DALTON, Ga. — The city recently hired a stormwater management director.
Phillip Pfeifer will help ensure that stormwater runoff in the area doesn’t carry chemicals, sediment and debris into the Conasauga River Watershed.
Mr. Pfeifer will be both an educator and enforcer on stormwater issues.
Last week, he spoke to the Chattanooga Times Free Press about stormwater management — which he said helps preserve the health of animals, people and the environment.
Q: How does stormwater runoff work?
A: Well, a lot of pollutants attach themselves to particles, silt particles. The silt actually is a way of moving the pollutants.... When it rains, off the streets, or yards, you have what’s called nonpoint source pollution.
You have fertilizers and herbicides that are sprayed on lawns.
And then you have the feces from domestic animals flowing off. You’ve got failed septic systems.
We had one system in Gwinnett (County) where the septic tank failed. They took their discharge in the house directly to a black PVC pipe and discharged it directly into the stream.
There’s people that just don’t realize what they’re doing.
Q: What is your job going to be?
A: I’m told I’ll be wearing many hats. ... I’ll be doing erosion plan review, stormwater plan review, weather screening, drainage complaints, public outreach announcements.
Q: Do you see yourself working with people like Frank Sagona from the Conasauga River Alliance?
A: I do. I see stormwater management as stewardship. We’re all called to be good stewards of our environment.
If we can all work together... all of this information (from scientists and conservationists) is valuable to people in public policy arenas because it then gives us more educational information ... to share with the general public.
For example, right now, let’s take Dalton Utilities. They charge (money) for water. Plugged into that cost is treatment procedures. If we have a
total disregard for our streams ...
then the treatment costs go up.
Q: It sounds like a lot of your job is going to be public outreach.
A: Public outreach, enforcement. Helping people to become
aware. It’s a learning process.
Q: Do you find that some people aren’t aware of nonpoint source pollution?
A: A lot of people that are
out there working ... whether it
be developing or building, every
new cost that you tack on to
them takes money out of their
pocket. ... It’s hard for them to
think of doing it a different way
because maybe it’s going to cost more money. Whereas, maybe we can do it a different way, and save money in the end.
Q: Can you give me an example of something that would help the environment and help people save money?
A: Let’s say a builder, he’s at a steep spot, and he’s got to spend several hundred dollars to put erosion fencing up around the property. If he spends the time and installs it properly, and he maintains it, then through the overall cycle of that house construction, he’ll save money.
If he does not maintain the silt fencing ... then all that mud and silt goes into the stormwater.
And then we’re called because there’s a complaint. He could be issued a citation, which is $1,000 a day.
It would be better for him to maintain it first rather than face the consequences.
So many times, rather than being proactive, we’re reactive.
Q: You’re not just the enforcer, you’re also the educator?
A: That’s the biggest thing we want to stress — it’s all about education.
The reason we do these things is to protect the environment. ... One of the biggest pastimes that we as human beings... appreciate is recreation. The last thing we want to see is for our next generation to have a big sign across a state park: ‘Closed because of polluted water.’
NEWSMAKER
Name: Phillip Pfeifer
Age: 53
Occupation: Stormwater manager
Hometown: Chevy Chase, Md.
