The Shumlin administration has recommended two sources of revenue to pay for plans to improve Lake Champlain’s water quality, including a per parcel fee on impervious development and a 1 percent increase in the state’s fertilizer tax.
The proposal said the total cost of implementing the state’s near-term water quality priorities is unknown.
The Agency of Natural Resources released its Clean Water Initiative (see report below) on Monday to outline the administration’s near-term priorities and funding commitments for restoring the lake’s water quality. The initiative was released the same day the federal Environmental Protection Agency is hosting the first two of four public hearings on new phosphorus regulations.
“Clean water is essential to all Vermonters,” Gov. Peter Shumlin said in a statement. “This report is another important step forward in our effort to protect our streams, rivers, ponds and lakes.”
In order to raise $1 million annually, per-parcel development fees would range from $100 to $400 per equivalent residential unit, the report states. A 1 percent increase in the state excise tax on fertilizers would raise approximately $450,000 annually, it said.
Phosphorus is the chief source of annual algae blooms in Lake Champlain, causing a thick, green scum common in the later summer months in certain sections of the lake. The phosphorus comes from agricultural fertilizer, sewage and urban development that washes into the lake when it rains. That’s why the state has focused its attention on runoff from farms, roads, forests and urban development.
The plan addresses the administration’s five water quality priorities:
• Implementing new agricultural standards;
• Treating stormwater runoff from developed areas;
• Installing pollution controls along state and local roads;
• Restoring river and stream channels, as well as other natural infrastructure like wetlands and forests;
• Increasing investment in wastewater treatment infrastructure.
Shumlin said in August that it is not worth investing in additional upgrades to wastewater treatment plants, which the state says would reduce phosphorus loading by only 3 percent. EPA has repeatedly asked the state to limit phosphorus pollution from wastewater treatment facilities.
The state still does not believe investing in wastewater treatment facility is the most cost effective way to reduce phosphorus pollution in Lake Champlain, but there are plants that need to be upgraded anyway, according to the report.
In a May letter to the state, the EPA said Vermont will not meet its phosphorus reduction targets in the Missisquoi Bay and South Lake segments by focusing only on nonpoint sources. The state’s proposed Total Maximum Daily Load, or TMDL, aims to reduce phosphorus loading by 36 percent. Shumlin on May 29 sent a letter of commitment to the EPA to implement the state’s plan.
There are 120 municipally and privately owned wastewater collection and treatment plants in Vermont, according to the report, and nearly all municipalities with aging wastewater treatment systems need assistance in managing their assets.
“Many systems must implement improvements to either maintain or attain compliance with state clean water standards to protect public health and the environment,” the report says.
