Mad River and Kingsbury Branch Watersheds Stormwater Master Plans

For Immediate Release – May 13, 2019

Mad River and Kingsbury Branch Watersheds Stormwater Master Plans

The Central Vermont Regional Planning Commission (CVRPC), in partnership with the Friends of the Mad River (FMR) and Watershed Consulting Associates (WCA), has completed the process for Stormwater Master Planning for eight municipalities – five in the Mad River and three in the Kingsbury Branch watersheds. Stormwater runoff is rain and snow melt which runs off the land, carrying pollutants and eroded sediment into our waterways. Runoff decreases the quality of streams and lakes and contributes to flooding damages. Communities and landowners have the opportunity to reduce these negative impacts with “green stormwater infrastructure” that aims to manage runoff close to its source and using techniques that imitate natural hydrologic processes.

Through funding provided by the Ecosystem Restoration Grant Program at the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), the CVRPC retained WCA to complete two Stormwater Master Plans (SWMPs): one for the Kingsbury Branch Watershed including chapters for the towns of Calais, East Montpelier and Woodbury; and one, with Friends of the Mad River, for the Mad River Watershed including chapters for the towns of Moretown, Waitsfield, Warren, Fayston, and Duxbury. The CVRPC, WCA, and FMR team worked to engage municipal stakeholders for each town so that the results of the process were understood and the products were of local value. WCA created online story maps for each of the towns to provide information on stormwater, solutions to stormwater mitigation using green stormwater infrastructure, and results of the stormwater master planning process. The results include the top five priority sites for each of the eight municipalities, along with 30% engineering designs and artistic renderings for projects to address water quality and quantity issues at these sites. By completing the initial engineering designs for these priority sites, each municipality can focus on securing funds for final engineering designs and project implementation, which will help the state advance goals to reduce phosphorus loading in the Lake Champlain basin.

“Our Mad River Valley communities have been working together for four years through our Ridge to River coalition to keep our water clean and reduce our vulnerabilities to flooding, “ said Corrie Miller, Friends of the Mad River Director. “We’re excited to have these stormwater master plans be one important outcome of this work.”
The Central Vermont Regional Planning Commission assists its member municipalities to provide effective local government and work cooperatively to address regional issues. The Commission also works with area non-profits, other regional organizations, State and Federal agencies, and the public to implement projects and programs tailored to Central Vermont and statewide needs.

For more information on the project, please visit centralvtplanning.org or contact:
Pam DeAndrea, Senior GIS Planner
Central Vermont Regional Planning Commission
deandrea@cvregion.com
Phone: (802) 229-0389

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