HomeMy WebLinkAboutINS-15-038 - 2014 Stormwater Management Audit Report Staff Rport
I r rc'.�► t .R Infrastructure Services Department wmkitchener.ca
REPORT TO: Community & Infrastructure Services Committee
DATE OF MEETING: Monday May 25, 2015
SUBMITTED BY: Hans Gross, P.Eng., Director of Engineering
(519-741-2200 x 7410)
PREPARED BY: Leah Walter, C.E.T., P.Eng., Design & Construction Project
Manager(519-741-2200 x 7148)
Nick Gollan, C.E.T., Manager, Stormwater Utility
(519-741-2200 x 7422)
WARD(S) INVOLVED: All
DATE OF REPORT: May 20, 2015
REPORT NO.: INS-15-038
SUBJECT: 2014 SWM Audit Report
RECOMMENDATION:
That the 2014 Stormwater Audit Technical Memorandum be endorsed by Council.
BACKGROUND:
In 1999, the City of Kitchener commenced a study to prepare a Stormwater
Management (SWM) Policy, which would assess existing approaches to stormwater
management, investigate options for modifying the current approach and create a City-
wide policy for SWM. The final report of the SWM Policy was approved at Council on
December 10, 2001 and subsequently filed as a Schedule 'B' Environmental
Assessment under the MEA Class EA.
As part of the SWM Policy, an annual monitoring program is to be completed each year.
The staff report summarizes the monitoring program and practices carried out to date in
each of the categories included in the City-wide plan, namely.
• The development or Site Plan applications for the year associated with Cash-In-Lieu
(CiL) fees collected.
• The SWM facilities (SWMF) that have been constructed (or are in the process of
being constructed) over the last year. This includes new ponds, retrofitting of existing
SWM facilities and the installation of oil/grit separator units (OGS) funded by CiL.
• Stream rehabilitation works that have been carried out or are underway.
A steering committee made up of the City of Kitchener, Grand River Conservation
Authority (GRCA), the Region of Waterloo and the City's consultant, AECOM has
***This information is available in accessible formats upon request. ***
Please call 519-741-2345 or TTY 1-866-969-9994 for assistance.
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completed the 2014 annual stormwater management monitoring program. This report
provides details on the results of the monitoring and provides specific recommendations
for the future.
REPORT:
This report focuses on the following areas:
a) Cash-in-Lieu Fee and work completed with SWM redevelopment/infill (CiL) charge
funds
b) SWMF retrofit program
c) Stream rehabilitation works
d) SWM monitoring program recommendations for 2014
e) SWM Policy Review
a) Cash-in-Lieu Fee:
The SWM Redevelopment/Infill (CiL) charge applies to all redevelopment and infill sites
that cannot connect to existing quality control facilities and do not directly discharge
stormwater into a watercourse untreated. It is to be used toward the construction of
SWM facilities, including OGS.
In 2009 Annual Audit Report the Cash-in-Lieu fee have been calculated to recognize the
change in percent impervious land cover for infill/redevelopment areas or additionally
land use costs the City would incur in acquiring land for SWM development. The
analysis produced an average Cash-in-Lieu cost fee of$75,350/ha in 2009 dollars.
It was recommended that the cash-in-lieu fee be increased as per land cost analysis but
should not go above that which would deter the implementation of policy objectives
regarding preference for centralized SWM facilities and reduced privately owned onsite
controls.
The purpose of the annual audit report is to indicate whether or not the SWM measures
provide the necessary water quantity control and water quality treatment of stormwater
resulting from infill/redevelopment sites. In 2014, the City collected $232,470 from CiL
charges from 3.8 ha of development.
The 2014 cash-in-lieu fee was $60,656/ha made effective in January 1 2014. As ratified
by Council SWM fees increased to $75,820.00/ha on January 1 2015 based on inflation
and actual costs of stormwater management facilities. A flat fee of 10% of the current
CIL SWM charge ($7,582.00/ha) is to be charged for all sites less than 0.1 ha.
b) SWMF Retrofit Program:
The SWM Policy 2001 prioritized SWMF retrofit opportunities. There were no retrofits to
SWMFs performed in 2014, however, 2 oil-grit separators were installed to treat 7.2 ha
of drainage area at a cost of $97,000. This was a net gain of 3.2 ha in treated area
versus the area that the fee was collected for.ln addition, signage was installed at all
SWMFs to inform the public they are not intended for recreational use and to provide a
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unique identification number that the public could reference when reporting dumping or
other deficiencies with the infrastructure for a more efficient response time by
Operations staff.
c) Stream Rehabilitation works:
Filsinger Park Reach 2 Stream Naturalization Project was completed in 2014. The
project included the removal of 1.3 km of concrete channel which was replaced with a
natural channel to better handle urban runoff and reduce sediment entering Victoria
Park Lake. The approved tender price was $2.8 Million with HST.
d) SWM Monitoring Program Recommendations for 2015:
A number of actions were identified in the 2014 monitoring program to further the
comprehensiveness of stormwater management in the City of Kitchener and guide the
future stormwater management and development policy. A full copy of the monitoring
report can be found in Appendix A. Key recommendations include-
1. Establishment of (2) flow proportionate sampling site in 2015. Once completed,
subsequent years of water quality monitoring can be limited to dry weather grab
sampling and biological monitoring, resulting in more efficient use of consultant
and staff time.
2. Monitoring of Balzer Creek and Hidden Valley Creek to be continued in 2015.
Monitoring in these creeks was added in 2014 to provide baseline water quality
information for additional studies being undertaken in 2014 and 2015.
Continued monitoring of these sites will provide baseline conditions prior to any
construction taking place in these watercourses. Both watercourses have been
identified as `poor performers' on the 2014 report.
3. Monitoring of SWM Facilities: As part of the enhanced monitoring at SWMFs,
sampling for total suspended solids was conducted to determine the removal
efficiencies of existing facilities and determine if they are functioning as they
were designed. Initial sampling results showed 74 % of the ponds sampled
returned positive removal efficiency and 27% returned a negative efficiency
indicating that the TSS concentration in outlet sample was higher than the inlet
sample. The average positive removal efficiency is 59%. A second set of
samples were collected in April 2015, results are included in the final report.
4. Sampling Locations and Procedures: Recommended flow proportionate and
non-flow proportionate water quality sampling locations for 2014 were selected
and updated based on the 2013 SWM Audit recommendations by Aquafor
Beech Ltd.
e) SWM Policy Review
The policy review was completed and a number of gaps and inconsistencies with
current industry practices have been identified. Essentially, stormwater management
practices and relevant legislation has evolved significantly since the creation of the
existing policy in 2001. Given advancements in the industry as well as the creation of
the stormwater utility in 2010, it was appropriate to initiate the development of a
Comprehensive Stormwater Management (CSWM-MP) Master Plan. In order to replace
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the existing policy a Schedule B Municipal Class Environmental Assessment is
required. A Comprehensive SWM Master Plan will serve as a decision support tool, a
methodology for the prioritization of works, a means to estimate future SWM
requirements and costs and a transparent community process by which the City
identifies and implements works. The CSWM-MP is currently underway.
PUBLIC CONSULTATION:
On May 21, 2015 the 2014 monitoring results were presented to the Environmental
Committee. A copy of the draft monitoring technical memorandum was made available
to committee members on May 7, 2015.
ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN:
Community Priority - Environment
"Continue to show leadership in the development of an environmentally sustainable
community." The City continues to ensure effective implementation of the stormwater
management facilities in a sustainable and optimized manner in order to protect the
environment and source water.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:
The SWM Redevelopment/Infill fee (Cash-in-Lieu) contributions in 2014 were
$232,470.21. Funds are being deposited into account 57500075 SWM CASH IN LIEU.
* The reporting cycle for the 2014 SWM monitoring program is January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT:
Copies of the final documents have been forwarded to members of the Steering Committee
(City of Kitchener, GRCA and the Region of Waterloo). A final copy of the report is available for
review in the Office of the Mayor and Council.
This report has been posted to the City's website with the agenda in advance of the
council / committee meeting.
CONCLUSION:
2014 was the 13th year that the City's Stormwater Management Policy 1-1135 has been in effect.
The results from the 2014 SWM Audit Monitoring Program are provided in the Technical
Memorandum.
ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Dev Tyagi, Deputy CAO, Infrastructure Services Department
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