Board of Public Works approves funding for clean water public-private partnership and the Chesapeake Bay

BALTIMORE (Aug. 10, 2022) – The Maryland Board of Public Works approved funding of $65 million for improvements for projects to reduce stormwater pollution and flooding in Prince George’s County and help Maryland meet its Chesapeake Bay restoration goals. The board is composed of Governor Larry Hogan, Treasurer Dereck E. Davis and Comptroller Peter Franchot. Lt. Governor Boyd K. Rutherford chaired today’s meeting.

“This public-private partnership for green streets and other clean water projects in Prince George’s County will help us to meet our Chesapeake Bay goals while reducing flooding and growing our economy,” said Maryland Environment Deputy Secretary Suzanne E. Dorsey.

The following project was approved today:

Urban Stormwater Retrofit Public-Private Partnership Phase 2 – Prince George’s County

A $65 million Water Quality State Revolving Loan Fund loan to Prince George’s County will fund the second phase of a public-private partnership to reduce stormwater runoff through multiple green infrastructure projects. This entails the planning. design, and construction of multiple projects that utilize a wide array of structural treatment options, ranging from small rain gardens to large urban retrofit solutions involving suburban drain inlet modifications, pond retrofits, County right-of-way Best Management Practices (BMPs) as well as green streets and high-flow media treatment options. These efforts are intended to achieve compliance with the County’s Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Discharge Permit and the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Implementation Plan. The goal is to retrofit or install BMPs to store or treat stormwater runoff to reduce pollutant loads (including nitrogen, phosphorus and sediments) and mitigate flooding to improve water quality in local watersheds and the Chesapeake Bay. This project is consistent with Maryland’s climate change adaption and resiliency objectives through the reduction of runoff that is exacerbated by increased precipitation or flooding events.

In 2017, the Board of Public Works approved funding of $48 million – a $46.5 million Water Quality State Revolving Loan Fund loan and a $1.5 million grant in the form of loan forgiveness from that fund – to Prince George’s County for an earlier phase of the public-private partnership project. The Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), along with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, provides technical and regulatory support for the program. The county, working with its private partner, must meet the requirements of the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL, or pollution limits or diet) and its municipal stormwater discharge permit (often referred to as MS4 permit). MDE is the lead state agency on the Bay TMDL and the related Watershed Implementation Plan. MDE also enforces MS4 permits. The MS4 permit issued for Prince George’s County places a high value on green infrastructure, including the planting of trees to address flooding and stormwater pollution.

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