Monthly Progress Report
Executive Summary

January 2000

• At this time, 72 out of the total of 83 CSO outfalls in the Phase 1 CSO Program are under control with retention and treatment basins, or have been eliminated by sewer separation.

• Nine CSO retention/treatment basins are currently in operation for the communities of Inkster, Redford, Acacia Park, Dearborn Heights, Bloomfield Village, Birmingham and Detroit’s 7 Mile, Hubbell-Southfield and Puritan-Fenkell. Livonia, Garden City, Plymouth Township, Bloomfield Hills, Wayne and Westland have completed their CSO separation projects.

• The evaluation of the Phase 1 CSO controls has been underway since June 1997. Three Wayne County communities have submitted basin evaluation reports to MDEQ, and these communities include Inkster, Dearborn Heights, and Redford.  The MDEQ has convened a series of committees comprised of staff from communities, counties, the MDEQ and consulting firms to evaluate the CSO basin performance data.  These committees are expected to meet and report findings through all of the year 2000.

• There were very few large storm events in 1999, and there were very few overflow events.  Water quality was exceptionally improved from previous years and there very few violations of the dissolved oxygen standard observed in dry weather.

• MDEQ has issued 37 Certificates of Coverage under its voluntary storm water general permit as of January 3, 2000.  There are 8 communities or county agencies still in negotiation with MDEQ regarding their certificates of coverage.

• Wayne County and RPO staff met with the MDEQ on December 5 to discuss the public participation plans for the seven subwatersheds.   All subwatersheds completed their plans on schedule and submitted these to the MDEQ.

• Rouge communities are preparing subwatershed management plans for each of the seven subwatersheds in the Rouge.  These plans are being developed in accordance with the public participation plans, and are scheduled to be completed by the spring of 2001.

• On September 29, Wayne County Department of Environment, Watershed Management Division, held its final training course of 1999 for communities on the subject of basic techniques for illicit discharge elimination.

• The Division of Watershed Management held a training session on January 6 and 7, 2000, for all communities in the watershed to demonstrate the use of a new software application to track and report illicit discharges.

• Wayne County is initiating a landscape parkway and waterway use master plan of the Rouge Gateway area, which is defined as the 8-mile reach of the river from Ford Road in Dearborn to the Detroit River.  The Rouge River Gateway Master Plan will involve the participation of the US Army Corps of Engineers for ecological restoration of the paved channel section and will build on the results of earlier planning by the Rouge Gateway Partnership.

• The Friends of the Rouge (FOTR) Rouge Education Program continues in approximately 100 schools.  New efforts begun in 1999 and continuing in the year 2000 will increase the number of schools inside the watershed.

• Wayne County and Washtenaw County will be implementing new ordinances for on-site sewage disposal in January 2000.  Wayne County will be promulgating a new ordinance for stormwater management later in 2000.

• There was a US District Court hearing on October 14, 1999, for Case Number 77-1110.  The focus of the discussion was SSO control for the Rouge and how the SSO elimination efforts are being coordinated with other General Permit activities.   The next hearing is scheduled for January 25, 2000.   The  Steering Committee met on November 15 and scheduled a subcommittee to work with Michigan DEQ on sanitary sewer overflow policy issues.  The first meeting of this group is being scheduled for January 7, 2000.

• Each SWAG has prepared a review of its progress in 1999 relative to implementation of the MDEQ stormwater General Permit.  These will be presented at the January 20 meeting of the Steering Committee and at the January 25 hearing of the US District Court.

• Wayne County announced to the Rouge River watershed communities in September that a second round of grant funds totaling $250,000 would be available to meet special needs associated with the implementation of the MDEQ storm water General Permit.   A total of 8 proposals were received from communities on December 15, 1999, and evaluation of these is underway.

Please address all comments and suggestions about the contents of this Web page to rougeweb@co.wayne.mi.us.

The Rouge River National Wet Weather Demonstration Project is funded, in part, by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Grants #XP995743-01, -02, -03, -04, -05, -06, -07 and C-264000-01.