Stormwater Management

About Stormwater

All water is not the same.  

• Tap water comes from a faucet and is used for drinking, bathing, cooking, and household purposes. 
• Wastewater has been used for showering, washing clothes or flushing the toilet. 
• Stormwater originates from rain or melting snow, or other activities involving outdoor water use such as car washing. Water that does not soak into the ground covered by impervious surfaces becomes run-off and either flows directly into surface waterways or is channeled into storm sewers. This eventually discharges into local water bodies.

The back bone of the Village’s stormwater drainage system is provided by three creeks:

• Lacey Creek, which is north of Ogden Avenue;
• St. Joseph Creek. which flows through the central portion of the Village; and
• Prentiss Creek, which is south of 63rd Street.

All three creeks drain westward and empty into the East Branch of the DuPage River. Storm drainage pipes, inlets, culverts, and ditches drain water from streets and properties to the three creeks.

To ensure water flows through these structures, storm drainage pipes are cleaned during the summer months to help clear up problem areas. Suspected pipe problems or failures are placed on a list of locations to be video taped with a TV camera specially designed to travel through underground pipes.

• Video: Stormwater Management

What is meant by impervious?

An impervious area is any area within a parcel which prevents or significantly impedes the infiltration of stormwater into the soil. Examples of impervious surfaces include:

• Parking lots
• Roofs
• Driveways
• Patios
• Sidewalks
• Swimming Pools
• Gravel and stone areas

As pervious areas (natural soil) become "paved", increased amounts of stormwater are generated, placing an increased demand on the stormwater system. 

What is the difference between the stormwater system and sanitary sewer system?
Water flowing through the sanitary sewer system is transported through a dedicated collection system and treated before being released back into the environment. Stormwater flows off streets, parking lots, etc. and is sent directly to ponds and streams. This water is not treated like sanitary discharge. 

Why does stormwater have to be managed?
Without proper stormwater management, rain events may result in flooding on roads and properties throughout the Village, leading to property damage and dangerous road conditions. Stormwater run-off must be channeled through a system of pipes, ditches, catch basins and storm drains before being safely discharged into local streams and rivers. Even if a specific property has never flooded, the stormwater that flows from the property still contributes to the overall flow and must be managed so that it does not cause flooding downstream on property or roads.

Why should I care about stormwater?
Any property is likely to generate run-off in a severe rain storm, even if the ground is able to absorb water in a normal rain event.  Everyone in the community benefits from adequate, properly functioning drainage and flood control systems, which decrease the likelihood of flooding, erosion, and the amount of pollutants discharged in surface and stormwater run-off.  

How is stormwater regulated?
The Village stormwater system is regulated by local, county, state and federal entities. The Village is required to manage the stormwater system at a level that ensures compliance with the federal Clean Water Act and in accordance with DuPage County stormwater regulations.

What is the Village doing to address stormwater?
Ongoing maintenance operations inlcude street sweeping, inspecting and cleaning of stormwater inlets, ditch repair and the repair and replacement of stormwater mains. In addition, the Village has commissioned several reports over the last ten years to help assess the condition of the existing stormwater system and to prioritize the work. These have provided the framework for many stormwater improvement projects. 

• In 2006, a Stormwater Master Plan was completed which provided recommendations for how the stormwater system should be managed to ensure compliance with the federal and county regulations.
• In 2007, a Watershed Infrastructure Improvement Plan (WIIP) was completed which provided recommendations on capital improvements that should be made to the stormwater system. To address some of the recommended capital needs, the Village issued $25 million in debt in 2008. The full value of the bond has now been used to fund a variety of stormwater improvement projects. 
• The 2014 Stormwater Project Analysis included a new approach for prioritizing stormwater capital improvement projects that is consistent with the Village's fee-based stormwater utility. The goal of this new approach is to establish a minimum service level standard for stormwater management such that the stormwater system will safely convey and store 95% of all rainfall events.

Managing Stormwater Run-Off at Home

By adding stormwater control features to your property, you help reduce the amount of stormwater flowing into the Village's stormwater system and onto your neighbor's property. You also help the environment by improving the quality of the runoff that reaches our waterways. For additional information about our waterways and what you can do to help improve water quality in our Village, visit our Creeks and Wetlands page.

Post Construction Best Management Practices (PCBMP)

The purpose of the PCBMP Manual is to provide property owners and developers with help meeting the Village's requirements for on-site stormwater runoff management. The Village code requires that property owners add water quality and stormwater control features any time new construction or additions to an existing structure result in more than 700 square feet of net new impervious area. Property owners can meet the requirements by adding features such as rain gardens, dry wells or permeable pavers.

Rain Gardens

A variety of information on constructing rain gardens can be found below: