Primer: Hoover Stormwater & Flooding

Stormwater and flooding are things citizens shouldn’t have to think about; the city should take care of these as a service, it’s a duty.  The city is responsible for roads, police, emergency services, a library, parks and the city is also responsible for stormwater and the resultant flooding.  These services are why we have cities.  Hoover has failed to meet stormwater responsibilities and thus failed Hoover residents.

There are two parts to the city’s responsibility; one part is meeting federal and state requirements.  The other is an ethical responsibility to serve the residents. 

The state, via the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM), issues an NPDES Permit[1] (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) to the city.  The permit specifies what the city must do and is based on the federal legislation; The Clean Water Act.  The city creates a Stormwater Management Program Plan[2] (SWMPP) that demonstrates how the city will meet the requirements of the NPDES permit.  Each year the city reports to ADEM the status of the SWMPP in the MS4 Annual Report[3] (Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System).  

The focus of the NPDES is water pollution; the most common pollutant is sediment.  Sediment and other pollutants enter waterbodies with stormwater.  The goal of the Clean Water Act is to “restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the Nation’s waters” and make all waters swimmable and fishable.

Why has flooding increased? Increased intensity of storms and urban development are two factors. The city is responsible for development. Development is not a bad thing, and the NPDES permit provides methods for smart development and redevelopment that can reduce stormwater runoff, pollution and flooding.  However, Hoover has not required or encouraged these methods.  In fact, the city has resisted this approach and ignored the impacts of flooding on those living downstream of new developments and redevelopment.

Examples of Green Infrastructure and Low-impact-development. 

What could, and should, the city do to meet permit requirements and create smart development? Specifically, green Infrastructure (GI) and low-impact development (LID) which are beautiful, sustainable, and effective; these practices mimic natural processes to manage rainfall runoff. Examples of GI/LID:

·          Rain gardens https://www.aces.edu/blog/topics/fish-water/how-to-install-a-rain-garden/

·          Grass swales https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2021-11/bmp-grassed-swales.pdf

·          Permeable pavement https://www.epa.gov/soakuptherain/soak-rain-permeable-pavement

·         Retention and detention ponds

·         Green roofs https://www.greenroofs.org/about-green-roofs

·         Engineered wetlands https://adem.alabama.gov/programs/water/waterforms/LIDHandbook.pdf

·          Water barrels and rivercane https://www.aces.edu/blog/topics/forestry/rivercane-restoration/

Residents should not have to become experts on stormwater runoff; residents should be able to trust the city to meet its responsibilities.  Unfortunately, that has not been the case for several years.  The city attorney and city engineer have actively fought meeting the minimum stormwater management requirements.  The mayor has been notified of deficiencies by ADEM; the deficiencies have not been corrected. 

[1] The current NPDES Permit for Hoover: https://lf.adem.alabama.gov/WebLink/DocView.aspx?id=105521690&dbid=0&cr=1 (page 50)

[2] The Hoover Draft SWMPP: https://al-hoover3.civicplus.com/DocumentCenter/View/10278/Hoover-DRAFT-2025-Stormwater-Management-Program-Plan?bidId=

[3] The 2024 MS4 Annual Report: https://al-hoover3.civicplus.com/DocumentCenter/View/9752/2024-MS4-Annual-Report?bidId=  and Appendices: https://al-hoover3.civicplus.com/DocumentCenter/View/9753/2024-MS4-Annual-Report---Appendices?bidId=