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memo <br />5 of 6 <br />4. Develop Direct Discharge Elimination Program <br />One of the issues identified by several stakeholders during the development of the GLWMO's <br />third generation Watershed Management Plan is that there are discharges of untreated stormwater <br />runoff from private and public properties that are impacting the WMO's water resources. The <br />current draft of the Watershed Management Plan contains an implementation item that states "In <br />partnership with the cities of Roseville and Shoreview, survey public and private direct <br />discharges to all GLWMO waterbodies and evaluate options for disconnecting, re-routing, and/or <br />pretreating stormwater prior to its discharge to the resource." <br />This program would search out and inspect direct discharges to the GLWMO's water resources. <br />This would be accomplished by surveying streams, rivers and shoreline in the watershed and look <br />for direct discharges. Suspicious discharges would be sampled and investigated. The GLWMO <br />would work with the member communities and private landowners of the discharge to correct the <br />problem. <br />• Conduct direct discharge survey on all of the GLWMO's waterbodies (Owasso, <br />Wabasso, Bennett, Snail, Grass, Judy, Emily, Bennett and Shoreview) to identify city - <br />owned discharges, privately -owned discharges and other discharges (similar to the 2007 <br />discharge survey conducted for Lake Owasso as part of the Use Attainability Analysis). <br />• Review which of the discharges from the 2007 survey have been addressed. Identify <br />successes and failures and discuss the needs of a Direct Discharge Program (or Illicit <br />Discharge Elimination Program) with the member communities. <br />• Develop program that would include: inventorying direct discharges, mapping <br />direct discharges, educating the public, city staff and county staff, and tracking <br />the removal or treatment of direct discharges to the GLWMO's water resources. <br />This program could also include technical assistance to private landowners on <br />Best Management Practices (BMPs) for disconnection or a cost share program to <br />assist in the implementation of BMPs. <br />• Cities to meet with individual landowners to discuss disconnection options. <br />Preliminary cost estimate = $16,000 including the cities time (which would equate to 1/a of the <br />match). <br />5. Seating Abandoned and Unused Water Wells to Protect Groundwater <br />Seek $40,000 in well sealing cost -share dollars to encourage local landowners /water well owners <br />to seal their abandoned and unused water wells. Funding could be utilized watershed -wide or <br />targeted to specific geographic areas /conditions. For example, known areas of groundwater <br />contamination, areas sensitive to contamination, or Wellhead Protection/Drinking Water Supply <br />Areas. <br />A water well sealing cost -share program can also serve as a "gateway" to increase the <br />groundwater resource "IQ" of the general public. That is to say, public awareness of groundwater <br />and its vulnerability to contamination. <br />The average residential water well within GLWMO is 2 to 3 inches in diameter and is between 75 <br />and 150 feet deep. Depending on where the well is located within the property /structure, sealing <br />costs can range from $500 to $1,500, with an average of $1,000. Based on a 1995 well survey <br />conducted by the Ramsey Conservation District, anywhere from 2,000 to 3,000 water wells exist <br />in the GLWMO area. Much of the area was developed prior to city water being supplied and thus <br />properties had wells for potable water. <br />Emmons & Olivier Resources, Inc. <br />651 Hale Ave N, Oakdale, MN 55128 p: 651.770.8448 f: 651.770.2552 www.eorinc.com <br />