Santa Rosa LID Requirements Impacting Development Projects

When creating over 10,000 square feet of impervious surface, your project will need to follow the low impact development guidelines for stormwater treatment and capture. The Guidelines for stormwater treatment and capture is outlined in the “Storm Water Low Impact Development Technical Design Manual.” The technical manual was implemented in 2017 and has revisions that can drastically change stormwater management designs.



The main change in the technical manual is the parameter for the water quality design storm used for all SUSMP calculations. The old manual uses the 85th percentile 24‐hour storm event, while the new design manual uses capture and retention of 100% of the volume of runoff generated by 1.0” of rain over a 24-hour period. This can cause unwanted designs to your project.
 
The team here at BC Engineering Group has already supported multiple projects in designing new methods to handle the new requirement. Another requirement outlined in the new technical design manual is the need to perform field tests and calculations to ensure that all ponded water will drain within 72 hours to eliminate the concern of attracting vectors such as mosquitos. This creates another constraint for projects which our team is well versed in addressing.
 
If you want help figuring out if your project will be impacted or if you need a new consultation regarding stormwater management design, please call us. We are here to help!
 
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Addressing Stormwater Management For Your Project
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The BC Engineering Group staff has submitted numerous Low Impact Development Designs and can walk you through every step of the process. As a leading civil engineering design firm, feel free to reach out to us with any questions you may have regarding Low Impact Development requirements or alternative methods to meet the new manual requirements. Take advantage of our experience and contact us today to design your stormwater management system or for any other stormwater needs you may have, we are here to help.
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For more information on managing stormwater and other land planning services, please contact us at 707-542-4321, or find us on Facebook and LinkedIn. You can also stay up to date with civil engineering and land planning issues by subscribing to our blog.