Should Stormwater Mitigation Be Part of Open Space?

Northampton County's Open Space program consists of municipal park projects, farmland preservation and preservation of environmentally sensitive land. At yesterday's Open Space meeting, Open Space Coordinator Bryan Cope suggested it's time to start thinking outside the box with environmental services that include stream bank restoration, wetland mitigation and flood mitigation.

Scott Parsons agreed that stream bank restoration is "something we really have to look at," and mentioned as an example a bridge on Stockertown's Lefevre Road that was nearly lost as a result of a recent flash flood. "That's what our Act 13 money is all about," Parsons added referring to a fund from fracking extraction fees that can be used for stormwater mitigation.

I suggested that, instead of investing in dubious open space projects like steep slopes and swamps that will never be developed, it's time for the County to lead a regional approach on stormwater mitigation as well as stream bank restoration, which would help improve water qualities.Scott Parsons agreed, and suggested again that is where Act 13 money should be spent.

Open Space Advisory Board members like Isidore Mineo and council member Mat Benol pretty much rejected my suggestion out of hand. Mineo said the Advisory Board exists to preserve significant natural resources, without regard to whether they are developable. Mat Benol blamed the municipalities for developing too much, making stormwater mitigation a "waste of money."

Judith Henckel, an occasional sparring partner with Ron Angle, also slammed the idea of getting into stormwater management. "I'm afraid the natural areas part of the program is slipping away," she opined, arguing that we should be preserving our history, culture and biodiversity. She opposes using open space money for a "public works stormwater management program."

I think we should be preserving people's homes from being washed away every time it rains. Advisory Board members want that money spent on people like themselves, who have spent quite a bit of the county's money preserving their own properties.

Parsons promised to discuss this issue again when his Committee meets in October.

What Can We Do To Solve Our Stormwater Problem?

Marcellus Shale. To some, it's a Godsend that will put people to work and strengthen our national security by reducing our dependence on foreign oil. To others, it's a curse that will destroy our environment and result in even more ghost towns than were produced by strip mining in the coal regions, where towns like Turkey Run ran away. But no matter how you feel about hydraulic fracking, no one can deny that it has been a windfall to counties like Northampton, which have no Marcellus Shale. This is because of the impact fee that trickles down to all counties. Lehigh and Northampton County received a combined $627,795 in 2014 from natural gas drillers. So far, the money has been used for environmental initiatives and bridge repairs. But it's time to start thinking about using some of that money for something far more pressing to anyone who lives in the Lehigh Valley. I'm suggesting that it is time for local leaders to start some serious stormwater mitigation planning. Thanks to the Marcellus Shale Legacy fund, we have the money to do it.

Last week, Bethlehem Township was hit with a heavy downpour in the middle of a Commissioners' meeting. The flash flooding was so intense that it's a miracle no one was killed. For that, residents can thank the Nancy Run and Bethlehem Township Volunteer Fire companies, both of which act selflessly during times of crisis. Planning Commissioner Les Walker dismissed the storm as a fluke, something that only happens once every 500 years. But as Attorney tom Elliott countered, we've been experiencing a lot of those 500-year storms in recent years.

I made it home in that disaster, but should not have. The Blue had become one of the great lakes, while Easton Avenue along the Keystone Pub had turned into a Class 5 rapids. The bottom of Hope Road next to the Bethlehem Boat Club is hopeless, completely washed away, and for the second or third time in my memory. It is only a matter of time before fire companies begin requesting submarines.

Some of the reason for all this storm water is undeniably because areas like Easton Avenue at the Keystone Pub are at the lowest point of the Nancy Run watershed. But all of this is exacerbated by the runoff from all the development occurring over the years, both in the township and City of Bethlehem, along with developments going north.

Bethlehem has had its own troubles. Just a few short years ago the flash flooding produced by a sudden downpour ruined Musikfest, which by its nature is somewhat at the mercy of the elements.

In Allentown, sudden downpours cause manhole covers to pop open and spill into Jordan Creek.

These storm waters are usually low quality water, containing arsenic or even fecal matter in more urban areas.

I have listed some of my observations, but you may be aware of much more than I presented here. It is a serious problem and it is a regional problem, the kind that requires communities to work together for a solution. Naturally, nothing has been done. My own research reveals that, occasional, one municipality may threaten to sue another, but that's about it.

After Monday night's Planning Commission meeting, I was speaking to the Roth brothers. They are two ornery men who pretty much hate everything, so naturally, I like them. They suggested that it is time to start using these Marcellus Shale funds and open space money to solve this area's stormwater problem. I discussed this yesterday with Bryan Cope, the Open Space coordinator in Northampton Couunty, and he agreed it's time for some of this out-of-the-box thinking.

Instead of spending a small fortune to provide a handout for some wealthy investment planner as is proposed in Williams Township, why not take some of the Marcellus Shale funding to thoroughly study and then address our stormwater problem? Executive John Brown has started a $1 million grant program to aid our outlying communities. One of their biggest problems is stormwater. Why not address it in a meaningful way? Instead of spending that money to buy swampland or cliffs that will never be developed anyway, why not use that money where it will actually do some good?

If there is open space and state money behind this, municipalities should be much more likely to cooperate with each other. Unfortunately, the Open Space Advisory Board is made up of people who seem to think their obligation is to help out millionaires. In fact, on a municipal level, some of them sit on the local boards that vote to preserve their own property.

There's a vacancy on the Open Space Advisory Board right now. I was going to apply for a position myself, but believe I am too controversial to be effective. But if one of you comes from a business or engineering background, or is just sick of seeing good money wasted on goofy projects while your basement fills with water every time it rains, why not apply?

In the meantime, what is your own experience with stormwaters? Do you think it's getting worse? Where do you live and what do you see? How would you address it?