Caroline Cove Owners Association, Inc.

Retention Pond Maintenance Issues...

Jul 28, 2003

Maintenance crews are spraying our retention pond and portion of the area we have to maintain behind the homes on Mikris Drive North for weeds. All associations (or individual homeowners if an association is not in place) are required by the state through the St Johns River Water Management District to keep the ponds up to state standards. However, the State has not been enforcing the standard with respect to the Unit 1 detention areas and we are working with our city council representatives to see if we can get the city to step in and maintain those detention areas. The Unit 1 Detention/retention ponds are actually owned by 5 homeowners who may be shocked when the city cleans the areas and sends them the bill. We wanted you to know that we are working on this hideous issue as water management district rules required all neighborhoods constructed since 1986 to put in place inspection and maintenance services to maintain the retention and detention areas designed, ?“as water filtration and overflow areas?” for drainage from newly installed streets and culverts.
These ponds and detention areas filter out pollutants like fertilizers, pesticides, motor oils, heavy metals and pollutants from the street as part of normal everyday vehicle traffic. The tires on your vehicle are made up of mostly petroleum products and as they breakdown during wear, leave a film on the street that eventually washes into the retention pond or detention areas. Trash too that is in the street eventually ends up in the ponds and detention areas after heavy rains.
In their brochure on homeowner maintenance, the water management district publication highlights several things you can do to help maintain these water retention areas. If you live around a retention pond, you can plant trees along the banks. Not only do these provide shade, but they help absorb nutrients and lower the water table when the pond fills with water. Their booklet also recommends shoreline vegetation such as flower gardens or vegetation that likes wet areas, to reduce erosion and catch storm water runoff before it reaches the pond. They do caution homeowners though that they should not plant items that could spread throughout the pond, items such as bamboo. This type of plant can clog the pond and result in significant costs to have them removed, something the homeowner who planted it will be responsible for. Other things you cannot do along the water?’s edge is erect docks, piers or barrier walls that would interfere with the natural slope of the embankment. Doing so can result in fines of up to $320.00 per day and reconstruction costs to bring the embankment back to state standards.
If you would like one of these water management guides they can be ordered online at http://www.sjrwmd.com.