Municipalities
The Montgomery County Conservation District has gathered information that may be of interest to the local municipalities in Montgomery County. Please also be sure to visit the following pages of our website:
Grants:
Montgomery County Dirt and Gravel / Low Volume Road Program
TreeVitalize Watersheds Grant Program
Permitting Information:
Emergency Removal of Debris from Streams (DEP Fact Sheet)
MCCD “Frequently Asked Questions from Municipalities” flyer
MCCD “Introduction to Chapter 102 Regulations” flyer
MS4 Information
Program Information and Resources from PA DEP
StormwaterPA: A “go-to resource for the most current information and effective, proven techniques in stormwater management.”
PA Environmental Council helps municipalities with meeting their stormwater permit regulations.
Look for help from local watershed organizations! Many can help with outreach to residents, volunteers, monitoring, grant opportunities, and assistance to complete projects.
https://www.perkiomenwatershed.org/for-municipalities/
Brochures for Residents
Each of the following agencies may be contacted to request hard copies of brochures.
PA Environmental Council Resources
Partnership for the Delaware Estuary Resources
Delaware Riverkeeper Network Resources
Penn State Extension Water Resource Publications
Outreach Project Ideas
- Mark storm drains with resident volunteers. Look for areas with heavy foot traffic. Try requesting permission to install them in shopping districts, parking lots, business campuses, and in residential neighborhoods.
- Educate local businesses on illicit discharges. Address leaky dumpsters, grease barrels and dumping of mop water.
- Install stream crossing signs along roads and request them from PennDoT for state roads.
- Install artwork that educates the community about water resources. Make sure everyone knows that storm drains lead to streams!
- Encourage your EAC or other environmental group to educate residents and display stormwater information at community events.
- Partner with your water supplier to install water bottle refill stations in your parks. Sourcewater protection information can be printed on the side of the fountain, and it will encourage residents to bring reusable water bottles.
- Host a rain barrel workshop to introduce the topic of stormwater to residents. These are best attended when there are give-aways. Try applying for a DEP Environmental Education grant or other grant to purchase the rain barrels. Or, partner with a local watershed group to build them.
- Install demonstration BMPs and host tours. Beautiful rain gardens are great for hosting garden tours! Consider partnering with the Master Gardeners to lead the tour. Also, encourage meadows instead of lawn wherever possible in your community. Properly installed meadows are much different from unkempt lawns; they are great for reducing runoff and, with guidelines for proper installation, should not be a source of weeds or wildlife infestation.
- Request a speaker from the list of Penn State Master Gardener and Master Watershed Stewards to provide a free talk for residents in conjunction with a community event. Contact your Penn State Extension office or the District’s Watershed Specialist for a current list of available speakers.
- Launch an outreach program directed at reducing fertilizer use in your municipality. Soil testing should be done prior to fertilization to ensure proper application rates and nutrient balance. Setbacks from waterways should always be observed. Safe storage of fertilizer, pesticides, and other chemicals, as well as appropriate timing (fall) for their use, maximizes effectiveness, prevents nutrient and chemical runoff to waterways, and reduces costs. It is important to focus these efforts on consumers of landscape services. If they realize they are paying extra money for wasted fertilizer, which is polluting our waterways instead of greening their lawns, they may be more wary of these services in the future. You may want to consider implementing an ordinance that requires proper application.