Workshop Details New Water Quality Regulations And Compliance Strategies

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Water quality issues impact almost everyone and new federal government regulations take effect next year that will impose new constraints on municipalities. To help officials cope with these new regulations, University of Arkansas civil engineers Findlay Edwards and Steve Burian will host workshops in Fayetteville and Little Rock.

Workshops will be held Feb. 4 and 5 at the U of A Engineering Research Center in Fayetteville and Feb. 6 and 7 at the Arkansas Farm Bureau Office in Little Rock. Seating at both workshops is limited to 45 participants. Participants receive credit for 14 Professional Development Hours. Reservations can be made by contacting Melpha Speaks at (501) 575-5866.

"The new Phase II regulations are of great concern to city and county engineers, contractors, consulting engineers and developers," said Edwards. "They impose additional requirements for contractors and developers during construction and new reporting requirements for government entities."

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, regulations affecting small municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s) will go into effect Dec. 9, 2003, but MS4s serving less than 10,000 people can apply for phased-in coverage. These regulations also apply to small construction activities, which are defined as activities that disturb between one and five acres of land.

"In northwest Arkansas, for example, this law will affect the all the contiguous towns, the University of Arkansas, Washington County, Benton County, the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department, all construction that clears one acre or more, and many more political entities," Edwards explained. "Because many of the political entities overlap or directly impact their neighbors, it will be important that all of these political entities work together."

As defined by this law, "small urbanized areas" are areas with a population of 50,000 or more, such as Jonesboro, Fort Smith, Pine Bluff, and North Little Rock, according to Edwards. This includes all towns of less than 50,000 that are contiguous and have a combined population of 50,000 or greater, as well as many other political entities, including county governments, special districts and state departments.

The workshops will cover the new best management practices (BMPs) for runoff, erosion and sediment control as well as installation, inspection and operation of BMPs. Presenters will also address the new monitoring requirements for construction sites. In addition to Edwards and Burian, the workshop will include presentations by Eric Dunn from the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality Stormwater Section and Michael V. Harding, director of the San Diego State University Soil Erosion Research Laboratory.

"We are particularly pleased to have Michael Harding at our workshop," said Edwards. "He is one of the leading technical experts in the erosion control industry and highly respected both nationally and internationally."

Harding has more than 25 years experience in erosion and sediment control and specializes in evaluation, development and application of cost-effective erosion control materials and techniques. A Certified Professional Erosion and Sediment Control specialist (CPESC), he has served three terms at the president of the International Erosion Control Association and is currently chairman of the Soil and Water Conservation Society CPESC Ethics Committee.

He won the Outstanding Achievement Award for Applied Innovation for his innovative development of constructed wetlands and wildlife habitat for cost-effective compliance with water quality regulations. In addition to working with many municipalities in the United States, he has worked on projects in British Columbia, Indonesia, Taiwan, Australia and Spain.