Best practice environmental management for urban stormwater

The Draft Urban Stormwater—Queensland Best Practice Environmental Management Guidelines 2009 have been released for public comment and submissions are invited.

This document is part of a suite of guidelines that are available to support the implementation of best practice for urban stormwater management. The draft guidelines will assist urban developers, catchment managers and government decision makers to better manage urban stormwater quantity and quality to achieve protection of relevant environmental values and water quality objectives for waterways. It provides direction on improved environmental management of urban catchments and waterways by providing:

guidance on design objectives
planning controls
selection of structural treatment measures
best practice
urban stormwater quality management plans.

Supporting technical note
WSUD supporting documents
Urban stormwater management in Queensland
Managing nutrients for coastal algal blooms

Your feedback is invited on the Draft Urban Stormwater—Queensland Best Practice Environmental Management guidelines 2009

Your feedback is invited on the Draft Urban Stormwater—Queensland Best Practice Environmental Management (BPEM) guidelines 2009, by way of comments, suggestions for changes, further inclusions or additions.

To make your submission more effective, please clearly detail the chapters or sections to which your suggestions apply.

The closing date for submissions is 30 November 2009.
Comments can be sent by e-mail to storm.water@derm.qld.gov.au and please enter subject line ‘Feedback – BPEM guide 09’

Comments may also be forwarded by post or facsimile. Send your ‘Feedback to Draft Urban Stormwater—Qld BPEM guidelines 2009’, for the attention of:

Project Manager
Draft Urban Stormwater Guidelines
Water Division
Department of Environment and Resource Management
GPO Box 2454
BRISBANE QLD 4001
Facsimile: 07 3406 2190

Copies of the draft SPP and SPP guideline may also be obtained by contacting the Department of Environment and Resource Management by telephone on 07 3405 6898. Alternatively, copies may be obtained and inspected during business hours at the local departmental business centres.

Supporting technical note

The accompanying Technical Note: Derivation of Design Objectives summarises the technical studies completed to derive statewide water sensitive urban design (WSUD) objectives as presented in Chapter 2 of the draft Urban Stormwater—Queensland Best Practice Environmental Management Guidelines 2009. The proposed design objectives were derived using the same technical methods employed for derivation of WSUD objectives for urban developments in South East Queensland as described in WSUD: Developing Design Objectives for Water Sensitive Developments in South East Queensland – Version 2, 8 November 2007 (PDF)* (SEQ HWP 2007).

The performance measures for each of three objectives (stormwater quality, frequent flows, and waterway stability) are presented in this Technical Note and have been derived to reflect the different climatic regions throughout Queensland.

WSUD supporting documents

A business case for Water Sensitive Urban Design by the South East Queensland Healthy Waterways Partnership (Water by Design 2009) addresses the costs and benefits of meeting urban stormwater design objectives for the management of stormwater quality, frequent flows and waterways stability.

The Water Sensitive Urban Design Deemed to Comply Solutions – Stormwater Quality (Draft) by South East Queensland Healthy Waterways Partnership (Water by Design 2009) outlines a series of ‘off the shelf’ stormwater solutions for meeting water quality design objectives for small scale development in South East Queensland.

Urban stormwater management in Queensland

Unless well managed, urban stormwater can potentially cause a significant amount of contaminants such as nutrients, sediment and rubbish to enter waterways. The concentration of stormwater flows can disrupt ecosystem health including causing waterway erosion. Similarly, development that discharges waste water to waterways can mobilise contaminants that affect water environmental values.

Managing water quality in urban areas to protect environmental values will also ensure waterways and their aquatic ecosystems are in a condition to better cope with climate change impacts.

Under the Environmental Protection Act 1994 (PDF)*, the Environmental Protection (Water) Policy 2009 (PDF)* (EPP Water 2009) establishes environmental values (EVs) and water quality objectives (WQOs) for Queensland waters through community consultative processes. Environmental values for water are specified in Part 3 of the EPP Water 2009. The EPP Water 2009 also sets out the Queensland policies for managing water quality for achieving water quality objectives including the need for best practice environmental management.