Hamilton County Soil and Water Conservation District

Wet Weather Initiative

Meeting Minutes

November 7, 2002

Present: Tom Ryther, Chair; Brian Bohl, HCS&WD; Nancy Ellwood, MCWC; John Hunter, LWVCA; Jim Rozelle, FMSM; Cory Chadwick, HCDOES; Sam George, SMU/MSD; Holly Utrata-Halcomb, HCS&WD; LuAnn Winkle, LMRP; Anne Lyon, Greenacres Foundation

Little Miami River Watershed Action Plan - LuAnn Winkle, Watershed Coordinator, Little Miami River Partnership
The Little Miami River Partnership was established to address water quality issues of the Little Miami River throughout the nine county areas in which the watershed resides. Funding comes from an initial six year declining grant from USEPA and OEPA, membership dues and SWCD funding budgeted by each of the nine counties.

Action plans are being developed for each of the five sub watersheds with initial focus on the upper reaches of the river and major tributaries. TMDLs for the upper sub watersheds have been prepared. A data base has been made of conservation easements and land holdings. Watershed groups are being developed for each sub watershed. Several have developed outreach programs involving local high schools. Further information is available on their website: www.littlemiamiriver.org. The next meeting of the LMRP is December 11, 2002 at 10:00AM at the Cincinnati Nature Center.

Hamilton County Storm Water Steering Committee update - Jim Rozelle
The work of the Executive Committee has been key to moving the planning forward with forty participants and 15 jurisdictions attended the Municipal League meeting where the plan was introduced. Agreement has been reached that the County Engineer will manage the program with active participation by HCSWCD, Public Works, HCGHD, MSD and local jurisdictions. Cincinnati is represented on the Executive Committee by Councilman David Pepper but has not yet made a decision to join the storm water district.

A staff of 5 people will be required to implement Phase II across the county. Costs will be lower for the first two years but will ramp up as the district builds to a full district format. Anticipated costs are $469,000 in year 1, $600,000 in year 2, and $1 million from year 3 on. A countywide district would incur costs of $1.13/parcel in year one and reach $2.60/parcel by year three, well below the $5/parcell limit deemed acceptable in earlier surveys, if all local governments participate.

The general storm water plan is being written by FMSM for the County. CAGIS has completed its estimates of impervious cover. The Executive Committee is looking at the possibility of relating fees to impervious cover vs parcels or some combination of the two. Mapping of current storm water and sanitary facilities throughout the county will be a major requirement during the first five years. HC General Health District help will be sought in mapping home treatment outfalls.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Storm Water Management - Jim Rozelle (see above report)

Data Collection - Ann Lyons and Marty Umberg
The committee has held a first meeting. Assemblage of a comprehensive list of organizations that collect data on County lakes and streams is being considered as a first step.

Education - Holly Utrata-Halcolm
A survey is being prepared for mailing to WWI members to determine interest and commitment to the long-range goals of the Initiative. The next (January30, 2003) meeting of the Wet Weather Initiative will be devoted to discussion and planning. The thought was put forward that if a Storm Water District were created that many of the WWI long-range goals would be accomplished by the utility. WWI will have completed its mission in this respect. Holly proposed that we reevaluate our goals and decide what direction we want to take. It would be desirable to have more participation and representation from the jurisdictions. Another option is to disband or move to a quarterly meeting format. Discussion was deferred until the January meeting.

Signage Sub Committee - Nancy Ellwood and Brian Bohl
The watershed signage project in Colerain Township has been successful in raising watershed awareness. The next meeting of the sub committee will be November 12, 2002 in Nancy's office. Key issues: promotion of BMPS and fundraising to secure additional signs. Private and corporate donations are a potential resource. The proposed Hamilton County Storm Water District has proposed $5000 as one of their permit items.

Nominating Committee
The chair asked the group if a nominating committee should be named to propose officers for next year. It was the consensus of the group that current officers should continue for a second year but that consideration should be given by the committee to creating a position of vice chair.

NEXT MEETING:
The next meeting of the Wet Weather Initiative will be on Thursday, January 30, 2003 at HCDOES, 250 Wm Howard Taft Rd. The meeting will begin at 9:00 AM (rather than the usual 9:30) and extend to noon in order to allow time to complete the planning session.