Virginia Regulatory Town Hall
Agency
Department of Environmental Quality
 
Board
State Water Control Board
 
Guidance Document Change: The Virginia Stormwater Management Handbook, Version 1.0 (Handbook) provides guidance to implement water quantity and water quality criteria in the Virginia Erosion and Stormwater Management Regulation, 9VAC25-875, effective July 1, 2024. The Handbook replaces nine guidance documents, listed below, that the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) plans to rescind effective July 1, 2025: 1. Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control Handbook, Third Edition, 1992 2. Virginia Stormwater Management Handbook, First Edition, 1999 3. Guidance Document on VSMP Site Inspection Strategies 4. Guidance Document on Utilization of Nonpoint Nutrient Offsets 5. Guidance Memo No. 14-2002 Implementation Guidance for the 2009 General Permit for Discharges of Stormwater from Construction Activities, 9VAC25-880 6. Guidance Memo No. 14-2014 Implementation Guidance for Section 47 (time limits on applicability of approved design criteria) and Section 48 (grandfathering) 7. Guidance Memo No. 15-2003 Postdevelopment SW Mgmt Implementation Guidance for Linear Utility Projects 8. Guidance Memo No. 22-2011 Streamlined Plan Review for Construction Stormwater Plans and Erosion and Sediment Control Plans submitted by a Licensed Design Professional and reviewed by a Dual Combined Administrator for Erosion and Sediment Control and Stormwater Management 9. Guidance Memo No. 22-2012 Stormwater Management and Erosion & Sediment Control Design Guide The reason that the guidance documents will be rescinded effective July 1, 2025, through a separate Town Hall notice, is that they have been incorporated into the Handbook to reduce complexity and improve the ease of use. A one-year transition period allows plans and permit applications submitted between July 1, 2024 and June 30, 2025 to utilize either the existing manuals, handbooks and guidance or the Virginia Stormwater Management Handbook, Version 1.0. The Handbook is available as a Portable Document Format (pdf) file and online at https://online.encodeplus.com/regs/deq-va/index.aspx. Due to the large file size and number of pages in the Handbook, DEQ recommends using the web-based version to review it and submit comments. Chapters, best management practice specifications, and other information from the Handbook may be downloaded from the website as pdf files. Written comments on the Handbook may be submitted directly through the enCodePlus website that is hosting the handbook, as well as through the Town Hall website, and by email to the contact address provided with this notice. Instructions for submitting comments through the host website are available from the “Comment” link on the webpage banner. DEQ will use comments received during this forum and after the Handbook becomes effective to maintain its content consistent with the process for updates and revisions described in Chapter 1: Introduction. DEQ formed a Stakeholders Advisory Group (SAG) to help develop the Handbook and its content. The SAG met 12 times between July 2022 and October 2023. Members of the SAG were provided an opportunity review and provide feedback on a draft version of the Handbook during November 2023. DEQ reviewed and revised the draft Handbook based on the feedback SAG members provided. Handbook Version 1.0 reflects those revisions. Two Excel spreadsheets with comments SAG members submitted on the draft version of the Handbook, and responses to those comments, are available from the DEQ website at: https://www.deq.virginia.gov/our-programs/water/stormwater/stormwater-construction/handbooks under the Virginia Stormwater Management Handbook, Version 1.0 banner.
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3/27/24  3:01 pm
Commenter: Megan, Kirk Engineering

Concurrance with prior Commenters
 

I strongly concur with and had the same comments as:

  1. Pollutant Load References, Sam Lionberger, Lionberger Construction comments
  2. All of Michael Cagle comments
  3. All of Peter Fields Construction, Inc comments
  4. Steve Chishomns, CMC Supply Comment on Create and independent system to alter the handbook. Section 1.4.2.
  5. Matt Huff, Poe & Cronk Commerical Real estate Group comments on Increasing Development Burden and Costs comments
  6. All of Sheldon Bower, PE Parker Design Group, Inc comments
  7. All of Developer Engineer & Contractors LLC comments
  8. Sam Lionberger, Lionberger Construction comments

 

Additional point to the Section A.5.4  about limiting 10% deviation of drainage area. This should be rephrased to be a suggestion/recommendation, because local agencies take the terminology as "should" as equivalent to "shall." If should by DEQ definitions is meant to be recommendation/goal to strive for, please define that somewhere because local agencies will not grant waivers or variances for anything listed in the SWM Hanbook as a requirements, because to them the Handbook/Specs are equivalent to laws.

If "should" really does mean "shall" and is a strict requirement, I understand it is ideal to maintain predevelopment divides, but its not feasible to set a restrictive percent deviation when detention at every single outfall is not feasible due to the downstream receiving conditions. Especially in very rural situation where downstream properties don't have an defined receiving channel to discharge a detention system to because the watershed is rural and does not concentrate, it sheet flows or shallowly runs off onto neighbor properties. Those situations a downstream property can already be affected by flooding and erosion due to the rural nature and having large amounts of sheet flow area that doesnt have a concentrated outfall. So they don't have the ability to install a detention system to maintain predevelopment flows because of a lack of a defined channel to discharge to. The solution in those situation are to send drainage area to another watershed that does have a defined receiving channel, which is inevitably always more than a 10% deviation of the drainage area because impervious area generated more than 10% runoff than predevelopment conditions of forests and lawns. This happens on every one of my byright rural subdivisions where I am just installing a few house on multiple multi acre lot that predevelopment wise sheet flows to an adjacent property that would be problematic to have increased volumes of sheet flow. So I install storm sewer and send the lots drainage area to another outfall where there is a detention facility that can be constructed. That outfall is compliant with regulations so it shouldnt matter if any watersheds change by 10%. It should be phrased as recommendation to strive for as said previously.

Any other comment not listed in this list made by others I agree with as well.

CommentID: 222400