Stormwater
December 8, 2023
About Us
Delaware Engineering, D.P.C. is different from other professional engineering firms. Our deep respect for our clients, community, and colleagues sets us apart.
Our clients are predominantly municipal entities with selected industry in our portfolio as well. We understand that municipal leaders come to government from all walks of life and bring unique perspectives, knowledge and experience that are to be respected and engaged in the process of governing. The functions of government are complex and it is our role to provide facts and guidance to municipal decision-makers to ensure that the best interests of the public are achieved. With respect to industry, we are keenly aware that infrastructure and regulatory compliance are non-core functions that in some cases distract from operating a successful, profitable business. Our role is to handle non-core infrastructure and regulatory functions so that business leaders can focus on core functions.
Our community is as broad as the locations in which we work. From our offices in Albany and Oneonta, our geography spans from New York’s Capital District throughout the upper and lower Hudson River Valley through the Adirondack and North County Region to the Metropolitan Suburban Region north of New York City through the Catskill Region to the State’s Southern Tier. Wherever we are engaged with municipalities or industry, we are engaged with community. We respect the unique character and nature of each community in developing customized solutions to water, wastewater, stormwater, municipal buildings, special projects and economic development challenges. Because we take the time to get to know each community personally, we treat each person and each project with a commitment and passion as though it is our own home town.
Our colleagues are the engine that drives our business. Our professional and technical staff of more than 60 engineers, scientists, planners and technicians are each responsible for the well-being of our clients, our communities, and each other. By encouraging personal connection and responsibility between our staff and their project work, clients benefit from the sincere dedication of our staff to a project’s success. Since the founding of the company in New York’s Delaware River Watershed in 1987, our colleagues continue to be driven by an intense desire to improve the world through everyday successes.
Delaware Engineering, D.P.C. is different from other professional engineering firms in our achievements in supporting communities and industry through access to grants and low cost financing and our community service contributions which we see as a small way to pay our accomplishments forward.
We welcome opportunities to explore new relationships with clients, communities, and colleagues.
Services: Stormwater
In recent years, the intensity of precipitation events has increased significantly, causing flooding and erosion, and carrying sediment and nutrients into lakes, rivers, and streams resulting in poor water quality. Stormwater management systems planned, permitted, designed and monitored by Delaware Engineering, D.P.C. address the environmental and economic issues caused by stormwater runoff. Delaware Engineering employs approaches to stormwater management that result in securing grants and low cost financing from federal, state, and regional entities to support the separation of stormwater from sanitary sewage as well as green infrastructure.
Village of Hunter
Through the Catskill Watershed Corporation (CWC) Stormwater Planning and Assessment Grant Program, Delaware Engineering carried out stormwater assessments for the Village of Hunter in 2006.
The CWC administers three New York City-funded programs to help municipalities, businesses and property owners address and correct stormwater runoff problems which may contribute to degraded water quality, and to plan ways to avoid runoff problems. The process contributes to the protection of New York City drinking water and assists local municipalities in avoiding flooding issues.
The project scope of work included stormwater infrastructure inventory, GIS development, data analysis and recommendations for stormwater infrastructure improvement planning. Delaware Engineering utilized a Data Reference Manual to document the existing conditions of culverts, pipes, structures and swales that was initially developed by Greene County Soil and Water personnel.
Field forms were developed based on this guide.
Data collection involved field-locating the stormwater infrastructure using a Trimble Pro XRS GPS receiver and evaluating conditions. Swales were considered any open ditch feature, and GPS data were collected as a line feature. Culverts, pipes and structures were located as point features using GPS.
Using ESRI ArcView software, the data was mapped and analyzed. A complete listing of stormwater structures was provided to the Village in an ArcView GIS database. Stormwater infrastructure was evaluated both to identify areas that represented a potential source of sediment/pollutants to the Schoharie Creek and to identify conditions that could result in localized flooding. Recommendations for retrofitting problematic structures were provided to support the creation of prioritized mitigation programs for potential solutions to improve stormwater management and the quality of stormwater runoff.
Town of Windham
Through the Catskill Watershed Corporation (CWC) Stormwater Planning and Assessment Grant Program, Delaware Engineering carried out stormwater assessments for the Town of Windham in 2009 and again in 2017.
The CWC administers three New York City-funded programs to help municipalities, businesses and property owners address and correct stormwater runoff problems which may contribute to degraded water quality, and to plan ways to avoid runoff problems. The process contributes to the protection of New York City drinking water and helps local municipalities avoid flooding issues.
The project scope of work included conducting a stormwater infrastructure inventory, GIS development, data analysis, and crafting recommendations for stormwater infrastructure improvement planning. Delaware Engineering utilized a Data Reference Manual for documenting existing conditions of culverts, pipes, structures and swales that was initially developed by Greene County Soil and Water Conservation District personnel. Field forms were developed based on this guide.
Data collection involved field-locating the stormwater infrastructure using a Trimble Pro XRS GPS receiver and evaluating conditions. Swales were considered any open ditch feature and GPS data were collected as a line feature. Culverts, pipes and structures were located as point features using GPS.
Using ESRI ArcView software, the data was mapped and analyzed. A complete listing of stormwater structures was provided in an ArcView GIS database. Stormwater infrastructure was evaluated to identify areas that represented a potential source of sediment/pollutants to the Batavia Kill and to identify conditions that could result in localized flooding. Recommendations for retrofitting problematic structures were provided to support creation of prioritized mitigation programs for potential solutions to improve stormwater management and the quality of stormwater runoff.
Town of Glenville
Delaware Engineering assisted the Town of Glenville with its Small Municipal Separate Sanitary Storm Sewer System (MS4) by updating the Program Plan, and assisting with implementation and documentation of the MS4 program. Through staff interviews and review of existing records, Delaware inventoried all aspects of the existing program and prepared an update of the Town’s 2013 Stormwater Management Program (SWMP) Plan, according to MS4 General Permit requirements.
Anticipating the expected update to the MS4 General Permit, Delaware provided the Town with recommendations concerning forms and documentation, and assisted Town Staff in tracking measures for each Minimum Control Measure (MCM). Delaware also provided technical support to the Town at the public meetings required for the SWMP Plan. The culmination of this engagement was a SWMP Plan, outfall and facilities inspection and mapping, and an improved process by which Town staff will maintain documentation in full compliance with the MS4 General Permit.
Village of Walton
Project Cost:
Approx. $1.8 million
As early as 2006, approximately 600 linear feet of streambank along the West Branch of the Delaware River, in the Village of Walton, NY, was observed to be actively failing, posing a significant risk to public infrastructure and private property.
Property owners near the intersection of South Street and Stockton Avenue have observed the loss of between 10 and 20 feet of private property along the West Branch due to constant erosion across the past 25 years, a process that has been dramatically accelerated during high-flow events like the floods of 1996, 2006, and 2011. The introduction of these additional sediments was threatening water quality within a key drinking-water reservoir for New York City, while the ongoing erosion threatened not only private property, but also access to important community facilities like the Delaware County Fairgrounds, the Village’s wastewater treatment plant, an industrial park and National Guard facility. Lastly, municipal utilities – like sanitary sewer, water distribution piping, storm-drain infrastructure – were located within the affected streets, and overhead electrical and communication infrastructure was in place at the top of the failing slope on South Street.
Delaware Engineering, working with Shumaker Engineering, the Delaware County Soil & Water Conservation District (DCSWCD) and the New York City Dept. of Environmental Protection (NYCDEP), performed field observation, subsurface investigation and hydrologic analysis in order to address the hydraulic and geotechnical causes of bank failure. Delaware developed several engineering alternatives designed to stabilize the compromised streambank, to protect municipal and private property and infrastructure, and to ensure drinking-water quality.
Engineering and field analysis concluded that the streambank was being undermined, in large part due to the high plasticity of the streambank’s soil, glacial till gravel that gradiates to silt and clay. As a result, the streambank toe was eroding during high discharges, causing streambank failure. Ultimately, DCSWCD, NYCDEP and the rest of the project team concluded that subsurface anchoring of metal sheet piling along the existing streambank would be the most advantageous methodology to address streambank erosion cost-effectively, while avoiding placing additional fill within the channel.
Design was completed in 2018, and construction completed in 2019 at a cost of approximately $1.8 million. Delaware assisted DCSWCD in securing grant funds from the Army Corps of Engineers, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation and NYCDEP totalling almost $1.5 million. The project compliments the soil reclamation project taking place directly across the river on Water Street, and together these projects promise to slow floodwaters and to bolster the Village’s flood mitigation capacity.
Town of Amsterdam
Delaware Engineering, D.P.C. provided permitting, design and construction inspection for the stabilization of an eroding bank in close proximity to two residences on Cranes Hollow Road. The project was funded by the USDA/NRCS Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) Program and included stabilizing the eroding bank and installing in-stream rock structures further stabilize the section of stream. Construction was a joint effort by Montgomery County and Town of Amsterdam DPW crews. Delaware secured permits from NYS DEC and USACE, completed the engineering design and provided construction inspection services.
Village of Hunter
Overall Cost
$208,786.45
Delaware Engineering worked closely with Greene County Soil and Water Conservation District staff to complete a design for the replacement of a failing culvert on Glen Avenue. The new culvert will be a 60ft long, 11ft x 6ft concrete box culvert with headwalls and wing walls. Stream grading and bank stabilization are also incorporated into the project. The road will be regarded and then paved and new guide rail will be installed.
Delaware Engineering provided hydrologic and hydraulic analysis, design, permitting, and bid/award.
Town of Prattsville
Overall Cost
$148,824.00
Delaware Engineering assisted the Greene County Soil and Water Conservation District to repair an eroding bank of the Schoharie Creek that ran along a farm field. The project included approximately 1240 feet of stream bank stabilization. The bank stabilization work consisted of installing large rock at the bottom of the bank, creating a high water bench and grading the upper bank to a 3:1 slope. Riparian vegetation was planted on the high water bench and upper bank along the full length of the restoration.