Call to Action: Clean Water in Chesco

Clean Water Action of Pennsylvania released "Paving Less," their annual report grading 20 area municipalities on their codes pertaining to stormwater management, on May 31 at the . The towns were graded in 22 categories like curb and gutter requirements, tree conservation, and stormwater treatment capacity and each was given a 1-100 score.

Chester County towns like Spring City, East Pikeland and Phoenixville were discussed.

Brady Russell, the Eastern Pennsylvania Director of Clean Water Action, offered facts to the municipalities.

Russell’s group offered four general recommendations for local municipalities interested in having a code that best protects the environment: they advise involving the full elected board of the municipality in the decision making, opening the process to the community, running a cost benefit analysis of code changes, and consulting directly with environmental groups.

“We’re asking people to stop thinking of stormwater as a byproduct of development,” said Michelle Adams, principal engineer with Meliora Environmental Design. “The importance [of proper code writing] can’t be overstated.”