By Lori Graham
BLACKSBURG – The Virginia Erosion and Stormwater Management program was the major topic of discussion during a public hearing at the Blacksburg Town Council meeting on April 8, 2025.
According to the Blacksburg Town Council meeting agenda, the 2061 (C) “Ordinance to amend the town code by incorporating the provisions of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality’s Model Erosion and Stormwater Management Ordinance into Town Code Chapter Ten at new sections 10-100 through 10-130.” Ordinances 2061 (A) and Ordinance 2061 (B) would be repealed.”
Town staff member Kafi Howard presented recommendations to council and community members during the meeting.
“The state has adopted a new stormwater erosion and stormwater management act, which requires all localities to consolidate their EMS and stormwater programs,” Howard said. “We have to repeal two ordinances so that we can adopt this new consolidated ordinance.”
One change that would take effect with the new ordinance includes a new land disturbance threshold from 5,000 to 10,000 square feet for water quality controls while less than 5,000 square feet would remain the same, according to Howard’s presentation.
For one-duplex residential structures “outside of a common plan development with less than one acre of disturbance” there would be an exception, treating the building as similar to a single-family dwelling,” Howard said. “Prior to this, duplexes were regulated at a much higher threshold, a much stringent standard.”
Updated technical guidance documents and administrative streamlining of reference materials to regulations as stated in the Code of Virginia or the VESMP Regulations were also a part of the changes.
Howard also said that the ordinance is recommended to take effect on July 1, 2025, with the council’s approval, with all site plans adhering to the regulations on or after that date.
“As others have mentioned, the two main water bodies or waterways in Blacksburg, Tom’s and Stroubles Creek, are both impaired,” Blacksburg citizen Gwyneth Homer said, also citing the impact erosion and water runoff has on animal and human life. “It is my understanding that this would increase the amount of land needed to be disturbed in order for it to really qualify for the same amounts of sedimentation and erosion control.”
Steve Gillespie echoed other citizen’s comments in attendance at the meeting, that doubling the threshold requires more attention as to the impact this could cause to Blacksburg’s environment.
“I want to make sure that council is aware that folks in town, while we do need some relief to make things easier here for developers to build the sorts of things we want built, that shouldn’t come at the cost of our environmental standards and safeguards,” he said.
Howard addressed citizens concerns saying that the increase of threshold is only for very small structures and is still more stringent than the state’s standards.
“I would like to add that the staff has been working on this for months and months and months, but while this came in a beautifully succinct and well-presented presentation, this has been, I can’t even remember how many work sessions we’ve had and how many months of thought and research has gone into this,” Council member Lauren Colliver said. “This did not come to fruition quickly; it was very well researched.”
Council member Jerry Ford said, “I think this strikes a reasonable balance… It’s going to be easier I believe for people to comply by combining these as the state’s required, and I think it’s going to be easier for our staff to administer as well.”
Blacksburg Council members voted unanimously in support of Ordinance 2061, with Mayor Leslie Hager-Smith absent.
