Municipal Road General Permit
The Caledonia County Conservation District provides technical assistance to municipalities to adapt to the Municipal Road General Permit (MRGP). The goal of the MRGP is to achieve significant reductions in stormwater-related erosion from paved and unpaved municipal roads in the State of Vermont. Road segments that are hydrologically connected pose a greater risk to water quality than other road segments. According to the MRGP, hydrologically connected road segments must meet practice standards to minimize their impact on the waters of the State.
Road Erosion Inventories
The first step for towns to comply with the MRGP is to complete a Road Erosion Inventory. Caledonia County Conservation District and Northeastern Vermont Development Association (NVDA) can both conduct inventories for towns. The goal of the inventory is to assess road segments that are hydrologically connected (within 100′ of surface water) to determine if they are meeting standards. The inventory looks at the crown, shoulder, drainage, and conveyance zones (where the road ditch lets out to a stream crossing).
The next step is for towns to upgrade high priority road segments to standard by making progress each year. There are two funding sources that support road upgrades – Grants In Aid – managed by NVDA, and the Better Roads Program, managed by the Vermont Agency of Transportation. The Conservation District can provide administrative and technical support for your Better Roads applications.