Draft Walnut Creek watershed plan calls for crackdown on construction sites
The Walnut Creek Watershed Management Authority has issued a draft plan for public comment that calls on local cities to limit construction in flood plains, better police construction sites, and update stormwater ordinances to improve water quality and ease flooding.
The report isn’t done yet, said authority chairman Tom Hadden, West Des Moines city manager. It’s a “work in progress” that will be updated after a series of public meetings.
Months of study found that Walnut Creek, a tributary of the Raccoon River and a source of drinking water, suffers from more than nitrate pollution from farms. Because the watershed has become far more urban — 6.7 square miles were developed in a decade — city pressures such as soil runoff from construction sites have become more of a problem, according to the draft report, Hadden said.
As it stands, the report calls for cities to:
- Update their stormwater ordinances to comply with Iowa Stormwater Management Manual.
- Reserving the 100-year flood plain in both urban and rural areas for open spaces, in effect limiting development there. Buildings already in the flood plain would remain.
- Protect or restore topsoil in open areas of developments.
- Better enforce construction site pollution prevention measures such as silt fences.
The report also calls for rural best management practices called for in the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy.
The authority brings cities, counties and soil districts together to plan, but does not have taxing authority and can’t acquire property through eminent domain.
Public meetings in the area will run from Jan. 12 to Feb. 17.
See meeting times and more details here.
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