City Takes Control of Storm Water Regulations
A National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Phase II court order mandated that area governments, including that of Florence, establish a storm water plan by Sept. 1. The regulations aim to protect waterways from oil, grease, sediment, bacteria and various nutrients like fertilizer and pesticides.
State law prohibits, for example, car washes not connected to a sewer system, said Florence Public Works director Drew Griffin. "You can wash your car at your residence," he said, "but you can't wash your car for hire."
Officials for the City of Florence and Florence County will take over regulations previously enforced by the state's Department of Health and Environmental Control. According to Griffin, noncompliance fees will cost offenders $10,000 a day for each violation. Storm water offenses can each cost a violator $500 daily.
Florence will use its storm water utility to fund the project; the utility charges area residents and businesses a fee based on the hard surface area of their properties. Low-impact development projects can earn as much as 50 percent of their storm water fee credits from the city.
The city's new ordinances also require that researchers conduct traffic studies to learn more about the impact of subdivisions with more than 50 lots or 100 cars and commercial developments covering more than 100,000 sq ft or featuring a transportation terminal.
The ordinances still need to pass a second reading.
Source: South Carolina Now