Summary Accomplishments
Since 1998, concerted efforts by WMU to address stormwater runoff from their campus footprint and adjacent areas contributing stormwater to WMU infrastructure, as well as community investments through matching grant funds have paid dividends for local water quality in the Portage-Arcadia Creek drainage area. Accomplishments include:
- WMU stormwater treatment projects within their MS4 campus footprint, achieved the 50% TMDL reduction in 2013 from their 1998 baseline annual load of 764 pounds.
- To date, these on-campus projects have reduced their annual TP loading footprint to 175 pounds from the 1998 baseline (a 77% reduction).
- Stormwater treatment areal coverage has increased from 236 acres in 1998 to 488 acres in 2021 out of 619 acres on the Main WMU campus; a 52% improvement over 2011 treatment coverage.
- WMU鈥檚 treatment of runoff from areas adjacent to campus not under their control contributing additional runoff to their infrastructure, and off-site project investments have achieved an annual load reduction of 968 lbs/year to the Portage-Arcadia Creek watershed and downstream Lake Allegan.
- Overall load reductions since 1998 achieved a zero-discharge Stormwater NeutralSM status for total phosphorus by 2013.
- Continued WMU commitments to address remaining untreated areas on their campus and adjacent areas have now surpassed the zero-discharge goal by more than 200 pounds/year.
- Reductions since 1998 represent capital improvement expenditures of over $5.8M in stormwater retrofits and new treatment infrastructure; portions of this investment coming from university and technical partner persistence to pursue grant funding.
- Local stormwater infrastructure improvements led by WMU have resulted in significant stormwater volume reductions that have mitigated severe wet weather flooding events on compus and in downstream urban areas of the City of Kalamazoo along Arcadia Creek.
- WMU continues to pursue local water quality improvements by integrating low impact development and green infrastructure on all future campus renovations.
- Large, regional treatment opportunities still exist on-campus that have been conceptually designed and targeted for grant fund implementation support.
