Spring Storms and Other Emergencies

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, we celebrate a milestone: 10 years of the Sewer District’s Regional Stormwater Management Program.Stormwater Program Manager Kim Colich and CEO Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells explain the basics of stormwater, how development and impervious surfaces create erosion and water quality problems, and why a regional stormwater utility can solve what individual municipalities can't. The Sewer District's watershed-based approach avoids simply moving the problem around, and stormwater master planning and modeling help us prioritize projects as we examine risk and overall impact of flooding and erosion.Stream restorations reconnect floodplains, reduce downstream flooding, and keep structures out of harm’s way. We discuss the maintenance work that protects public investment long after construction and the tools that make our program smarter over time, from monitoring data to trail cameras.

Send us Fan MailOne careless shovel strike can turn a home project into a power outage or emergency situation, but it's easy to avoid! We sit down with Community Discharge Permit Program Specialist Rob Stoerkel to discuss Ohio 811—also known as OUPS, the “call before you dig” service that keeps homeowners, contractors, and field crews from hitting underground utility lines.We also talk about the helpful systems that make this work, including Geographic Information System mapping, blueprint review, and coordination across multiple utilities and communities. 

Send us Fan MailPouring grease down the kitchen sink seems harmless until the day the drain slows to a crawl. Joe Boziak, a master plumber with decades in the trade, handles all of the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District’s plumbing needs. We discuss fats, oils, and greases (FOG), how they can mess up your pipes, and why the old “just run hot water” advice can make the buildup worse. Home-plumbing maintenance consists of low-cost moves like saving cooking grease in a can, feeding a garbage disposal slowly with cold water running, and a quick test for toilet leaks. If you care about avoiding clogs—and keeping our sewer shared infrastructure running smooth, this episode is a must listen!

Send us Fan MailUPDATE: This episode was recorded on July 1, 2026. On July 21, Ohio EPA announced it will NOT finalize a proposed general permit for data centers. For additional information on this please visit Ohio EPA's website.**********ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE seems to be everywhere. Whether we're using a chatbot, saving files to the cloud, or asking Google a question, we're relying on infrastructure that's largely invisible to us: data centers. As demand for AI and cloud computing accelerates, so do questions about the resources needed to support this digital economy—resources like water!  We were very interested in bringing some light to this hot-button topic in this, our first virtual episode, featuring a panel of guests from Central Ohio, Virginia, and Washington D.C. Dr. Landon Marston is an Associate Professor at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and holds a Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering. His research group looks at how and where water is used within the economy as well as the environmental consequences associated with economic production and consumption.  John Newsome is Administrator of the Division of Water at Columbus Water and Power and has served with the city’s Department of Public Utilities since 2006. We’ve asked John to give CWP’s perspective on this emerging technology and water demands in Central Ohio, a national hub for data centers.  Also with CWP, Sarah Bloom Anderson serves as Assistant Director of Policy and shares some information from the wastewater side: what happens to the water used to cool the servers in data centers.  And Dr. Peter Grevatt is CEO of the Water Research Foundation, a nonprofit educational organization in Washington D.C. which funds and publishes research on the technology, operation, and management of drinking water, wastewater, water reuse, and stormwater systems. Peter discusses current research projects the WRF is supporting. Utility Perspectives on Data Center SurveyDr. Marston's team at Virginia Tech, in partnership with WRF and the American Water Works Association, is conducting a survey among water and wastewater utilities regarding data centers. If you would like to participate, follow this link.

Send us Fan MailConcrete channels, buried creeks, and straightened streams simplified urban development but decades later we see the side effects: faster water, steeper channels, collapsing streambanks, and pollution.  Manager of Stormwater Design Kristen Buccier and Project Manager Denis Zaharija explain the benefits of more recent, holistic stream design methods. A stream is a living system seeking stability. Denis and Kristen discuss hydrology and hydraulics, how a stream's bends (or "meanders") dissipate energy, and how riffles and pools create habitat for fish and aquatic bugs. We also learn how “flashy” stormwater volumes can overwhelm streams and how designers work to bring resiliency back to those impacted waterways.

Send us Fan MailWe talk with Mark Christie, Director of Cuyahoga County's Office of Emergency Management, about severe weather in Northeast Ohio, damage assessments, and how recovery decisions get made fast.Mark gives some tips on preparing for hazards during thunderstorms, tornadoes, winter storms, and flooding that hits both rivers and basements, with info on ReadyNotify and the federal IPAWS system and a simple preparedness plan you can follow before the next storm hits.

Send us Fan MailMike and Donna report from the 19th annual Ohio Stormwater Conference in Sandusky, OH. The day's presentations touch on education, stormwater modeling and maintenance, and funding, and demonstrate how design choices and policy decisions can ripple across entire communities. Our guests include:Erica Matheny, Tinker's Creek Watershed PartnersRefka Abroug, Tinker's Creek Watershed Partners Jesse Rufner, GPD GroupJack Caruso, Cleveland MetroparksJoey Smith, Ohio State UniversityTony Burgoyne, OHM AdvisorsTopics discussed:The Tinkers Creek Watershed Partners’ new strategic plan and illustrated watershed mapping Water scarcity, pollution, and access to clean drinking water in Northern AfricaAn East Cleveland project that ties together water lines, roadways, and sewer improvementsAntecedent moisture modelingExtreme storms, risk tools, and what “reasonable” infrastructure can handleMosquito science in stormwater control measuresStacking funding sources and building coalitions through policy roundtablesFor more information on the Ohio Stormwater Conference, visit tinkerscreek.org

Send us Fan MailApril is National Native Plant Month, and in this episode we talk with Sustainability Specialist Kevin Harrison and Paul Kovalcik of our Stormwater Inspection & Maintenance (SWIM) department, unpacking what defines a "native plant" and why they matter for water quality and habitat. We talk about how native species support pollinators, and why losing host plants can impact the entire food web.We connect native landscaping to the Sewer District's stormwater management and stream-restoration projects, and explain how invasive species can take over when nothing has co-evolved to keep them in check.Our guests offer tips on how to choose the right tree for the right place, when to plant, and why starting small is the best advice for building a low-stress native garden. Other resources:NRCS - Natural Resources Conservation Service, a U.S. Department of Agriculture agency that provides a "PLANTS" (Plant List of Attributes, Names, Taxonomy, and Symbols) database with automated tools, weblinks, and references.https://plants.sc.egov.usda.gov/Cleveland Metroparks Tree Selector Tool - Enter in various site attributes for guidance on tree species selection for any type of planting project.   https://treeselector-clevelandmetroparks.com/tree-selector Rain Garden Manual for Homeowners - Courtesy of Cuyahoga Soil & Water Conservation District, this manual outlines rain garden terms and definitions, recommendations for creating the right garden for your property, and important diagrams and planting instructions. https://www.neorsd.org/Stormwater%20Form/landing%20page/2007_rain_garden_manual.pdf

Send us Fan MailA fallen log in a stream can serve as beneficial fish habitat or pose a flood hazard. Stormwater inspectors Kelsey Hickox and Andriana Hayes explain what Stormwater Inspection and Maintenance (SWIM) looks like and why the Sewer District pays so much attention to creeks, culverts, and stormwater basins.We also discuss urgent storm response and why field verification matters for our stormwater modeling. Plus, practical tips for homeowners to help with their community's stormwater-management efforts.

Send us Fan MailRainfall can turn some roads into rivers. Construction Supervisor Joel Hill explains how his team keeps neighborhoods dry using basins, culverts, and stream restoration projects to manage downpours. Joel brings a rare perspective with his decade-plus working on massive tunnel projects and his pivot to the stormwater side of the Sewer District's work.We discuss hydrologic forecasts that shape project designs and stream morphology, and spotlight some local projects in Maple Heights and Parma that have brought relief to once-flooded roadways. If you care about flood mitigation, resilient infrastructure, and how precise design decisions ripple into safer streets, this conversation offers practical insights and hard-won lessons from the field.