A manual that spells out minimum standards for designing storm-water management systems in Spokane County and the cities of Spokane and Spokane Valley is moving toward possible adoption early next year, following a just-concluded series of lightly-attended public workshops.


The thick document should have little impact on developers here, though, because it mostly just unifies, updates, and clarifies regulations that already were in place and were being enforced by those jurisdictions, says Matt Zarecor, a Spokane County development-services engineer.


Really, I dont think theyll see a lot of tangible differences, Zarecor says. It just makes clearer in this document what we want, the rationale. It formalizes the procedures, and makes them a little more upfront for everybody.


Grassy swales, for example, will continue to be used to contain and treat storm-water runoff, he says. He adds, Most of where were developing now in Spokane County doesnt have good drainage conditions, so local regulatory agencies already have been requiring more geotechnical work to evaluate potential development sites, though the manual addresses that need as well.


Zarecor has been heading up the several-year process of developing the document, called the Spokane Regional Stormwater Manual, but Spokane and Spokane Valley city representatives also have been involved. He says the joint process hasnt sparked any major disagreements, and he expects all three jurisdictions to adopt the manual with identical wording.


Six workshops have been held here over the last two months to receive comments and generate discussion about the draft document, but attracted what Zarecor describes as abysmal public participation. He says the formal public-comment period closed two weeks ago, but he has been so hungry for feedback hes continued to accept comments beyond the deadline.


Of the gist of the few comments that were received, he says, I think neighborhood groups have concerns about flooded basements. I think erosion and sediment control is an issue, because were doing a lot of infill (development). This manual gives that a lot more attention.


The manual next goes to each jurisdictions planning commission for further workshops and public hearings, after which it will be forwarded to the respective city councils and the county commissioners for action, Zarecor says. He says his best estimate is that it will be adopted by all three bodies in January or February.


The main impetus for creation of the manual was the need to be consistent with standards developed for Eastern Washington several years ago by the state Department of Ecology, in collaboration with a group of community leaders and local officials from east of the Cascades.


Those standards and how to implement them were contained in two guidance documents, a storm-water management manual, and a model storm-water program, designed to help cities and counties on this side of the state meet new federal laws pertaining to storm-water runoff.


Ecology said at the time that the storm-water plans developed by Eastern Washington cities and counties would need to address detection of illegal discharges, review of construction plans to make sure erosion is controlled during and after construction, and ensuring that municipalities use pollution-prevention techniques in their everyday practices.


Ecology published a storm-water management manual for Western Washington in August 2001 as an update to a predecessor manual prepared in 1992.


The agency initially proposed that the manual be updated to cover the entire state. However, Eastern Washington representatives objected to that, citing the much different geology and hydrology on this side of the state, after which Ecology agreed to create a separate document.


Federal regulations pertaining to storm-water runoff that took effect two years ago stemmed from a 1987 amendment to the federal Clean Water Act.