Brunswick County's stormwater control effort has reached a benchmark with the production of a low-impact development manual for builders and developers.

The manual, which could be formally presented to county commissioners in October, is not intended to become mandatory for developers, but rather to be offered as a more environmentally friendly and less-expensive way for them to meet stormwater control ordinances.

The manual is the first of its kind in North Carolina and is already drawing attention from other coastal areas that, like Brunswick County, want to slow down or reverse pollution of their waterways.

It details a number of techniques that developers and builders can use to filter pollutants from stormwater before it leaves a home site or subdivision, which is the defining characteristic of low-impact development.

Things such as rain gardens, streets that absorb rainwater and dead-end swales are among the best-management practices detailed in the manual.

Developers could use them and avoid the necessity of putting in elaborate drainage systems and stormwater ponds.

The techniques are also adaptable to existing development, including individual lots.

The document is an outgrowth of the Lockwood Folly River Watershed Roundtable, formed by the county and the N.C. Coastal Federation, that met for about two years before issuing a list of things that could be done to restore the river's water quality so that shellfishing could take place along its entire length.

A portion of the river has been closed to shellfishing for years because of the level of pollution in the water.

While the committee that created the manual included developers, builders, state regulators, county officials and environmentalists, there are concerns about some of the techniques it advocates and whether all would be permitted by the state.

That uncertainty could make developers less likely to try them even though doing so may be cheaper than using the methods it is known the state will permit, said Steve Stone, Brunswick County's assistant county manager.

At the same time though, the relative cost difference between low-impact development and currently permitted stormwater control techniques enhances using low-impact development.

Stone and Buddy Milliken, developer of Windsong in Shallotte, say that as the green revolution takes hold, more and more home buyers will be attracted to live in developments that are more environmentally friendly.

"[Low-impact development] is a philosophy and a collection of practical methods," Milliken said.

"It feels good, and it has additional benefits of promoting personal health and saving money through lower energy costs."

Lauren Kolodij, deputy director of the Coastal Federation, said Brunswick County's manual is designed to give developers another tool in turning raw land into subdivisions.

The state is also working on a low-impact development manual.

"People are looking to Brunswick County as a real leader in this," Kolodij said.

The manual is a joint effort among the state, the Coastal Federation, Brunswick and New Hanover counties and the city of Wilmington.

The goal is for Brunswick commissioners to pass a resolution endorsing low-impact development as another tool to meet state stormwater control rules and directing county staff to make sure that builders know about it when they are seeking county permits.

The manual will first go through Brunswick County's Planning Board, which will send it to county commissioners with a recommendation to adopt or reject.

It has the support of the board's chairman, Mike Loyack, but he doesn't know how other planning board members feel about it.