Rural stormwater project benefits Lake Huron
People can do more to limit the impact of heavy rainfall and storms on lake water if they have the right tools to understand and manage how runoff acts in a rural landscape, especially in storm events.
That’s why Healthy Lake Huron partners are working to develop a Rural Stormwater Management Model.
One of the key deliverables of the project is the development of new modeling software. Land managers will be able to use this software to better predict the effects of storm events on rural watersheds and the effectiveness of actions designed to manage storm runoff to minimize erosion and improve the quality of waters that flow into Lake Huron.
A project team has been established to develop tools to better understand how storm runoff functions in the rural landscape, determine what kinds of projects will do the most to protect Lake Huron, and where those projects should be located.
In 2012, the project team added or upgraded five water monitoring stations in rural Lake Huron.
Staff members from participating conservation authorities installed the advanced stations in five priority areas: Garvey/Glenn Drain watershed, north of Port Albert; the Bayfield North (North Gullies) watershed, north of Bayfield; the Main Bayfield watershed; the Lambton Shores watershed, near Ipperwash; and the Pine River watershed, south of Kincardine.
“The Rural Stormwater Management Model project is creating new tools that give us more precise and detailed information to better manage stormwater impact in rural areas,” says Project Manager Alec Scott, who works with the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority.
“The new monitoring stations are already providing better data. This is important as we go forward with best management practices and work to control runoff and erosion. We will have a better idea of which projects will work best, the best places to locate those projects, and what size the projects should be.”
The Healthy Lake Huron partners on the project have completed terms of reference, a communications plan, and have formed a project team with expertise in stormwater management and software development.
Ausable Bayfield Conservation, the lead agency in the multi-partner project, is working with Emmons& Olivier Resources, Inc., an engineering and environmental consulting firm that specializes in water resources, watershed planning, and modeling; and Computational Hydraulics International (CHI), a consultant in stormwater management, wastewater and watershed modeling software.
Collaboration key on water-quality project
Federal and provincial ministries, county departments, environmental and public health agencies, and landowners are all working together to reduce the impact storms and runoff can have on water quality in Lake Huron.
Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) is leading the Rural Stormwater Management Model Project water-quality initiative in partnership with Maitland Valley, St. Clair Region, Saugeen Valley, and Grey Sauble conservation authorities and other partners in the Healthy Lake Huron initiative.
The Ontario Ministry of the Environment’s Showcasing Water Innovation Program is providing $700,000 in funding for development of this leading-edge water-quality technology and the contributions from other partners brings the total investment in the project to more than $900,000.
Partners say the cooperative effort to create this new technology will benefit the economy, the environment, and human health.
The Rural Stormwater Management Model will improve water quality in Lake Huron and help create a rural focus for stormwater management that can be applied in rural areas across the province.
For more information on the Rural Stormwater Management Model Project, visit http://www. ruralstormwater.com or http://www.healthylakehuron.ca/ruralstormwater.