Wis. Admin. Code Department of Natural Resources NR 151.24

Current through September 30, 2024
Section NR 151.24 - Post-construction performance standard
(1) APPLICABILITY. This section applies to a transportation facility that is or was subject to the construction performance standards of s. NR 151.23, except any of the following:
(a) A transportation construction site where the department has received a notice of intent for the construction project in accordance with subch. III of ch. NR 216 within 2 years after October 1, 2002.
(b) A transportation facility construction site that has undergone final stabilization within 2 years after October 1, 2002.
(bm) A transportation post-construction site for which the department received a notice of intent for the construction project in accordance with subch. III of ch. NR 216 on or after January 1, 2011. Transportation post-construction sites for which the department received a notice of intent for the construction project, in accordance with subch. III of ch. NR 216, on or after January 1, 2011, shall meet the performance standards of ss. NR 151.242 to 151.249.
(c) Reconditioning or resurfacing of a highway.
(d) Minor reconstruction of a highway. Notwithstanding the exemption under this paragraph, the protective areas requirements in sub. (6) apply to minor reconstruction of a highway.
(e) A redevelopment transportation facility with no increase in exposed parking lots or roads.
(f) A transportation facility with less than 10% connected imperviousness based on complete development of the transportation facility, provided the cumulative area of all parking lots and rooftops is less than one acre.

Note: Projects that consist of only the construction of bicycle paths or pedestrian trails generally meet this exception as these facilities have minimal connected imperviousness.

(g) Protective area requirements under sub. (6) do apply to actions described in s. NR 151.20(2).
(h) A transportation facility, the construction of which involves activity described in s. NR 151.23(1) (a) 2. but that has less than one acre of land disturbing construction activity.
(i) Transportation facility construction projects that are part of a larger common plan of development, such as a residential or industrial development, that are in compliance with the performance standards of subch. III.
(j) Routine maintenance for transportation facilities if performed to maintain the original line and grade, hydraulic capacity or original purpose of the facility.
(2) PLAN. A written plan shall be developed and implemented for each transportation facility and shall incorporate the requirements of subs. (3) to (10).
(3) TOTAL SUSPENDED SOLIDS. Best management practices shall be designed, installed and maintained to control total suspended solids carried in runoff from the transportation facility as follows:
(a) For new transportation facilities, by design, reduce to the maximum extent practicable, the suspended solids load by 80%, based on an average annual rainfall, as compared to no runoff management controls. No person shall be required to exceed an 80% total suspended solids reduction to meet the requirements of this paragraph.
(b) For highway reconstruction and non-highway redevelopment, by design, reduce to the maximum extent practicable, the total suspended solids load by 40%, based on an average annual rainfall, as compared to no runoff management controls. No person shall be required to exceed a 40% total suspended solids reduction to meet the requirements of this paragraph.
(c) Notwithstanding pars. (a) and (b), if the design cannot achieve the applicable total suspended solids reduction specified, the design plan shall include a written and site-specific explanation why that level of reduction is not attained and the total suspended solids load shall be reduced to the maximum extent practicable.

Note: Pollutant loading models such as SLAMM, P8 or equivalent methodology may be used to evaluate the efficiency of the design in reducing total suspended solids. Information on how to access SLAMM and P8 is available from the storm water coordinator in the runoff management section of the bureau of watershed management at dnr.wi.gov.

(4) PEAK DISCHARGE.
(a) By design, BMPs shall be employed to maintain or reduce the peak runoff discharge rates, to the maximum extent practicable, as compared to pre-development site conditions for the 2-year, 24-hour design storm applicable to the transportation facility. Pre-development conditions shall assume "good hydrologic conditions" for appropriate land covers as identified in TR-55 or an equivalent methodology. The meaning of "hydrologic soil group" and "runoff curve number" are as determined in TR-55. However, when pre-development land cover is cropland, rather than using TR-55 values for cropland, the runoff curve numbers in Table 2 of subch. III shall be used.

Note: The curve numbers in Table 2 represent mid-range values for soils under a good hydrologic condition where conservation practices are used and are selected to be protective of the resource waters.

(b) This subsection does not apply to:
1. A transportation facility where the change in hydrology due to development does not increase the existing surface water elevation at any point within the downstream receiving surface water by more than 0.01 of a foot for the 2-year, 24-hour storm event.

Note: Hydraulic models such as HEC-RAS or another methodology may be used to determine the change in surface water elevations.

2. A highway reconstruction site.
3. A transportation facility that is part of a redevelopment project.

Note: The intent of sub. (4) is to minimize streambank erosion under bank full conditions.

(5) INFILTRATION.
(a) Except as provided in pars. (d) to (g), BMPs shall be designed, installed and maintained to infiltrate runoff to the maximum extent practicable in accordance with one of the following:
1. Infiltrate sufficient runoff volume so that the post-development infiltration volume shall be at least 60% of the pre-development infiltration volume, based on an average annual rainfall. However, when designing appropriate infiltration systems to meet this requirement, no more than 2% of the project site is required as an effective infiltration area.
2. Infiltrate 10% of the post-development runoff volume from the 2-year, 24-hour design storm with a type II distribution. Separate curve numbers for pervious and impervious surfaces shall be used to calculate runoff volumes and not composite curve numbers as defined in TR-55. However, when designing appropriate infiltration systems to meet this requirement, no more than 2% of the project site is required as an effective infiltration area.
(b) Pre-development condition shall be the same as specified in sub. (4) (a).

Note: A model that calculates runoff volume, such as SLAMM, P8 or an equivalent methodology may be used. Information on how to access SLAMM and P8 is available from the storm water coordinator in the runoff management section of the bureau of watershed management at dnr.wi.gov.

(c) Before infiltrating runoff, pretreatment shall be required for parking lot runoff and for runoff from new road construction in commercial, industrial and institutional areas that will enter an infiltration system. The pretreatment shall be designed to protect the infiltration system from clogging prior to scheduled maintenance and to protect groundwater quality in accordance with par. (g). Pretreatment may include, but is not limited to, oil/grease separation, sedimentation, biofiltration, filtration, swales or filter strips.

Note: To minimize potential groundwater impacts it is desirable to infiltrate the cleanest runoff. To achieve this, a design may propose greater infiltration of runoff from low pollutant sources such as roofs, and less from higher pollutant source areas such as parking lots.

(d) The following are prohibited from meeting the requirements of this subsection:
1. Areas associated with tier 1 industrial facilities identified in s. NR 216.21(2) (a), including storage, loading, rooftop and parking.
2. Storage and loading areas of tier 2 industrial facilities identified in s. NR 216.21(2) (b).

Note: Runoff from tier 2 parking and rooftop areas may be infiltrated but may require pretreatment.

3. Fueling and vehicle maintenance areas.
4. Areas within 1000 feet upgradient or within 100 feet downgradient of karst features.
5. Areas with less than 3 feet separation distance from the bottom of the infiltration system to the elevation of seasonal high groundwater or the top of bedrock.
6. Areas with runoff from industrial, commercial and institutional parking lots and roads and residential arterial roads with less than 5 feet separation distance from the bottom of the infiltration system to the elevation of seasonal high groundwater or the top of bedrock.
7. Areas within 400 feet of a community water system well as specified in s. NR 811.16(4) or within 100 feet of a private well as specified in s. NR 812.08(4) for runoff infiltrated from commercial, industrial and institutional land uses or regional devices for residential development.
8. Areas where contaminants of concern, as defined in s. NR 720.03(2), are present in the soil through which infiltration will occur.
9. Any area where the soil does not exhibit one of the following characteristics between the bottom of the infiltration system and seasonal high groundwater and top of bedrock:
a. At least a 3-foot soil layer with 20% fines or greater.
b. At least a 5-foot soil layer with 10% fines or greater.
c. Where the soil medium within the infiltration system does not provide an equivalent level of protection.

Note: The areas listed in par. (d) are prohibited from infiltrating runoff due to the potential for groundwater contamination.

(e) Transportation facilities located in the following areas and otherwise subject to the requirements of this subchapter are not required to meet the requirements of this subsection:
1. Areas where the infiltration rate of the soil is less than 0.6 inches/hour measured at the bottom of the infiltration system.
2. Parking areas and access roads less than 5,000 square feet for commercial and industrial development.
3. Redevelopment post-construction sites.
4. In-fill development areas less than 5 acres.
5. Infiltration areas during periods when the soil on the site is frozen.
6. Roads in commercial, industrial and institutional land uses, and arterial residential roads.
7. Highways.
(f) Where alternate uses of runoff are employed, such as for toilet flushing, laundry or irrigation, such alternate use shall be given equal credit toward the infiltration volume required by this subsection.
(g)
1. Infiltration systems designed in accordance with this subsection shall, to the extent technically and economically feasible, minimize the level of pollutants infiltrating to groundwater and shall maintain compliance with the preventive action limit at a point of standards application in accordance with ch. NR 140. However, if site specific information indicates that compliance with a preventive action limit is not achievable, then the infiltration BMP may not be installed or shall be modified to prevent infiltration to the maximum extent practicable.
2. Notwithstanding subd.1., the discharge from BMPs shall remain below the enforcement standard at the point of standards application.
(6) PROTECTIVE AREAS.
(a) In this subsection, "protective area" means an area of land that commences at the top of the channel of lakes, streams and rivers, or at the delineated boundary of wetlands, and that is the greatest of the following widths, as measured horizontally from the top of the channel or delineated wetland boundary to the closest impervious surface. However, in this paragraph, "protective area" does not include any area of land adjacent to any stream enclosed within a pipe or culvert, such that runoff cannot enter the enclosure at this location.
1. For outstanding resource waters and exceptional resource waters, and for wetlands in areas of special natural resource interest as specified in s. NR 103.04, 75 feet.
2. For perennial and intermittent streams identified on a United States geological survey 7.5-minute series topographic map, or a county soil survey map, whichever is more current, 50 feet.
3. For lakes, 50 feet.
4. For highly susceptible wetlands, 50 feet. Highly susceptible wetlands include the following types: fens, sedge meadows, bogs, low prairies, conifer swamps, shrub swamps, other forested wetlands, fresh wet meadows, shallow marshes, deep marshes and seasonally flooded basins. Wetland boundary delineation shall be made in accordance with s. NR 103.08(1m). This paragraph does not apply to wetlands that have been completely filled in accordance with all applicable state and federal regulations. The protective area for wetlands that have been partially filled in accordance with all applicable state and federal regulations shall be measured from the wetland boundary delineation after fill has been placed.
5. For less susceptible wetlands, 10% of the average wetland width, but no less than 10 feet nor more than 30 feet. Less susceptible wetlands include degraded wetlands dominated by invasive species such as reed canary grass.
6. In subds. 1., 4. and 5., determinations of the extent of the protective area adjacent to wetlands shall be made on the basis of the sensitivity and runoff susceptibility of the wetland in accordance with the standards and criteria in s. NR 103.03.
7. For concentrated flow channels with drainage areas greater than 130 acres, 10 feet.
(b)
1. Beginning with land acquired within a protective area for a transportation facility on or after October 1, 2002, no impervious surface of a transportation facility may be constructed within a protective area, unless the transportation facility authority determines, in consultation with the department, that there is no practical alternative. If there is no practical alternative to locating a transportation facility within a protective area, the transportation facility may be constructed in the protective area only to the extent the transportation facility authority, in consultation with the department, determines is reasonably necessary, and the transportation facility authority shall state in the design plan prepared pursuant to s. NR 151.22(1) (a), why it is necessary to construct the transportation facility within a protective area.
2. If a transportation facility is constructed within a protective area, adequate sod or self-sustaining vegetative cover of 70% or greater shall be established and maintained in the area that is the width of the protective area, or the greatest width practical, and throughout the length of the protective area in which the transportation facility is located. The adequate sod or self-sustaining vegetative cover required under this paragraph shall be sufficient to provide for bank stability, maintenance of fish habitat and filtering of pollutants from upslope overland flow areas under sheet flow conditions. Non-vegetative materials, such as rock riprap, may be employed on the bank as necessary to prevent erosion such as on steep slopes or where high velocity flows occur.

Note: It is recommended that seeding of non-aggressive vegetative cover be used in the protective areas. Vegetation that is flood and drought tolerant and can provide long-term bank stability because of an extensive root system is preferable. Vegetative cover may be measured using the line transect method described in the university of Wisconsin-extension publication number A3533, titled "Estimating Residue Using the Line Transect Method".

3. Best management practices such as filter strips, swales or wet detention basins, that are designed to control pollutants from nonpoint sources may be located in the protective width area.

Note: Other regulations, such as ch. 30, Stats., and chs. NR 103, 115, 116 and 117 and their associated review and approval process may apply in the protective area.

4. This subsection does not apply to:
a. Non-highway transportation redevelopment sites.
b. Transportation facilities that cross or access surface waters, such as boat landings, bridges and culverts.
c. Structures constructed in accordance with s. 59.692(1v), Stats.
d. Transportation facilities from which runoff does not enter the surface water, except to the extent that vegetative ground cover is necessary to maintain bank stability.

Note: A vegetated protective area to filter runoff pollutants from transportation facilities described in subd. 4. d. is not necessary since runoff is not entering the surface water at that location. Other practices necessary to meet requirements of this section, such as a swale or basin, will need to be designed and implemented to reduce runoff pollutants prior to runoff entering a surface water of the state.

(7) FUELING AND VEHICLE MAINTENANCE AREAS. Fueling and vehicle maintenance areas shall, to the maximum extent practicable, have BMPs designed, installed and maintained to reduce petroleum within runoff, such that the runoff that enters waters of the state contains no visible petroleum sheen.

Note: A combination of the following BMPs may be used: oil and grease separators, canopies, petroleum spill cleanup materials, or any other structural or non-structural method of preventing or treating petroleum in runoff.

(8) LOCATION. To comply with the standards required under this section, BMPs may be located on-site or off-site as part of a regional storm water device, practice or system, but shall be installed in accordance with s. NR 151.003.
(9) TIMING. The BMPs required under this section shall be installed before the construction site has undergone final stabilization.
(10) SWALE TREATMENT.
(a)Applicability. Except as provided in par. (b), transportation facilities that use swales for runoff conveyance and pollutant removal meet all of the requirements of this section, if the swales are designed to the maximum extent practicable to do all of the following:
1. Be vegetated. However, where appropriate, non-vegetative measures may be employed to prevent erosion or provide for runoff treatment, such as rock riprap stabilization or check dams.

Note: It is preferred that tall and dense vegetation be maintained within the swale due to its greater effectiveness at enhancing runoff pollutant removal.

2. Carry runoff through a swale for 200 feet or more in length that is designed with a flow velocity no greater than 1.5 feet per second for the peak flow generated using either a 2-year, 24-hour design storm or a 2-year design storm with a duration equal to the time of concentration as appropriate. If a swale of 200 feet in length cannot be designed with a flow velocity of 1.5 feet per second or less, the flow velocity shall be reduced to the maximum extent practicable.

Note: Check dams may be included in the swale design to slow runoff flows and improve pollutant removal. Transportation facilities with continuous features such as curb and gutter, sidewalks or parking lanes do not comply with the design requirements of this subsection. However, a limited amount of structural measures such as curb and gutter may be allowed as necessary to account for other concerns such as human safety or resource protection.

(b)Exemptions.
1. Notwithstanding par. (a), the department may, consistent with water quality standards, require other provisions of this section, in addition to swale treatment, be met on a transportation facility with an average daily traffic rate greater than 2500 and where the initial surface water of the state that the runoff directly enters is any of the following:
a. An outstanding resource water.
b. An exceptional resource water.
c. Waters listed in section 303 (d) of the federal clean water act that are identified as impaired in whole or in part, due to nonpoint source impacts.
d. Waters where targeted performance standards are developed pursuant to s. NR 151.004.
2. The transportation facility authority shall contact the department's regional storm water staff or the department's liaison to the department of transportation to determine if additional BMPs beyond a water quality swale are needed under this paragraph.

Wis. Admin. Code Department of Natural Resources NR 151.24

CR 00-027: cr. Register September 2002 No. 561, eff. 10-1-02; CR 09-112: cr. (1) (bm) Register December 2010 No. 660, eff. 1-1-11.
Amended by, correction in (2) (Note), (3) (c) (Note), (5) (b) (Note) made under s. 13.92(4) (b) 7, Stats., Register November 2018 No. 755, eff. 12/1/2018