Part 91 Updates & Emerging Best Management Practices

Presenter: Sarah Ehinger, Soil Erosion and Construction Storm Water Specialist,

269-216-1341,

Soil Erosion Drain Liaison:Brandie Stefanski, Senior Environmental Quality Analyst, 616-401-2352,

DEQ Soil Erosion and Construction Storm Water Program Staff by County

DEQ Soil Erosion & Construction Storm Water Website: www.michigan.gov/soilerosion

Objective: Provide a program update outlining recent changes and explore soil erosion and sedimentation practices that are gaining popularity throughout the county.

Recent Changes:

  • House Bill 4604 takes effect February 25, 2016
  • Part 91 has always generally required permits if an earth change was within 500 feet of a lake or stream or equal to or greater than 1 acre in earth disturbance.
  • The only exemption for agricultural activities was for plowing and tilling all other agricultural earth changes required permits if they were triggered.
  • HB 4604 creates some additional exemptions under Part 91 for the certain agricultural activities conducted by farmers provided the activities do not discharge sediment to waters of the state or off-site
  • The construction, maintenance, or removal of fences and fence lines
  • The removal of tree or shrub stumps or roots (clearing land to put it into agricultural production)
  • The installation of drainage tile, irrigation or electrical lines
  • The construction or maintenance of 1 or more ponds that meet all of the following:
  • The earth change is less than <5 acres
  • The earth change does not discharge storm water to waters of the state during construction
  • Is not part of a larger plan of development
  • All other types of agricultural earth changes could still trigger a soil erosion permit. (e.g. building construction, road construction, manure storage structure construction, etc.)
  • MiWaters – Online information system for web-based permitting and compliance
  • Access MiWaters by clicking the link above or typing into your internet browser
  • The browser that works best for MiWaters is Google Chrome
  • Use this tool to submit permits, submit compliance information, and report complaints
  • Allows online check or credit card payments in addition to pay by mail options
  • Notice of Coverage applications MUST be submitted through the MiWaters system.
  • Resource permits are encouraged to use the MiWaters system
  • Our DEQ website has webinars and training videos that will help you get started. Before you get started in MiWaters it is recommended you review the following videos:
  • MiWaters Overview
  • Establishing an Account
  • Inviting Another Person to View or Manage Your Site Information
  • Finding an Application or Request
  • Submitting an Application or Request
  • Contact your local DEQ Water Resources Staff if you have questions

Emerging Best Management Practices:

  • Skimmers
  • Beginning to be widely adopted in other states for use with sediment basins
  • Takes the place of a perforated riser in a sediment basin during construction
  • Operates on a flexible joint attached to a pipe stub on the riser (or the skimmer itself is the discharge point with an emergency spill way on the basin).
  • Skimmers regulates the draining of the basin by drawing water from the surface over the course of several days
  • Skimmers DO NOT increase sediment trapping efficiency in a way that allows basin size to be reduced
  • Skimmers can be used in conjunction with PAMs and/or Baffles to further increase the sediment basin’s effectiveness
  • While effective on sediment basins, skimmers may not be appropriate for post construction use if the sediment basin is converted to a storm water basin as they may not effectively control common pollutants of concern found during post construction conditions.
  • Several manufacturers - contact your soil erosion product distributer to learn more about the skimmer options that are available.
  • Resources for more information:
  • Sediment Basins & Skimmers – Ohio DNR Presentation
  • Controlling the Dewatering of Sedimentation Basins – Penn State Extension
  • Baffles and Surface Water Design – International Erosion Control Association Presentation
  • Sediment Basins – Mississippi DEQ
  • Hydraulic Erosion Control Product/Bonded Fiber Matrix
  • Hydraulically applied products designed, tested, and proven to match or exceed the performance of erosion control blankets
  • Prepackaged Proprietary Blends which may include some combination of
  • Fiber Matrix
  • Tackifiers
  • Absorbents
  • Flocculating agents
  • Man-made fibers
  • Plant Biostimulants
  • Goals
  • Erosion Control
  • Vegetative establishment
  • Tested to ensure performance standards similar to blankets such as:
  • Longevity 1-12 months
  • Slopes <5:1 to <2:1
  • C Factor .3 - .02
  • Resources
  • Standard Specification for Hydraulic Erosion Control Products (HECPs) – Erosion Control Technology Council
  • HECP Installation Guidelines - Erosion Control Technology Council
  • Numerous products and manufactures - contact your soil erosion product distributer to learn more about the skimmer options that are available.

Presentation for MACDC 2016 Winter Conference February 10, 2016