• Macomb County Public Works Commissioner's Citizens Academy

    Macomb County Public Works Commissioner's Citizens Academy

  • The Macomb County Public Works Commissioner's Citizens Academy utilizes video presentations. Each video in the series provides insight into the work of the Macomb Public Works Office managing the quality of life by examining surface water and sanitary systems that protect that water.

    Academy students review a series of 10 lessons and a final review that allows them to learn what the Public Works Office does and how it preserves water quality, ensures economic sustainability, works to eliminate pollution, and makes certain the quality of life is maintained in our county so that our residents can live, work, and enjoy our natural surroundings.

    Academy candidates will learn about many projects and programs both above and below the surface of the land and their importance.

    Upon completion of the videos on-line, students will complete a short assessment totaling 60 questions of their new knowledge found in the lessons and submit them as application for an Academy Certificate issued by Commissioner Candice S. Miller.

  • Hello, I am Candice Miller, Macomb County Public Works Commissioner.

    Thank you for participating in the Macomb County Public Works Commissioner's Citizens Academy. I appreciate your interest and quest for knowledge about a subject important to all of us and a real passion of mine: Clean Water.

    The online Water Quality Management Academy program is visual and flexible. Each section consists of video experience learning activities that provide a closer look into the activity of our office and what is going on underneath us and the waterways, channels, lakes, rivers and streams we can see.

    Water is an indispensable part of our quality of life and the Macomb County Public Works Office and I are committed to the highest quality water to support and sustain our economy as we live, work and play.

    Public Works commissioners, or Drain commissioners as they are sometimes called, are county-level officials responsible for administering laws involving flood protection, stormwater management, and soil erosion. Specific duties performed include establishing, improving, and maintaining county drains; reviewing stormwater drainage plans for construction that may impact a county drain; and setting policy as a member of water quality and lake improvement boards. The commissioner is also responsible for ensuring compliance with stormwater regulatory programs and operating and maintaining three major sanitary sewer systems.

    Without proper management of stormwater, flooding may occur, adversely impacting homes, businesses, and farmland. The Public Works Commissioner deals almost exclusively with issues that directly or indirectly affect water quality for everyone.

    I am excited that you are joining us in the Water Quality Management Academy, and I look forward to recognizing your efforts. I appreciate YOU.

  • Please register for the course below:

  • Public Works 101 Lesson 1

    What is a County Drain?
  • 1. Is a stream or a creek a public drain?*

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  • 2. In Macomb County, all stormwater goes to Lake St. Clair.*

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  • 3. The Commissioner's job is to make the drains work and keep our lakes clean.*

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  • 4. All County Drains are open and visible to people.*

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  • 5. In Macomb County, the Public Works Commissioner is elected by the people.*

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  • Public Works 101 Lesson 2

    Cleaning Up the Drains
  • 1. The primary objective of the Public Works Office is the Quality of Life in our county.*

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  • 2. Cleaning the drains reduces flooding.*

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  • 3. People can dump yard waste and debris into the drains if the drain is nearby.*

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  • 4. Not all drains are county drains.*

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  • Public Works 101 Lesson 3

    Macomb County Public Works Permit and Plan Review Portal
  • 1. Permit applications and plan review requests may be done on-line 24 hours a day, 7 days per week.*

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  • 2. Macomb Public Works reviews site plans for new developments connected to the county drains.*

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  • Public Works 101 Lesson 4

    The Clinton River Spillway
  • 1. The original spillway was built in 1961.*

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  • 2. The spillway prevents flooding of four central Macomb Communities.*

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  • 3. The spillway is 2 miles long.*

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  • 4. The spillway serves four counties.*

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  • 5. The modern upgrades make the spillway a place for nature and leisure.*

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  • Public Works 101 Lesson 5

    The SCADA System
  • 1. The SCADA system allows operators to control the flow of sewage and stormwater run-off across Macomb County.*

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  • 2. The system allows direction of large water flow events and storms to holding basins to permit the treatment plant to catch up.*

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  • 3. SCADA stands for Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition.*

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  • 4. Citizens can view the actual rainfall across the county from the rain gauges on the public works website.*

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  • 5. The SCADA system monitors flow in the sewer pipes.*

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  • Public Works Lesson 6

    Drone and Artificial Intelligence Improving Sewer Management
  • 1. The first of its kind drone is 16" in diameter and an operator flies it inside underground storm and sewer pipes.*

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  • 2. The drone's videos are evaluated by artificial intelligence software that assess the condition of the pipes.*

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  • 3. The evaluations help Public Works repair and improve pipe conditions before they require repair saving millions of dollars.*

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  • 4. Public Works maintains a multi-year asset management plan helping to avoid pipe failures and eliminate sinkholes.*

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  • Public Works Lesson 7

    Removal or Failed Storm Drain that causes Sinkholes
  • 1. Sinkholes are most often caused by old deteriorating metal pipes installed decades ago breaking apart, causing the water in the pipe to flow out and move the dirt around it.*

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  • 2. A person can stand and walk inside of some of the storm drains Public Works is responsible for.*

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  • 3. Spray Lining the existing pipe with a concrete spray foam on a plastic fabric lining saves money and gets the repair done sooner.*

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  • 4. Large underground pipes are unseen and unknown to most people with only a small manhole on the surface.*

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  • 5. It is critical that these pipes (infrastructure) be constantly inspected and maintained for business, property values and safety.*

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  • Public Works Lesson 8

    Removing Logs from the Clinton River in Macomb County
  • 1. The Clinton River is not the responsibility of Macomb County, however with money and support from the Macomb County Board of Commissioners, Public Works removed trees, wood and debris from the Clinton River.*

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  • 2. Clearing debris from the river helps reduce erosion and blockages that would reduce recreation and may cause flooding.*

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  • 3. Public Works collaborates with private groups such as the Clinton River Watershed Council to hold cleanup volunteer events.*

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  • Public Works Lesson 9

    Algae “Muck” and Lake St. Clair
  • 1. The quality of water and the condition of Lake St. Clair is the responsibility of State of Michigan.*

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  • 2. Given Public Works responsibilities for the other Macomb waterways, Commissioner Miller has led efforts to improve the Lake water quality in cooperation with the County Board of Commissioners and federal and state governments.*

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  • 3. Lyngbya, (lynn-buy-a) aka M. wollei, (wool-eye) is a muck-like material that makes shorelines unusable, mucky and hurts the economy that relies on the Lake.*

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  • Public Works Lesson 10

    Combined Sewer Overflows or CSOs, What are they and what to do about them?
  • 1. Combined Sewers are found in older urban areas and contain both stormwater and sanitary sewer flow.*

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  • 2. Public Works operates two retention basins that retain high combined flows until they can be partially treated and discharged from the Chapaton and Martin Retention Treatment Basins.*

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  • 3. To manage combined sewer flow, a in-system storage "bladder" control has been built under Beaconsfield Street in Eastpointe to control combined sewer flow during high storm events until it can be fully treated.*

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  • 4. Commissioner Miller's objective is to do better than what is minimally required by the State of Michigan and reduce or eliminate all combined sewer discharges.*

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  • Public Works Lesson 11

    Green Infrastructure & Butterflies at the Sterling Relief Drain
  • 1. The Sterling Relief Drain drains stormwater from 25% of Sterling Heights.*

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  • 2. The term "Daylighting" means shining flashlights on a drain.*

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  • 3. Butterfly flyways are part of the relief drain.*

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  • 4. The Drain has been, in part, returned to a natural state while providing surface water relief.*

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  • 5. Returning the buried drains to open natural status is a goal where possible.*

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  • Public Works Academy Final Review

    Macomb County Public Works 2023 Year in Review
  • 1. The Macomb Public Works Office cleans and improves stormwater flow in streams, creeks, rivers and drains across Macomb County.*

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  • 2. New underground pipe structures replace old ones to eliminate sinkholes.*

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  • 3. Stations to control odor and corrosion of pipes have been built.*

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  • 4. MCPW has increased the capacity of Chapaton canal to reduce combined sewer overflows.*

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  • 5. New "In System Storage" controls were placed inside pipe to reduce and eliminate combined sewer overflows.*

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  • 6. Logs and other obstructions were removed from the Clinton River.*

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  • 7. Sinkholes created in stormwater drains were corrected.*

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  • 8. New developments providing for new housing and business and economic prosperity along county drains were approved, inspected, and built.*

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  • 9. The presence of algae "muck" along the shoreline of Lake St. Clair was investigated and the analysis of potential solutions has begun.*

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  • 10. Information about the Macomb Public Works Office programs can be followed on social media.*

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