DNR threatens Columbia stormwater permit over homeless encampments
EDITOR'S NOTE: The headline has been corrected to say stormwater.
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has requested that the City of Columbia create a plan to minimize waste from homeless encampments from getting into public waters.
DNR sent a letter to the city, along with Boone County and the University of Missouri, on Feb. 28. The agency says it wants to see the issue addressed before it will renew the city's stormwater permit.
This letter comes as the city, county and MU are trying to renew a joint-operating permit. The permit is issued under an EPA program aimed at preventing contaminants, such as sewage and chemicals, from polluting local water sources. A section of the renewal process includes "Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination."
DNR says the city has been sent about 30 "water-quality concerns regarding homeless encampments" since November 2022. These concerns included trash and human waste near local streams.
Ward 4 Councilman Nick Foster said on Tuesday that he did not know about the DNR letter.
“I’ve been aware of some of the concerns related to this issue, but I was I was unaware of the process that's being undertaken to address it,” Foster said.
The current permit was issued July 1, 2020, and expires June 30, 2025. The city sent its renewal application to DNR on Dec. 23, 2024, and it must be approved by July 1, 2025. But the DNR letter says the application’s stormwater management plan does not adequately address the issue of trash and human waste from homeless encampments entering the city's waterways.
"The department understands that homeless encampments are a result of complex social,
economic, and mental-health related issues," the letter says. "However, solid and human waste generated from these areas can significantly contribute to pollution and water quality impacts in [the permit's] service areas."
Foster said this is a complicated issue that is about the effects of homelessness and not homelessness itself.
“As the number of homeless persons in our community has grown, the challenges that come along with that have grown as well,” Foster said.
The issue of few public restrooms downtown has been discussed for years.
“People are relieving themselves in places that are not intended for that purpose," Foster said. "By the way, this is not just about people who are unsheltered.”
There is currently no specific plan to add public restrooms, Foster said.
It is now up to the city to minimize the trash and waste near local waterways, but if that means removing camps, Foster said that creates another set of issues.
“The question in that case would be where do you place them," Foster said. "Who manages that? Who takes care of them? This is one of those things that I'll leave to [city] staff to pursue and see what they come back with."
Columbia Utilities said it has a process of dealing with homeless encampments. City spokesman Jason West said the city has improved the process for people to report camps to it.
"We have improved the reporting process with the SeeClickFix system, making it easier for concerned citizens to report illegal camping," West said in an email.
The DNR letter indicates that possible permit violations should be addressed before DNR can proceed with the permit renewal.
West said the city will continue working with DNR on the issue, but beyond acknowledgement of the letter has not communicated a plan.
"The department is working with the co-permittees to renew the permit before it expires," a DNR spokesperson told ABC 17 News in an email.
Waterways involved include Bear Creek, Clear Creek, County House Branch, Cow Branch Creek, Flat Branch Creek, Goodin Branch Creek, Grindstone Creek, Harmony Creek, Hinkson Creek, Hominy Creek, Little Bonne Femme Creek, Meredith Branch Creek, Mill Creek, Perche Creek, Rocky Fork Creek and Scotts Branch.
