This information will address many issues including what each resident can do to reduce the pollutant load and what each resident can watch for to identify and stop pollutants entering the system. In addition this task encourages the communities to develop citizen participation in monitoring, protecting and restoring the creeks and streams that can be affected by stormwater pollution. Duluthstreams.org (now LakeSuperiorStreams.org) is just one component of this program. Duluth, Superior, and the Regional Stormwater Protection Team (RSPT) are also participating actively with schools. Watch for increased information on streams and pollution through this site and through other sources in the future.

Over the period 2002-2003 the City of Duluth has held ten meetings with the public to discuss goals and policies that citizens feel are valuable to protecting our waters. Issues discussed range from concerns about flood, to protecting trout streams. The City will continue to hold public meetings to discuss these issues as part of their permit. Superior, WI and other permitees in the region are holding their own meetings but also contribute to larger venues via their participation in the RSPT activities.

Illicit discharges are discharges to the stormwater system that are not normal stormwater. They could consist of anything from a garage drain that flows to a storm drain to an individual dumping oil down a catch basin. Some discharges may be continuous and other one time. The City of Duluth has provided staff with training on how to do the detective work involved in locating these discharges and removing them from the system. As part of its permit the City also must map all its discharges and inspect 20% of the discharges each year to ensure that the system is operating correctly. Find out about what other regional permitees are doing here.

Chester Creek and Oregon Creek examples in Duluth

City of Duluth example:

The City expanded construction controls to ensure that all construction sites disturbing 1 acre of land do not increase pollution to our streams. The City currently has an ordinance in place that is stricter and addresses erosion issues on sites of 10,000 square feet. This ordinance will be expanded to consider on-site housekeeping and provide greater site control and consequences to reduce the environmental risks of construction site caused pollution.

These new controls ensure that stormwater protective measures put in place at the time of development such as detention ponds or bioswales remain functional after construction is complete. Developers must provide plans as to how they will maintain their stormwater control measures.

The City of Duluth is developing a group of Best Management Practices (BMPs) to insure that city staff do not contribute to pollution. These may include a variety of different measures from controls for fertilizers and gardens to street sweeping to actual physical BMPs such as sediment traps. Policies and procedures will be documented and progress measured. Similarly detailed measures have been outlined by the City of Superior, WI and the University of Minnesota Duluth.

In addition to the listed required measures Duluth and other RSPT partners will be addressing issues related to protecting the Outstanding Resource Value Water of Lake Superior and the trout streams. These additional components will strengthen the protection of Duluth's environment and the entire western arm of Lake Superior.

Key to all the components of the new stormwater permit is increased public awareness that they are part of the stormwater system. That our streets, our catch basins, our ditches, our streams, even the flow of water from our driveways can ultimately take pollution to Lake Superior.