Is Chattanooga Violating Tennessee's Storm Water Rules?

Right now, Chattanooga is violating state law, but is the city being punished for it?

Not as much as you think..

A NewsChannel 9 viewer emailed us with a big question about Chattanooga's approach to storm water management, after visiting the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation's website..

That question has prompted a NewsChannel 9 investigation, and we've discovered the city has been slow to correct many of its problems with the handling of storm water runoff..

Chattanooga's state-issued storm water permit expired seven years ago.. It still doesn't have one..

"Many of the elements of the permit were not being adhered to," says Dick Urban, the Field Office Manager of Water Quality for the Tennessee Department of Conversation and Environment.

Before the city could apply for a new one in 2001, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation and the E-P-A conducted a surprise audit of Chattanooga's storm water program..

NewsChannel 9 has obtained a copy of the detailed results of an agreement between the city and state.

In that agreement, we've discovered 23 violations, among them, no storm water master plan, no storm water monitoring program, and, no program to monitor pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers in storm water runoff..

"Probably the largest in terms of scope has to do with the collecting of drainage system inventory for all of the catch basins, curb inlets, manholes, pipes, ditches throughout the city," says Chattanooga City Engineer Bill Payne. Apparently, Chattanooga's entire network of storm water drains have to be cataloged to see if they're capable of handling the runoff that flows through them.

Mr. Payne says, Chattanooga had already started that program when they got caught.

"Is this something that Chattanooga could have foreseen," I asked him. "It is something that we had been requesting funding for," he replied.

As a result of the violations, Chattanooga was fined $100,000, but was allowed at that time to spend half the money to correct problems in Lower Citico Creek at the Carver Rec Center, the worst polluted stream in the city..

That creek was loaded with e-coli contamination..

"We found more than 1,100 service lines that had problems, anomalies, and leaks," says City Water Quality Manager Mounir Minkara, "and we have corrected about 70 per cent of them."

As for the other violations, the city says, at no time, was the health and safety of families in danger..

"Can you assure the people of Chattanooga that the problems are being taken care of?" I asked Mr. Payne. "Oh absolutely," he replied, "of the 23 violations that you mentioned, we're down to only two remaining."

So you might be wondering how the city can operate its required storm water system, WITHOUT a current permit?

"We're still operating under a valid expired permit, and that is a strange way of saying it," says Mr. Payne, "but the way the permit is written, it continues to remain in effect, even though it has expired."

The five-million dollar cataloging of all drains, manholes, culverts, bridges and concrete channels takes years to complete but it has to be finished by September 30th. Mr. Payne says they'll make that deadline..

If not, another extension can be asked for, but if it's turned down, the city will pay another $50,000 penalty.