Council Legislation

Proposed Ordinance No. 2023-60s

Title: An Ordinance of the Pierce County Council Adopting the 2024-2029 Surface Water Improvement Program (SWIP), Pursuant to Section 6.40 in the Pierce County Charter, and the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) Sections 36.70A, 36.70A.040, and 36.70.530; and Finding that Each Project Contained in the Plan is a Public Necessity.

Effective: December 8, 2023

Status: Passed

Sponsors: Councilmembers Ryan Mello

Final votes

November 14, 2023
Aye Aye Aye Aye Aye Aye Aye


Documents
Additional legislative records are available below Collapse All  Expand All
 

Public Comments

Name Date Comment
Alison Bennett, Cascade Water Alliance 11/13/23 1:16 PM Dear Chair Mello and Piece County Councilmembers: On behalf of Cascade Water Alliance (Cascade), I’m writing to express Cascade’s support for Ordinance No. 2023-60s. As you know, the Ordinance adopts the County’s 2024-2029 Surface Water Improvement Program (SWIP). Among other projects, the proposed 2024-2029 SWIP includes $474,000 in funding for a Lake Tapps Water Quality Retrofit project. As the owner and operator of the Lake Tapps Reservoir (Reservoir) and Pierce County’s partner in protecting water quality at the Reservoir, Cascade strongly supports the Lake Tapps Water Quality Retrofit project, and we thank the County Council for including the project in the 2024-2029 SWIP. We want to thank each of the Councilmembers for making this important investment, and we want to give special thanks to Council Chair Mello for his sponsorship of the Proposed Ordinance and Councilmember Morell for his continued leadership on water quality issues in District 1, which includes the Lake Tapps Reservoir. With this important first step in place, we encourage the County to continue following through on its longstanding commitments to preserve water quality at the Reservoir. The Reservoir is a regional asset as a future regional drinking water source. Currently the Reservoir provides recreational, environmental, and aesthetic benefits to the public. Thus, the Reservoir is the obvious choice for targeted efforts by Pierce County, in partnership with Cascade, to address existing water quality problems and prevent future problems. As summarized below, Cascade and the County have a long history of productive cooperation on water quality issues, and we are excited to build on this solid foundation and take the next step with the County. Even before Cascade finalized its purchase of the Lake Tapps Reservoir from Puget Sound Energy in 2009, Cascade has been partnering with Pierce County on water quality at the Reservoir. In 2005, Cascade and the County entered into a “Memorandum of Understanding on Management of Lake Tapps for Public Water Supply and Recreation” (MOU) finding that the Reservoir "has become an important recreational, economic, and environmental asset to Pierce County and the region,” and that “development of Lake Tapps as a public water supply source, while maintaining its value as a recreational, economic, and environmental asset will require cooperation between the County and Cascade with respect to managing land use, water quality, lake levels, recreational activities and safety.” The MOU commits the County to cooperate with Cascade in working to “[p]rotect and enhance water quality in Lake Tapps and the White River Basin and minimize discharges into Lake Tapps . . . through regulation of storm water, on-site wastewater systems and other point and non-point sources” and to “[m]inimize or eliminate adverse [e]ffects of non-point charges” by identifying, encouraging, and requiring best management practices for land use activities. In 2013, the County adopted the Lower White River Basin Plan, which the Council incorporated into the County’s Comprehensive Plan by Ordinance No. 2013-61. In October 2021, the Council adopted Cascade’s proposed package of amendments to the water quality policies in the County's comprehensive plan. Those amendments committed the County to work with Cascade to “(1) begin implementation of the Lower White River Basin Plan’s recommendations regarding the Lake Tapps Reservoir, starting with a pilot program targeting phosphorus in the Lake Tapps Reservoir; and (2) ensure that long-term support and funding for implementing the Plan’s recommendations are sufficient to be successful.” In November 2021, the Council passed Ordinance No. 2021-96, which adopted the 2022-2027 SWIP. The “Lake Tapps Water Quality Retrofit" was not yet included on the formal list of 2022-2027 SWIP projects, but the SWIP’s summary of the 2022-2027 Capital Facilities Plan included $100,000 in 2024 design costs for the project. With the inclusion of the “Lake Tapps Water Quality Retrofit" on the formal list of 2024-2025 SWIP projects and the funding amount increased to $474,000, the County is taking an important first step toward following through with commitments made during the first period of Cascade’s ownership, when Cascade and the County studied the Reservoir’s water quality issues, adopted the Lower White River Basin Plan, and formulated policies to start implementing the basin plan. We are eager to discuss the details of this first Lake Tapps Water Quality Retrofit project with County staff. For its part, Cascade has invested and will continue to invest substantial resources in these water quality issues. Cascade’s deep commitment to water quality in the Lake Tapps Reservoir will not only benefit Cascade and the public by protecting and enhancing water quality in the Reservoir, but will also benefit the County by providing a partner who can help the County comply with its legal obligations to protect water quality, such as the conditions of the Phase I NPDES municipal stormwater general permit. In particular, Cascade looks forward to working with County staff to plan and design projects in a way that will maximize water quality benefits to the Reservoir, while also maximizing the number of “SMED Program Points” the County will receive for each project under the Phase I’s “Structural Stormwater Control Management for Existing Development (“SMED”) Program (formerly called the “Structural Stormwater Control” program). In conclusion, we urge the Council to build on this initial investment, and to continue investing in additional retrofit projects and other projects as needed to protect and enhance water quality at the Reservoir, and we look forward to cooperatively planning and designing future projects with the County. By establishing a regular practice of including new Lake Tapps Reservoir projects in each new Capital Facilities Plan and SWIP, in consultation with Cascade, the Council can fulfill its commitment to water quality at the Reservoir, while also better managing the costs and other burden associate with the County’s legal obligations under the Phase I permit. Thank you for taking the time to consider these comments.