Council resulted in a pilot program called the Balanced Growth Initiative, begun in 2006 with funding from the Ohio Water Development Authority. This pilot program enabled watershed planning partnerships in four watersheds draining to Lake Erie. The planning partnership leaders included the Chagrin River Watershed Partners, Cuyahoga River Community Planning Organization (for Chippewa Creek), Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments (for Swan Creek), and Medina Soil and Water Conservation District (for the upper west branch of the Rocky River). In each of these watersheds, the planning partnerships were expected to identify local priority conservation areas and local priority development areas; priority agricultural areas could also be identified if desired. The local priority conservation areas were targeted for protection and restoration because of critically important ecological, recreational, heritage, agricultural, and public access areas. The local priority agricultural areas were targeted to protect critical farmland and efficiently use infrastructure. The local priority development areas were targeted for development or redevelopment to maximize development potential and efficient use of infrastructure and to promote revitalization of existing urban areas. The criteria for identifying the priority areas had local buy-in because they were locally developed by the watershed planning partnerships composed of local jurisdictions and stakeholders for both water quality and development. As incentives to participate, the communities involved in balanced growth initiative planning were eligible to receive extra consideration in grant programs administered by the state. Kirby also described best local land use practices as well as resources available through the state’s balanced growth initiative, many of which can be found via www.balancedgrowth.ohio.gov and educational and technical workshops. Kirby then asked the committee to identify their concerns about land use as related to source water protection in Ohio. The group offered a wide variety of input that included issues such as the lack of regulation of geothermal systems, which can affect both surface and groundwater because of the interaction between the two in southwest Ohio’s buried valley aquifer systems. The sheer number and scope of geothermal systems, how they are installed and how the bore holes are sealed were cited as concerns along with thermal changes in the aquifer. Members also mentioned industrial cooling waters, nutrients from septic tanks and agricultural activity, salt storage and the responsible operation and closure of sand and gravel mines. Effective state setback requirements for sand and gravel mines were cited as a need, along with the State of Ohio giving guidance to the managers of state-owned properties about source water protection. Ideally, local governments should implement Phase II storm water regulations in coordination with implementing source water protection. Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 12:10 p.m.

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