City engineer: storm water program collected nearly 1,200 tons of material; city continues I/I and illicit discharge mitigation

City Engineer Mr. Johnson presented the draft annual storm water report to the Fond du Lac City Council on March 25, describing the program required by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and highlighting recent operational achievements.

Johnson said the construction and maintenance division applied best practices to snow and ice control to limit salt runoff, operated street sweepers that collected close to 1,200 tons of material during the year, and continued the city’s adopt‑a‑storm‑drain program in its seventh year to encourage resident stewardship. He framed the annual report as the city’s quantification of pollution prevention measures required under the DNR permit.

During Q&A, Council member Mr. Mullen asked for an example of an illicit discharge; Johnson described a carpet cleaning company that had been discharging cleaning wastewater into a storm inlet rather than to the sanitary sewer. Staff contacted the company and requested a corrective action plan. On infiltration and inflow (I/I), Johnson said the city addresses I/I through targeted sewer replacements and rehabilitation work scheduled for the year.

Council members thanked staff for the work. The report was presented as a draft; the council did not take formal legislative action on the report at the meeting.