Providence, RI-- The R.I. House has voted 60-0 to
approve the Smart Development For A Cleaner
Bay Act of 2007. The legislation will raise Rhode Island’s runoff
standards for new development and redevelopment projects to better protect the
Bay and Rhode Island’s lakes, rivers and streams from pollution. The legislation
was introduced by Rep. Ray Sullivan (Coventry, West Greenwich).
“You can’t overstate the importance of protecting the
quality of the water in our rivers, reservoirs and the Bay,” said Rep. Sullivan.
“We can’t live without clean water, so it has to be a consideration whenever
land is developed. This legislation will ensure that developers take advantage
of the latest techniques to keep pollution from stormwater runoff from entering
the watershed.”
Runoff from development, also called stormwater runoff,
is a source of bacteria, nitrogen and phosphorous in Narragansett Bay and other
waterways throughout the state. Stormwater runoff also carries harmful
chemicals and other toxins into Rhode Island’s rivers and streams.
“This bill whose time has come,” said Matt Auten,
Advocate for Environment Rhode Island. “Encouraging, but not requiring smarter,
cleaner development practices is no longer enough to protect the Bay or our
rivers and streams from pollution. Now is the time to require smarter
development in Rhode Island and Environment Rhode Island applauds Rep. Sullivan
and the R.I. House for taking a big step in the right
direction.
A companion bill (S-808) has been introduced in the R.I.
Senate by Sen. Paul Moura (East Providence). If enacted into law the Smart Development For A Cleaner Bay Act of
2007 would:
· Require modern low-impact site design techniques to
be used as the primary method to manage stormwater.
· Prevent new runoff pollution and help maintain Rhode
Island’s natural water cycle and supply system by requiring pre-development
groundwater recharge to be maintained on-site.
· Ensure that state, federal and public agencies
implement policies and procedures to comply with the new requirements and that
municipal stormwater ordinances are also updated to meet the new standards.
