Stormwater Best Management Practices

Bottom line: Stormwater BMPs manage how runoff moves, what it carries, and how it is inspected, maintained, and documented over time.

• For public works teams: Structural BMPs include basins, weirs, channels, bioswales, rain gardens, and permeable pavement; non-structural BMPs include inspections, training, housekeeping, and records.
• For city leaders: BMPs protect waterways, reduce erosion and flooding, and extend the service life of roads, bridges, and public sites.
• What to watch: A BMP program weakens when maintenance and reporting are treated as afterthoughts.
• F&V perspective: Fleis & VandenBrink helps municipalities plan, design, inspect, map, and maintain stormwater BMP programs.

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Effective stormwater management is vital for every community. It plays a key role in environmental conservation, flood prevention, erosion control, water quality protection, and maintaining property values.

Municipal stormwater programs are often developed in more urban areas due to the abundance of paved surfaces, which increases stormwater runoff. Urban areas have more robust municipal stormwater programs, and the regulated areas potentially span multiple adjacent municipalities.

What Are Stormwater BMPs?

Stormwater best management practices (BMPs) are strategies, measures, and structures used to control the quantity and improve the quality of stormwater runoff. There are several types of stormwater to consider, including industrial, municipal, and construction, and each comes with its own challenges and solutions.

In municipal settings, BMPs help manage nonpoint source runoff, rainwater that flows over impervious surfaces such as pavement, and direct it to a safe, controlled path. This helps to prevent pooling, erosion, and pollution of local waterways. Municipal stormwater can carry organic material, fertilizers, and pesticides from lawns into surface water. Industrial stormwater may carry chemicals from a point source, such as a factory or storage yard.

Best management practices for stormwater help reduce these impacts by managing both where the water flows and what it carries.

Stormwater BMPs are typically divided into structural and non-structural measures.

Structural BMPs

Physical installations designed to control the flow and quality of stormwater, such as:

• Water flow control structures
• Retention ponds or weirs that regulate discharge speed
• Channels that direct water safely to designated areas

Non-Structural BMPs

Policies, procedures, and maintenance activities that prevent pollution and promote efficient stormwater management, including:

• Routine inspections and recordkeeping
• Visual monitoring of discharge areas
• Preventive maintenance to fix issues quickly
• Good housekeeping and organized material storage
• Employee training and ongoing education

Many municipalities integrate stormwater best management practices to support their snow-removal or control systems (e.g., road salt). For example, they monitor how much salt is applied to roadways and make sure their storage areas are protected to prevent salt runoff. Lake communities may regulate fertilizer use to avoid runoff into surface water.

A big takeaway of any BMP program is that communities need procedures in place to train staff. Municipalities should also offer ongoing education to help staff continue learning best practices.

Why BMPs Matter for Communities

Implementing the best stormwater management practices benefits municipalities in multiple ways:

• Reduce flooding and erosion – BMPs manage stormwater runoff volume and flow rate, reducing damage to property and infrastructure.
• Protect rivers, lakes, and groundwater – BMPs limit pollutants such as road salt, fertilizers, and chemicals from entering waterways.
• Support compliance with state and federal guidelines – EGLE’s stormwater division provides information, training, and certification for industrial stormwater program operators to protect surface water resources.
• Extend the life of infrastructure investments – Proper management of stormwater runoff helps to prevent erosion to nearby roads, bridges, and parking lots.

Types of BMPs

• Detention and retention basins – These basins collect water and control how quickly it flows out, allowing sediment to settle before it flows out.
• Green infrastructure (rain gardens, bioswales, permeable pavement) – These are natural solutions that allow water to infiltrate the ground rather than run off. Rain gardens use specific plants that will enable water to penetrate the ground naturally. Bioswales are channels designed to concentrate and convey stormwater runoff while removing debris and pollution. They are a natural type of ditch.
• Permeable pavement is a type of pavement that allows water to penetrate its surface.
• Maintenance practices – Establish consistent inspections and cleaning schedules for basins, ponds, and structures to maintain effectiveness over time.

Long-Term Maintenance and Monitoring

A successful BMP program requires consistent oversight, including:

• Inspections – Regular inspections identify issues early and keep systems functioning properly.
• Reporting – Permitted stormwater discharges typically require annual reports to the state of a record of the inspection and findings. All sites’ requirements are different.

These records provide information on how structures are performing over time and identify any areas for improvement.

How Fleis & VandenBrink Supports BMP Implementation

At F&V, we partner with municipalities to plan, implement, and maintain stormwater best management practices tailored to their unique needs.

Our services include:

• Planning and design – F&V can develop a stormwater program and participate in its implementation through inspections, making recommendations for improvement.
• Construction oversight – We can make recommendations to improve stormwater management for roads, bridges, or sewer projects.
• GIS documentation – Mapping permitted discharge locations for easy tracking and compliance.
• Ongoing municipal support – Provide continued guidance and training for long-term success.

Implementing Stormwater BMPs? We Can Help.

If your community is planning or upgrading a stormwater project and needs help implementing best stormwater management practices, please reach out to one of F&V’s experienced staff for assistance. Talk to our team today.