Lake Whatcom is the drinking water source for approximately 100,000 Whatcom County residents of Sudden Valley. The Sudden Valley Community Association (SVCA) is the largest development in the Lake Whatcom watershed. Whatcom County and SVCA share a common interest in working cooperatively to protect and enhance surface waters discharging to Lake Whatcom.

One method of protecting water quality is the installation of stormwater capital improvement projects (CIPs). CIPs are construction projects that replace or improve old stormwater drainage systems to protect water quality and reduce the risk of flooding. CIPs typically include stormwater facilities like treatment swales, vaults, stormwater pipe, and catch basins that remove pollutants from stormwater.

Whatcom County utilizes the Lake Whatcom Comprehensive Stormwater Management Plan (Link) to guide the building of CIPs. The plan recommends water quality improvement projects to reduce phosphorus from entering Lake Whatcom from areas within the SVCA drainages. Whatcom County and SVCA are working cooperatively on CIPs that will reduce stormwater impacts and meet water quality requirements set by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.