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City staff brief Gig Harbor council on new NPDES stormwater permit requirements and local priorities
Summary
The city's stormwater coordinator summarized the new 2024–2029 municipal stormwater permit requirements, including mapping, tree-canopy goals, a requirement to manage 2 acres of existing-developed area by 2028, and outreach priorities such as dumpster-lid controls and street sweeping to reduce tire-wear runoff.
The Gig Harbor City Council received a staff presentation on March 10 outlining the city's stormwater program and new requirements under the 2024–2029 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) municipal stormwater permit.
Michael Abood, the city's NPDES coordinator and stormwater program manager, told the council the updated permit adds requirements that will affect project prioritization and operations. Among the notable items he described: mapping of overburdened communities and flow-control facilities; adopting tree canopy goals by 2028; establishing or updating a Stormwater Management Action Plan (SMAP) for priority basins; enhanced outreach and education campaigns (including addressing open dumpster lids); and a new duty to identify and retrofit existing development so the city manages two acres of previously untreated area by 2028.
"We have to adopt tree canopy goals and policies by 2028," Abood said, and the city will review whether its urban forestry management plan meets the new permit language. He described outreach and behavior-change campaigns and said the next permit cycle requires targeting dumpster lids because when rainwater enters uncovered dumpsters it carries contaminants into the storm system. He also noted a need for improved street sweeping to address a pollutant of concern from tire wear that can harm juvenile coho salmon.
Abood described the permit's five broad program areas: planning (including low-impact development encouragement and SMAP updates), outreach/education, public participation, mapping, and illicit-discharge detection and elimination (IDDE). The city participates in regional Stormwater Action Monitoring (SAM) rather than performing outfall sampling itself. He said routine business-source inspections have mostly been addressed through education and that the city's stormwater code may need targeted updates for new permit items.
Council members asked technical questions about sediment capture, dumpster materials, and coordination with fire departments on firefighting foam (PFAS) and permitted industrial discharges. Abood said staff would provide follow-up materials and welcomed public input and questions; he noted the city's annual stormwater management plan and the permit annual report are posted online.
Article ending: Staff will return with follow-up materials and any proposed code or operational changes to meet the new permit; the council will need to prioritize projects and funding to meet the 2028 tree canopy and retrofit deadlines.
