Water Quality Issues for the Construction and Building Industry in 2014

A Presentation for the

Orange County Business CouncilJanuary 14, 2014

Mark Grey, Ph.D., Technical DirectorConstruction Industry Coalition on Water Quality

Building Industry Association of Southern California

Remarks Today On: • Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System

(MS4) permit renewal for North Orange Co.• Observations on permit implementation and

experiences over past 5 years, and• Land use and building adaptation to the latest

generation of MS4 permits in California• Collaborative efforts (public-private) for

permit compliance and infrastructure planning– MS4 LID Alternative Compliance Program

• Stormwater program compliance funding

Latest Generation of Phase 1 MS4 Permits in southern California

Location Regional Board Date Adopted or Proposed

North Orange County Santa Ana 6/3/2009San Francisco Bay Area San Francisco Bay 10/14/2009South Orange County San Diego 12/16/2009Western Riverside County Santa Ana 1/29/2010San Bernardino County Santa Ana 1/29/2010Ventura County Los Angeles 7/8/2010Southern Riverside County San Diego 10/13/2010Los Angeles County Los Angeles 11/8/2012San Diego Regional San Diego 5/9/2013

Additional Stormwater Permitting Activity by State Water Resources Control Board

Permitting ActionDate Adopted or

ProposedPhase II MS4 Permit February 5, 2013

Caltrans MS4 Permit September 19, 2012

Ocean Plan ASBS Discharge Exceptions March 20, 2012Industrial General Permit 2014?

Construction General Permit 2014?

Low Impact Development principles incorporated into MS4 permits in California

• Mimic Predevelopment Hydrology– Use natural features– Use site design– Use source controls– Use distributed controls, not

centralized• Use Integrated Water

Resources Management– Treating stormwater as a

resource at all scales– Improving water quality and

augmenting water supplies regionally, watershed-wide

Stormwater LID Best Practices Categories

Infiltration Harvest and Use Evaporative Biofilter/Biotreat$-$$ $$$ $$$$ $$

Grading Rain Barrels Green Roof Bioretention

Swale Cisterns Brown Roof Biofiltration

Trench Tanks Blue Roof Planter BoxBasin Canopy Intercept Constr. Wetland

Drywell Uses: Soil Amendment Vegetated Swale

Gallery IrrigationToilet Flushing

Vehicle WashingEvaporative CoolingIndustrial Process

Dilution WaterOther Non-Potable

Runoff Dispersion Vegetated Strip

French Drain Proprietary Device

Permeables:--Asphalt

--Concrete--Pavers

Biotreatment may use underdrains or overdrains

What is the San Diego Regional Permit Adopted in 2013 Telling Us About North

Orange County Revisions in 2014?• Watershed-based construct for water quality

compliance (planning and monitoring programs)• A nod to more robust consideration of regional

solutions through LID BMP Alternative Compliance• Push for zero discharge of stormwater (retention) as

the engineering standard; minimize use of biofiltration to meet the retention standard

• Push to remove all hydromodification control (stream protection) exemptions for development

Observations and lessons from the existing North Orange Co. MS4 permit

• OCPW reports more than 10,000 acres of property developed in the past 5 years instrumented with LID stormwater BMPs

• Use takes several forms, mostly infiltration and biofiltration BMPs installed on-site

• Generally smooth transition by development interests to adopt and use LID principles

• Water conservation efforts not overlooked in achieving clean beaches/compliance

MS4 permits allow Alternative Compliance Programs for Qualifying Projects

• Permits require that the design capture volume is managed on-site using LID BMPs

• The volume of runoff NOT managed in LID BMPs must be “mitigated” or “offset”

• Options are identified in MS4 permits:– “Mitigate” the volume difference at an

off-site location– Pay a fee equivalent to managing runoff

from the project location using LID BMPs– Credit trading systems– Watershed planning elements/instruments

LID BMP Installation Alternative Compliance Program Development

Basis: Phase I MS4 water quality permit conditions for complianceBackdrop: Increase water supply reliability in S. Calif. and emphasis on

creating multi-benefit water conservation projects• Evaluating and selecting projects and options• Identifying and creating framework elements• Identifying appropriate programs for the region• Establishing “equivalence” of alternative compliance options with on-site

compliance• Creating participation options and agreements among parties:

– Private development interests– Regional water quality and flood control agencies– Water and wastewater districts

Alternative Compliance Framework Elements

Needs and Opportunity AnalysisOff-site and Regional BMP Framework Credit Trading System FrameworkRegulatory and Legal BasisCore Economic and Development DataResource Expectations for ProgramExperiences from Other Programs

Off-site, Regional, and Credit Trading Framework: Some Options

1. Developer mitigates off-site2. Developer purchases credits through private

seller with retention capacity3. Reimbursement agreement 4. Negotiated mitigation agreement (variations)5. Community facility district

Content taken from Arne Anselm/Rebecca Winer-Skonovd, CASQA Conference 2012;Alternative Compliance in Ventura County: Viable Options and Lessons Learned

What are examples of off-site project alternatives for water quality compliance?

• Green street adjacent or surrounding project

• Green streets near project within catchment

• Facility retrofits adjacent/near project– Parking Areas– Parks

• Streets/Retrofits outside catchment of project

• Regional infiltration within/outside project watershed

CASQA 2012 BMP of the YearSlide Source: City of Los Angeles

Agencies Performing Some Degree of Stormwater Capture in S. California

AgenciesOrange County Water District Orange County Public Works

LA County Flood Control/Public Works San Bernardino Flood Control District

LA Dept of Water and Power Chino Basin Water Conservation District

City of Los Angeles San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District

Central Basin Municipal Water District Western Municipal Water District

Inland Empire Utilities Agency Eastern Municipal Water District

San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District

Riverside County Flood Control and Water Conservation District

Water Replenishment District of Southern California

City of Riverside

Irvine Ranch Water District United Water Conservation District

Establishing Equivalency for Alternative Compliance Programs

Core Economic Data• Cost of installation• Cost of long term O&M• Benefits derived from

installation of LID BMPs– Water Quality– Water Supply– Environmental– Property – Health

Resource Expectations• Appears highly variable

depending upon location and development types

• Ultra urban, urban, and suburban development patterns and different needs & opportunities create variation

• Orange County development records offer some guidance on need

• Pilot projects needed in opportune locations

Case Study Analysis of On-site Retention LID BMPs Installation and 20-year O&M Per Gallon Managed

Installation and 20-year O&M Cost hierarchy normalized per gallon:

Infiltration < Infiltration Pavers ≤ Biofiltration < Harvest and Use Cisterns < Green Roof

LID BMPs Evaluated Office

ComplexResidential

Single Family

SmallUrban Infill

Retail Big Box

Large Urban

Mixed UseCost Per Gallon

Infiltration Basin $4 $2 --- $1 ---Infiltration Paver $6 $3 $18 $3 $9Cistern: outdoor $12 $7 --- $5 ---Cistern: outdoor & indoor $15 --- $49 --- $11

Green Roof $103 $38 $126 $61 $84Biofiltration $6 $4 $21 $2 $9

Equivalent Volume Retention Costs

Approximate Area (RUNOFF: GALLONS)

<0.5 Ac5,000

1-2 Ac25,000

3-4 Ac50,000

6-8 Ac100,000

> 10 Ac250,000

BMP TYPE $/GAL Design Capture Volume (GAL) Retention Range Equivalent Cost

Infl. Basin 2 $10,000 $50,000 $100,000 $200,000 $500,000

Infl. Paver 5 $25,000 $125,000 $250,000 $500,000 $1,250,000

Biofiltration 6 $30,000 $150,000 $300,000 $600,000 $1,500,000

Cistern 13 $65,000 $325,000 $650,000 $1,300,000 $3,250,000

Green Roof 38 $190,000 $950,000 $1,900,000 $3,800,000 $9,500,000

Cost Data from LID BMP Economic Analysis for Orange County, CA, 2012

Approved Water Quality Management Plans in Orange County 2007-2012

Simple example of revenue potential using 2011-2012 WQMP data

Assumptions (Very Rough)• 10% of total acres covered by

WQMPs in 2011-12 can’t comply on-site (total acres =9,114)

• 10% = 911 acres• Assuming 19,000 gallons of

design capture volume per acre using rational method (90% imperviousness)

• Results in 17.3 M Gallons of runoff

Potential Revenue• (17.3 M Gal.) x ($2/ Gal.)

using infiltration basin = $34.6 Million

• Appears unrealistically high• What about 1% of sites not

able to comply on-site?• (91 Acres) x (19,000 gallons

per acre) x ($2/Gal.) using infiltration basin = $3.46 Million

Alternative Compliance Framework;Perspective and Distinctions Among Parties

Perspective• Obtaining water quality

approvals is paramount to private development

• Meeting MS4 permit requirements is paramount for principal and co-permittees

• Water districts and related agencies hold water supply reliability interests paramount

Distinctions and Variations• MS4 permit requirements drive compliance

options• On-site preferred, then off-site allowed• Where infiltration is feasible, then regional

projects may represent best opportunity to achieve compliance and augment ground water supply

• Projects could be multi-agency, multi-benefit or between private interests (credit trading, for example)

• Where infiltration is infeasible or won’t augment ground water supply, then other types of off-site projects apply

• Projects are likely to be local, where needs exist, such as green streets or park and playground improvements or retrofits of existing development

Economic Analysis Relating to Integrated Water Resource Planning

Questions:• Where will suitability of capturing

stormwater align with expected property development and with existing infrastructure plans by cities and the counties?

• Where and what benefits will be derived by implementing LID BMPs, and at what scale?

• What is the universe of benefits to consider? How will benefits be calculated? What are the acceptable methods? Who will make the calculations?

Goals:

• Make the methods and calculation procedures clear and transparent

• Use case studies to test the framework, and produce the results; augment with work of the past two years in SC

• Produce a clear understanding of benefits and costs of installing LID BMPs at relevant scales of development

Using Case Study Analysis Methods to Establish Alternative Compliance Program Framework

Orange Co. Case Study Analysis

• Apply optimization analysis and tools

• Determine and apply benefit-cost analysis framework

• Develop alternative compliance framework, including credit trading and in-lieu options using development scenarios

Orange County-Santa Ana RegionAlternative Compliance Framework

• Perform similar analysis done in Orange County specific to Santa Ana region

• Assist in developing pilot projects to test Alternative Compliance Framework

• Create a clear, simple, pathway for water quality compliance given local needs within a single Regional Board territory

Stormwater Program Financing

Funding Needs:

• Water Quality Permit Compliance

• Total Maximum Daily Load Requirements– Nutrients and Metals– Bacteria

• Retrofitting Existing Infrastructure with “Green” Infrastructure

• Water Supply Augmentation

Challenges:

• Mechanisms to raise revenue for meeting compliance obligations– Fees (voter approval)– Taxes (voter approval)– Product charges

• Public Understanding of Need

• Competing Priorities

THANK YOU Orange County Business Council!

Water Quality Issues for the Construction and Building Industry in 2014

Contact:Mark Grey, Ph.D.

mgrey@biasc.org

909-525-0623