University of Minnesota, Duluth
OP-23: Stormwater Management

Mission: The mission of the University of Minnesota Duluth Storm Water Pollution Prevention Program is to reduce, to the maximum extent practicable, the possible negative impacts of the campus on the surrounding watersheds and ultimately the Lake Superior ecosystem. To this end, the University of Minnesota Duluth will develop, implement, and enforce a storm water pollution prevention program to protect water quality and satisfy the appropriate requirements of the Clean Water Act. Goals * To meet the requirements of the NPDES Phase II storm water requirements, the Clean Water Act, applicable Minnesota laws and statutes, and university of Minnesota environmental policies and Procedures. * To minimize and/or regulate storm water surge volumes by promoting storm water sensitive design. * To educate our community about storm water issues. * To manage on-campus storm water problems efficiently and effectively. * To promote overall watershed protection by working with Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA); Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MNDNR); and the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) owners and agencies represented by the Regional Stormwater Protection Team (RSPT)

Civil Engineering has a partial green roof, and the Bagley Outdoor Classroom's lower roof is a green roof. Both of these roofs utilize a tray system.

There are various types of porous paving on our campus: one test area of two types of pavers (one a recycled-content rubber paver, the other a traditional cement brick paver) located on the loading dock of the Lund Building. There is another test area by the entrance to Rec Sports. The loading dock area of Civil Engineering also utilizes pervious pavers.

UMD has two wet-ponds to treat post-construction stormwater runoff: Fire Hall Pond (built 1979) and Eric Clarke Pond (built 1965), both of which were dredged back to their original capacities in 2001. Continued maintenance and inspection Best Management Practice for ponds and their outfalls is at: http://www.d.umn.edu/fm/stormwater/swppp/6b-3.pdf

The parking area at Glensheen was modified in 2004 to include a combination of grassy swales, a bioretention area, and outlet shoreline protection to improve the current quality and lessen the quantity of the discharge water. This project won a 2006 Governor's Minnesota Government Reaching Environmental Achievements Together (MnGREAT) Award for superior environmental achievement by Minnesota's public agencies. Other vegetated swales exist on campus, described here: http://www.d.umn.edu/fm/stormwater/post_construction.html

All post-construction stormwater control technologies are described at: http://www.d.umn.edu/fm/stormwater/post_construction.html The largest, and most exciting, example of treating stormwater is our campus UMD Rain Garden: the UMD Rain Garden is composed of plantings, a drain tile system, and a water level control system. It can hold as much as 60,000 gallons of water. Rain gardens are part of UMD’s commitment to protect Lake Superior. More information, including a tour guide, is available at: http://www.d.umn.edu/sustain/raingarden/index.html