Updated 4:45 p.m. Sept. 4: The open house set for Thursday evening by the Washington County Board of Supervisors to discuss the county’s decision to return oversight of its stormwater operation to the state has been canceled.
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A town hall meeting is set for Thursday evening in Abingdon to discuss the plan by Washington County officials to transition the county’s stormwater management program back to the oversight of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.
The meeting is an informational session that will provide residents, developers and others with an overview of the transition, its expected impact and the timeline. The public is invited to attend.
A formal public hearing will be held at the county board of supervisors meeting on Tuesday.
In 2014, the county began administering the stormwater management program after state legislation was approved that allowed local governments to opt in or out of local program administration by the state department.
Over the following 11 years, the county has worked to maintain compliance in collaboration with DEQ, but increasing administrative costs, complexity and industry concerns have prompted a reevaluation, according to a county news release.
“After more than a decade of administering this program locally, it has become clear that continuing in this capacity places an unsustainable burden on county operations and finances,” County Administrator Jason Berry said in the release.
During its Aug. 12 meeting, the board of supervisors adopted a resolution declaring its intent to return the program back to the DEQ, which initiated the transition process.
The resolution states the reasons for the change, including ongoing criticism from developers and industry leaders regarding the regulatory impact on new development; growing costs for administration, including six-figure expenditures for contracted support; and concerns that the program has become a distraction from core administrative functions and has never recovered operational costs.
According to the meeting agenda, the meeting will include a brief history of stormwater administration by the county, information about the legal requirements of stormwater management and the impacts of local oversight, a description of the state code requirements for erosion and sediment control administration, remarks from board leadership and an open listening session.
The town hall will be held from 5:15 to 6:45 p.m. Thursday in the board’s auditorium at the county government center, 1 Government Center Place in Abingdon.
