June 17, 2008

Charlotte, NC -- On July 1, 2008, developers will be required to consider environmental impacts when the City of Charlotte's Post-Construction Controls Ordinance takes effect with new rules for development and re-development of existing sites.

The Ordinance calls for developers to construct storm water controls that remove pollution from storm water runoff and then slowly release water back into streams to reduce the potential for flooding. The Ordinance also requires the protection of undisturbed natural areas and vegetated stream buffers that shade and hold in place creek banks.

When rain can't soak into the soil, it runs off into Charlotte's nearly 6,000 miles of storm drainage pipes and streams. As it moves over the land, storm water picks up items like litter, dirt, fertilizers and oil and carries them to nearby creeks and lakes, the source of our drinking water supply.

Every time another shopping strip, parking lot or neighborhood is built, the land is paved over and more runoff is created. The result is flashy creeks, muddy streams and severely eroded stream banks. Thousands of citizens call Charlotte-Mecklenburg Storm Water Services every year requesting help with flooding, blockages and stream erosion in places where it never happened before.

"Charlotte's explosive growth has caused significant impacts to streams and lakes, and State-mandated minimum requirements have not gone far enough to prevent degradation in our waters, which affects Charlotte's financial stability and the region," said Daryl Hammock, Water Quality Manager with Storm Water Services. "This ordinance dramatically slows the creation of new problems associated with that explosive growth and protects our quality of life and continued economic prosperity."

Last year Mecklenburg County and its six Towns each adopted a version of a draft ordinance written over eighteen months by a local stakeholders' group representing business, development, real estate, environmental and academic interests.