Moores Creek TMDL
Pet Waste Initiative
The Rivanna Regional Stormwater
Education Partnership
• Albemarle County
• Albemarle County Public
Schools
• Albemarle County
Service Authority
• City of Charlottesville
• Piedmont Virginia
Community College
The Rivanna Regional Stormwater
Education Partnership
• Rivanna Water and Sewer
Authority
• University of Virginia
• Virginia Department of
Transportation
• Thomas Jefferson Soil &
Water Conservation District
Moores Creek Watershed
Moores Creek TMDL
91998 placed on DEQ’s impaired waters list
•Unsafe for fishing and swimming due to
high levels of fecal coliform bacteria
92011 RRBC received grant from DCR to fund
programs to reduce bacteria in creek
•Pet waste education
•Pet waste composter cost-share
•Dog park methane digester
•Septic repair and pump out cost-share
•Agricultural BMP cost-share
Moores Creek Watershed
photo courtesy Dick Rochester, Lafayette, Colorado
Impervious
Cover
Initial Watershed Mailing
Flyer
For posting in local pet stores, grooming salons,
veterinarian offices, etc.
Talking points:
9 Pet waste is a health risk to pets and people
• bacteria and parasites
9 Pet waste left outside can wash into streams
and lakes
• Makes water unsafe for swimming and wading
9 Moores Creek contains harmful levels of E. coli
• Picking up after pets makes water cleaner and
safer
Flyer
9 Dispose of pet waste properly
• Trash
• Toilet
• Composter
9 50% cost share for a pet waste composter
offered to residents in Moores Creek Watershed
• Also available to other pet owners in
Charlottesville and Albemarle county
• See details on RRSEP web site
Brochure
For mailing to dog owners in watershed.
Talking points:
9 More detail than flyer
• Examples of disease organisms and diseases
• Runoff down storm drains is untreated and
goes into local waterways
• Pet waste also contains nutrients that lead to
algae blooms
• Benefits both local and for Chesapeake Bay
• Neighborhood pet waste stations added to list
of approved disposal methods
9 66 ads on 3 Charlottesville stations for one
week during first week of December and
second week of February
9 Put up display
9 Make brochure and flyer available
9 Samples of biodegradable pet waste bags,
flushable pet waste bags and biodegradable
cat litter
Pet Waste Composter
Cost-Share Program
The TJSWCD will pay 50% of the cost of a pet
waste composter (up to $100).
Q: How can you apply for cost-share?
1. Buy a composter at a local store or online.
2. Install or set up your composter for use,
following the manufacturer's instructions.
3. Download the "Application and Agreement
for Cost Share", fill it out, and sign it.
4. Mail the completed application along with a
copy of your receipt and a photograph of the
installed composter (or permission to visit
your home for verification) to the Thomas
Jefferson soil & Water Conservation District.
5. A check will be issued to you for 50% of the
cost of your composter (up to $100 for a
$200-composter).
6. The applicant agrees to provide feedback to
the RRSEP after one year of use by phone,
email or mail (whichever the user prefers) to
evaluate the effectiveness of composting as a
means of managing pet waste.
Q: What types of composters
are available?
Septic Tank Style Composter
Dig a hole 2-4 feet deep
Insert composter into the hole
Drop pet waste into composter
Add water
Add septic-tank-type enzyme once a week
“Traditional” Style Composter
“Traditional” Style Composter
• Converts kitchen and garden waste to a
rich organic dark humus to be used in the
garden
• Water and organic material are added
• The material is occasionally turned or
mixed
• Composted pet waste cannot be used with
edible plants.
Bokashi Fermentor
Bokashi Fermentor
• Bokashi fermentation is an alternative to
composting.
• Safely transforms pet waste into a product
that restores nutrients and microbes to the
soil for ornamental plants.
• Faster than composting: takes 30 days.
Methane Digester
Methane Digester
9 Anaerobic dog waste digester will be designed
and installed for use in the Azalea Park.
9 Pet owners using the dog park will be asked to
collect their dog waste in flushable bags and
deposit them in the digester.
9 Dog waste will be anaerobically converted to a
solid remnant and methane gas.
• The gas will be used to light a gas lamp
• The solid remnant will be pumped out once a
year and transported to the wastewater city’s
treatment plant.
Methane Digester
9 The digester will be used to:
• increase the rate of pet waste pick up and
disposal in Azalea Park
• process the waste in an ecologicallybeneficial way
• generally increase public awareness
throughout the Charlottesville-Albemarle
community
Methane Digester
Drop pet waste bag
down chute
Methane Digester
Turn wheel to stir
Methane Digester
Methane Digester
Methane Digester
For more information:
www.rivanna-stormwater.org
For more information:
Martin Johnson (434) 975-0224
martin.johnson@tjswcd.org