What Is Routine Maintenance?
Once stormwater projects are completed, the day-to-day maintenance of the facility is the responsibility of the property owner. If the site is a residential site, the property is typically owned by a community’s Homeowners Association.
The HOA is then responsible for maintaining the stormwater facilities to their originally designed specifications. These facilities, also known as “Best Management Practices,” fall under one of the following classifications:
- Wet Ponds
- Dry Ponds
- Bioretention
- Infiltration Basins
- Bioswales
- Underground Systems
- Sand Filters
- Constructed Wetlands
- Filter Strips
Each type of Best Management Practice or “BMP” has unique set of maintenance needs. These needs are outlined in what are called an “Operation and Maintenance Plan”. This plan outlines the routine maintenance items as well as long term maintenance issues that will need to be addressed over the lifetime of a stormwater pond. Each BMP has an effective life span until it would need to be reconstructed to return it to its original design. Routine maintenance such as trash removal, tree and vegetation cutting, or sediment removal is done to push off that reconstruction phase as long as possible. A little work today, puts off a lot of work tomorrow.
The Kent Conservation District is available to provide technical assistance to communities for the upkeep of their facilities. Read more information about Operations and Maintenance Plans.
Stormwater Maintenance District – Kent County Levy Court
In March 2014, Kent County Levy Court approved the Stormwater Maintenance District program. This program provides an alternative to homeowner responsibility for long-term maintenance of stormwater infrastructure within subdivisions and land developments, and relieves homeowners of the burden of minor and major stormwater maintenance.
For information on joining, please view the handout below:
Stormwater Maintenance District Handout
Operation & Maintenance Plans
- Bioretention Operation and Maintenance Guide
- Bioswale Operation and Maintenance Guide
- Constructed Wetlands Operation and Maintenance Guide
- Dry Pond (Detention Basin) Operation and Maintenance Guide
- Infiltration Operation and Maintenance Guide
- Wet Pond Operation and Maintenance Guide
Workshops & Events
Nothing currently — please check back soon!
Technical Resources for Stormwater Maintenance
- EPA’s Stormwater Wet Pond and Wetland Management
- Swale Fact Sheet
- Turfgrass Fact Sheet
- Kent County Online Mapping
- Kent County Ground Water Conditions
Pond Maintenance Companies
For a list of contractors who perform maintenance to stormwater faclities, please visit the DNREC website.
Native Plants
- USDA Plant Database
- Delaware Wildflowers
- Arbor Day Foundation
- National Wildlife Federation
- Audubon Society
Pictured: Symphyotrichum cordifolium, courtesy of www.delawarewildflowers.org / David G. Smith.