Uncontrolled stormwater runoff from land development, commercial and residential rooftops, parking lots, and dense urban development can have significant negative effects upon local and regional water resources. Pollutants, fertilizers, trace metals, debris, and toxins are picked up by the runoff and introduced into the nearest water body. Negative impacts include risks to public health, a decrease in water quality, and an increase in the frequency and duration of harmful algal bloom occurrences.

Solutions

• Incentivize proactive stormwater management practices by offering stormwater fee utility credits.
• Establish a list of credit-eligible stormwater management best practices for property owners.
• Identify high stormwater runoff properties suitable for credit eligible best management practices.

Model Ordinances

Pasco County 110-368
Property owners can mitigate the stormwater utility fee by constructing and maintaining a stormwater facility that will reduce the impact of the property.

Mexico Beach 720
The city requires swale drainage or a drainage easement. All residential properties and properties that are exempted from installing a stormwater management facility shall be graded so that the property drains towards a permanent storm drainage structure, street, or permanent body of water prior to construction of improvements thereon, in order to eliminate flooding due to sudden and heavy rainfall. Development activity that is not exempt will be required to install a stormwater management facility. For aesthetic reasons and to increase shoreline habitat, the shorelines of retention areas will be sinuous.

Charlotte County 89-37
Performance standards for stormwater plans; Stormwater systems must meet at least one of multiple standards listed, such as: prohibiting the channeling of untreated runoff into offsite waterbodies, discharge of runoff from detention ponds not exceeding the calculated pre-development rate, or rate determined by a basin study, intermittent watercourses such as swales and ditches shall be vegetated, etc.

Cape Coral 22-5
Calculation of stormwater user fees; The City of Cape Coral offers a 60% credit/incentive on stormwater user fees for development projects if they follow SFWMD conditions. Non-SFWMD parcels will still have the opportunity to obtain this credit/incentive if they meet a different set of conditions (see the ordinance for list of conditions)

Volusia County 122-162
Stormwater utility fee credits; Developed properties can construct and operate/maintain their own stormwater facilities to reduce the burden on the county. Property owners can also mitigate the stormwater utility fee by constructing and maintaining a stormwater facility that will reduce the impact of the subject property. Free credits may be granted to the utility customer or developed properties when the management facility reduces pollutant load on water quality, reduces the flow of water quantity from the subject property, or both.

Click here for more information on stormwater management.