Stormwater Utility
Protecting Our Waterways and Our Community
Stormwater management is an important part of maintaining a clean, safe, and healthy Union City. The City works to manage stormwater runoff, maintain drainage infrastructure, reduce flooding, and help protect local streams, lakes, and other water resources.
Under the Federal Clean Water Act, local governments in the Metropolitan Atlanta area are required to manage stormwater through federally regulated stormwater programs. Union City maintains a stormwater management program to help meet these requirements and protect the City's infrastructure and natural resources.
Stormwater management is a community responsibility. Residents, businesses, property owners, and visitors can all help reduce stormwater pollution by preventing trash, chemicals, sediment, and other pollutants from entering the City's storm drain system.
What Is Stormwater?
Stormwater is rainwater that flows over the ground and other surfaces after a rainfall.
As rain falls on rooftops, driveways, parking lots, streets, sidewalks, and other surfaces, it can flow into the City's storm drain system. Unlike wastewater that is treated at a wastewater treatment facility, stormwater runoff generally does not receive treatment before entering local waterways.
As stormwater flows across developed areas, it can pick up:
These pollutants can eventually reach creeks, streams, lakes, and rivers.
The City of Union City’s stormwater utility fee helps fund the City's stormwater management program, including the maintenance, repair, improvement, and construction of stormwater infrastructure necessary to manage runoff, reduce flooding, and protect local waterways.
The stormwater service charge is based on an Equivalent Residential Unit (ERU). One ERU is equal to 2,800 square feet of impervious surface.
How Is the Stormwater Fee Calculated?
- Single-Family Residential Properties
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Each single-family residential dwelling unit is billed $4.00 per month, representing one ERU.
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Multifamily, Commercial & Industrial Properties
- Multifamily, commercial, and industrial properties are billed based on the amount of impervious surface located on the property.
For these properties, one ERU equals 2,800 square feet of impervious surface. Properties are billed $4.00 per ERU per month, with each 2,800-square-foot increment—or partial increment—counting as one ERU.
What Is Impervious Surface?
Impervious surfaces are areas that prevent or limit rainwater from naturally soaking into the ground.
For more information regarding fees and charges associated with the services provided by the department, please refer to the department’s fee schedule. The fee schedule provides a comprehensive listing of applicable fees for utility, sanitation, and other Public Services Department services.