Leaders in Stormwater: WALTER CALDWELL

This month’s LEADER IN STORMWATER - WALTER CALDWELL, Chief & Environmental Protection Specialist, Construction & Maintenance Branch (CMB), District Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE) Inspection & Enforcement Division - is the proud producer of 3 highly regarded stormwater management (SWM) tutorials, two of which were screened at the DC Environmental Film Festival - RiverSmart; RiverSmart RoofTops; and The Operation and Maintenance of DC Water Quality Sand Filters.

With a degree in Biology (Biology/Natural History of the Chesapeake Bay focus) from St. Mary's College of Maryland, Walter was thriving as an Environmental Sanitarian with the Anne Arundel County (AACO) Department of Health when SWM peaked his interest as he noted single family home construction site inspections required dry wells and infiltration practices. Simultaneously, under the Maryland Save Our Streams’ effort to target neighborhood stream protection, Walter’s work group's focus was on the impacts of parking lot runoff. Walter realized stormwater runoff was a problem in his field of work, a source of pollution and stressor to natural stream systems. 

In 1999, during his time with AACO, Walter moved to Washington, DC. While participating in community cleanup, he learned that the, then, DC Department of Health had its sights set on forming a SWM BMP maintenance inspection & enforcement program; and he was hired soon after to be a part of the program's development. Twenty-five years later, Walter oversees the quality control of 14 employees and stays busy with customer service efforts punctuated by the urgency circulating requests for inspections, enforcement actions, certificate of occupancy releases, and citizen complaints. In 2023, the CMB inspected 500+ construction sites for SWM compliance, totaling 2,295 SWM BMPs; and 500+ post-construction sites for O&M, totaling ~1,600 BMP inspections. Walter says, “...SWM is an important job [and while] it can be a source of pollution, SWM is a good problem to have as some parts of the world don't have access to a lot of water resources. When managed properly, stormwater is an important resource and being creative with its management inspires me.”

Walter is galvanized by the leadership of DOEE’s former Directors George Hawkins, Keith Anderson, and Tommy Wells, and current Director Richard Jackson. He also draws inspiration from his wife and 3 children with whom he enjoys the company of while gardening and landscaping at home, and volunteering in his neighborhood trash pick-ups. Walter is a member of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the International Erosion Control Association and contributor to the Anacostia Watershed Society and Chesapeake Bay Foundation. His watershed ties date back to when he was a child as he is originally from Freetown, a historic African American community on the Patapsco River in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.