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As counties around Maryland continue forming their plans to comply with the Stormwater Management Act of 2007, Laurel is considering how new ways of handling rain runoff could improve the water quality of Laurel Lakes, the Patuxent River and other nearby watersheds.

The Stormwater Management Act requires counties and municipalities to adopt strategies for draining stormwater without disturbing the soil's natural drainage patterns. Supporters hope the move will help combat erosion and the resulting pollution and silt buildup that occurs in the Patuxent and other Maryland rivers.

Laurel City Councilman Michael R. Leszcz (At-Large), who serves on the state's Patuxent River Commission, said the regulations are important for maintaining the ecological well-being of both the Patuxent and its destination — the Chesapeake Bay.

Leszcz said new guidelines and restrictions will likely play a part in future decisions regarding zoning and development. The ideal management system is multifaceted, Leszcz said, and includes both underground water storage that allows sediment to settle and an above-ground system for absorbing water, such as a green roof.

"What you do is you try to mitigate how fast [water] is rushing into a watershed," he said.

Leszcz pointed to a rain garden project at Laurel Lakes as one example of water management. The project, which was funded by a grant from Prince George's County, includes three "gardens" — areas where stormwater collects and seeps into the ground gradually. Rain gardens can serve as a good backup measure to prevent flooding when an underground vault or other system is filled to capacity, Leszcz said.

Michael Lhotsky, director of the Laurel Parks and Recreation Department, said Laurel Lakes is the only city park that currently has rain gardens, but the city might consider using capital improvement funds to add gardens at other locations sometime before the next fiscal year.

"We'll be looking into that, but nothing's going on in the present time," said Lhotsky, who estimated the gardens at Laurel Lakes cost between $5,000 and $10,000.

Prince George's County is also scheduled to shift maintenance of the Laurel Lakes project to the city in three years, he said.

Meanwhile, the debate at the county level centers on how strictly or leniently officials should apply the state standards, said Prince George's County Councilman Thomas E. Dernoga (D-Dist. 1) of Laurel, who said he favors implementing the regulations "as strong as we can possibly, reasonably adopt [them]."

Although the changes could increase development costs, Dernoga said doing nothing could end up costing the county more in the long run. For example, the value of properties near the Anacostia River has fallen because of a decline in water quality.

"There's a long term public cost to all the erosion and sediment that needs to be cleared out and water pollution in general that degrades from the water quality downstream," Dernoga said.