​Assessing Development Impacts on Water Resources

​Local governments will need to assess the development impacts of point and nonpoint source pollution to ground water and surface water bodies that would result from expected growth over the planning period. Point source pollution results from wastewater treatment plants, power plants, industry and commercial operations. Nonpoint source pollution results from a variety of sources including septic tanks, agricultural activities and stormwater runoff. A local government will need to determine whether the projected point source nutrient loads are within their treatment plant allocations and provide an estimate of projected nonpoint source loads. In addition, potential impacts to drinking water supplies should be evaluated including any discharges to surface water or ground water or the potential risks of spills to either ground water or surface water sources.