COLUMBIA — The city of Columbia, Boone County and University of Missouri must submit their plans to mitigate impacts from homeless encampments on water quality to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources by Nov. 15, according to a Thursday letter addressed to city and county officials obtained by KOMU 8 News.
Negotiations between the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and the city of Columbia, Boone County and university to renew their Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4) permit have been dragging on without a resolution since last year.
The past permit expired on June 30, 2025, but the city of Columbia, Boone County and MU filed to renew it on Dec. 23, 2024.
Past KOMU 8 reporting found that the DNR granted the group a 30-day extension following the June 30 expiration date.
The DNR said it has received numerous complaints regarding trash and other waste from homeless encampments near waterways in Columbia and Boone County. These complaints have sent investigators to areas around the U.S. 63 and Interstate 70 interchange, the Columbia Mall and along Hinkson Creek.
The Thursday letter from the DNR said Hinkson Creek, Grindstone Creek and Hominy Branch contain E. coli bacteria from urban stormwater and nonpoint sources.
The letter, addressed to Columbia Mayor Barbara Buffaloe and Boone County Presiding Commissioner Kip Kendrick, said the parties must submit draft ordinance language, or similarly enforceable regulations, or permit condition, to the department for review by Nov. 15.
"The department's stormwater team has offered and been available to provide assistance to the co-permittees during this period but has received little or no response,"the letter read. "The department understands public participation and the ordinance/regulation process takes time. However, lack of progress toward resolution of this issue remains a public health and water quality concern for the department."
Grace period
Since the city applied for its new five-year permit early, Kurt Schaefer, the director of the DNR, said there was a grace period.
"The department does have a policy that as long as you meet that requirement to get your application in early, we have an administrative extension that as we work toward getting a permit completed, we have some discretion to allow that," Schaefer said. "So, right now, they're operating on the existing permit that they had that's expired."
However, Schaefer said this isn't necessarily a typical move.
"It does happen and we do have that policy, but it's also not going to go on forever," Schaefer said. "We're going to hit a point where we've exhausted our opportunity to try and cooperatively develop a permit that protects waters of the state. And if we can't reach that, then there's going to be an issue with the city not having a permit."
The letter from Schaefer said that if the city, county and university don't make progress toward renewing the permit during the grace period, that may constitute a violation of the permit.
The letter said any future complaints the DNR investigates that finds solid or human waste within proximity to streams will be considered violations of the permit and Missouri Clean Water Law — and will be subject to enforcement and penalties.
Any enforcement action by the DNR could affect the city of Columbia and Boone County's ability to receive state and federal grants and loans, according to the letter.
'There is a process'
Columbia's engineering manager for sewer and stormwater, Justin Fessler, said DNR relays complaints about water quality to the city and that the city has a process of dealing with them.
"We investigate all of those complaints," Fessler said. "I have a person on staff who investigates those complaints, and if they're on city property, we make a plan to address the trash as soon as we can."
The city of Columbia mainly focuses its mission to battle homelessness on what it calls a "housing crisis." The city's website says "The City of Columbia’s approach to addressing homelessness is rooted in the belief that all of our community members should have the opportunity for a safe and stable place to live."
The website also has page dedicated to reporting encampments but says "removal of an unsanctioned encampment is done as a last resort when the occupants are resistant to services and refuse to vacate."
On the contrary, Schaefer, who lives in Columbia, said he believes an ordinance would be the most effective way of dealing with homelessness in Columbia.
"Addressing this through an ordinance is a pretty easy process," Schaefer said. "I think if the city of Columbia does not want to take that step — which is perfectly logical and probably the only way they're going to get a handle on this — I think they need to answer the question why they're not willing to do that when so many other municipalities have."
DNR has provided the city of Columbia with examples of municipalities it believes the city should model its plan after going forward. These examples include San Jose, California, and Bozeman, Montana.
Schaefer said another reason why permit negotiations have dragged is because the city has presented plans that are too vague.
"Some of the things that we have gotten back from Columbia in response to our request on what needs to be in the permit are very general," Schaefer said. "I think there are going to have to be specific steps that are outlined in how they're going to protect waters of the state."
Columbia Utilities spokesperson Jason West insisted that the process for enacting a city ordinance takes time.
"There is a process for that. There's information gathering, there's discussion, there's public input. So, it doesn't just happen overnight," West said. "While it may seem easy, the biggest factor is the length in which it takes to be able to disseminate all of the information and get the proper feedback to make informed decisions."
West said that while the DNR is locking in on encampments, there are other sources that cause polluted waterways.
"It's not just the fact that there's a homeless encampment somewhere. It's what they are doing in that encampment, dumping trash illegally," West said. "It is the citizens that are dumping tires in a creek bed. It's the citizens that are littering as they are driving down the highway ... Those actions are what is having an environmental impact."
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