Cape officials to host meeting on water pollution today

Cape Girardeau city staff will distribute information and answer questions about steps to control water pollution at a public meeting today.

The open-house-style meeting is scheduled from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Osage Centre.

City officials said the meeting will be of interest to contractors, developers and residents.

Stan Polivick, assistant director of public works, said the meeting will not be a forum for discussion of stormwater drainage and flooding issues. It will be limited to water pollution and the regulatory requirements to address it.

The scheduled meeting is part of the city’s public outreach effort, which is required under a state and federal permitting system, Polivick said.

Cape Girardeau is one of 170 Missouri communities, population 10,000 or larger, that must meet regulatory requirements stemming from the Environmental Protection Agency and the federal Clean Water Act of 1972.

“This is part of the overall goal of water-pollution control,” Polivick said.

In 1999, cities over 100,000 population had to begin meeting requirements for separate handling of stormwater discharge. In 2003, the regulation was extended to all cities nationwide with populations of 10,000 or more, Polivick said.

The city received its first stormwater permit from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources in 2003. It was renewed in 2008. The city still is operating under that five-year permit because new permits have yet to be issued, he said.

“The public meeting has nothing to do with the permit renewal,” Polivick said, adding the city expects to receive a renewed permit later this year.

But federal and state regulations require Cape Girardeau and other cities to address “minimum controls,” he said.

Those controls include: public education and outreach, public involvement and participation, illicit-discharge detection, construction-site stormwater runoff control, post-construction stormwater management for developments and redevelopments and pollution prevention.

According to the city’s blog, typical activities that can cause stormwater pollution include:

• Washing cars with non-biodegradable detergent and chemicals and allowing the water to run down the street drain.
• Performing vehicle maintenance on the street and allowing oil and substances to flow into the street drain.
• Disposing of garden waste in drains or accumulating leaves and yard clippings in gutters or driveways.
• Dropping litter where it can be washed down outdoor drains during a rain.
• Hosing dirt, soil and other waste from a driveway or sidewalk into a street drain.
• Overfertilizing green spaces.

Polivick said according to federal and state regulators, residents should refrain from such activities

But he said Cape Girardeau does not have “water-pollution police” and won’t be ticketing residents who engage in such activities. Polivick said he doesn’t believe the federal government would engage in such enforcement actions in the future.

Polivick said the goal is to educate the public on ways to keep from polluting rivers and streams.

The city keeps tabs on construction projects. The city requires contractors and developers to control stormwater runoff at construction sites and manage stormwater post-construction, Polivick said.

Storms can wash dirt from construction sites into rivers and streams, causing a buildup of sediment that harms plant and animal life, Polivick said. Such sediment poses a challenge for fish.

“It is a little bit like us trying to breathe in a desert storm,” he said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3641

Pertinent address:

1625 N. Kingshighway, Cape Girardeau, Mo.