Brian Barton
Stormwater pollution is a pressing issue that has contaminated water bodies, closed local businesses, and harmed or killed fish and other wildlife. Stormwater runoff is rain that falls on streets, parking lots, rooftops, and other developed land, picking up pollutants like bacteria, oil, trash, and toxic chemicals along the way. This contaminated water then flows directly into nearby lakes, rivers, and oceans through storm drains, causing serious environmental damage. To prevent stormwater pollution, individuals can make conscious choices such as properly disposing of waste, reducing the use of chemicals, and opting for green infrastructure to slow down and filter stormwater. Small actions by the community can collectively make a significant impact in mitigating stormwater pollution and protecting our precious waterways.
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What You'll Learn
Reduce use of fertilizers and pesticides
Stormwater runoff is a major source of nutrient pollution. Rain and snowmelt collect excess nutrients and pollutants as they flow over streets, parking lots, and roofs before entering storm drains and water bodies. Fertilizers and pesticides are among the pollutants that can be picked up by stormwater.
To reduce the use of fertilizers and pesticides, consider the following:
- Fertilizer Application: If you are fertilizing your lawn, it is essential to apply fertilizer well in advance of a rainstorm. This will help prevent the fertilizer from being washed into nearby water bodies. Use fertilizers sparingly, and always follow the manufacturer's recommendations. Organic, slow-release fertilizers are a good option, as they release nutrients gradually, reducing the risk of excess nutrients being washed away.
- Sweep Up Fertilizers: After applying fertilizer, be sure to sweep up any excess from driveways, sidewalks, and roads. This will prevent it from being washed into storm drains during rainfall.
- Vegetate Bare Spots: Cover any bare spots in your yard with vegetation to prevent soil erosion. Vegetation acts as a protective cover, reducing the impact of raindrops on the soil and helping to hold soil particles in place.
- Rain Gardens: Constructing a rain garden can help slow down and infiltrate stormwater runoff, allowing plants to filter out pollutants. The Nonpoint Education for Municipal Officials (NEMO) provides resources and apps to help you design and size your rain garden appropriately.
- Integrated Pest Management: Instead of relying solely on pesticides, consider adopting Integrated Pest Management techniques. This approach focuses on long-term prevention of pest problems and utilizes the least risky pest control methods.
- Effective Nutrient Management: Soil testing is essential to determine nutrient levels and ensure precise fertilizer application. Techniques such as split application and using slow-release fertilizers optimize nutrient uptake by crops, reducing runoff into water bodies.
- Green Infrastructure: Implementing green infrastructure techniques such as pervious pavement, rain barrels, and green roofs can help manage stormwater runoff. These practices slow down and infiltrate stormwater, allowing plants to filter out pollutants.
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Properly dispose of trash, including cigarette butts
Stormwater pollution is caused by rain or snow flowing over streets, parking lots, and roofs, collecting pollutants and nutrients, and then entering nearby water bodies or storm drains. This runoff is a major source of nutrient pollution and has serious environmental consequences, including the contamination of drinking water supplies and harm to wildlife.
To prevent stormwater pollution, it is crucial to properly dispose of trash, including cigarette butts. Here are some ways to do this:
Pack Out Your Trash: When spending time outdoors, follow the "pack it in, pack it out" motto. This means packing out all your trash, including leftover food, litter, and cigarette butts. Carry bags specifically for trash and make sure to inspect your campsite or rest area for any trash or spilled food before leaving.
Use Trash Cans and Recycling Bins: Dispose of your trash in designated trash cans or recycling bins. Ensure these receptacles are secure so that wildlife cannot access them.
Create Catholes for Human Waste: Human waste should be deposited in catholes dug 6-8 inches deep and located at least 200 feet from water sources, trails, and campsites. Refill and disguise the cathole once finished. Toilet paper can also be buried in these catholes, or it can be packed out as trash, especially in arid regions.
Dispose of Hygiene Products Properly: Tampons, pads, and menstrual cups should be placed in plastic bags and packed out as trash. They should not be buried, as they do not decompose easily and may be dug up by animals.
Pick Up After Your Pets: When hiking with dogs, be sure to pick up their waste and dispose of it correctly in a trash can.
By properly disposing of trash, including cigarette butts, we can help prevent stormwater pollution and protect our environment and water sources.
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Sweep driveways and sidewalks
Keeping your driveways and sidewalks clean is an effective way to prevent stormwater pollution. When it rains, stormwater runs off impermeable surfaces such as driveways, sidewalks, and streets, picking up and transporting pollutants along the way. These pollutants include dirt, debris, chemicals, and excess nutrients from fertilizers, pet and yard waste, and leaky storage containers. By regularly sweeping these areas, you can prevent these pollutants from being washed into storm drains and, subsequently, into nearby rivers, lakes, and oceans.
For example, if you sweep fallen leaves, grass clippings, and dirt off your driveway instead of using a hose or a pressure washer, you prevent those organic materials and any chemicals on the surface from entering the drainage system. Similarly, businesses can implement this practice to reduce the amount of pollutants that enter local waterways from their parking lots. Studies have shown that street cleaning, which often involves sweeping, significantly lowers the levels of contaminants in stormwater runoff.
Another important reason to sweep your driveways and sidewalks is to remove fertilizers. If you apply fertilizer shortly before a rainstorm, much of it will be washed into nearby water bodies. By regularly sweeping your driveways and sidewalks, you can remove excess fertilizers and prevent them from becoming pollutants.
In addition to sweeping, it is important to consider alternatives to hosing down your driveway or sidewalk. The water used to clean these surfaces can contain soap, surfactants, oil, and sludge, which can pollute rivers and lakes if washed into storm drains. Instead, wash your driveway or sidewalk in an area where the water can be directed onto a lawn or landscaped area, allowing it to slowly filter into the ground.
Simple actions like sweeping driveways and sidewalks can make a significant impact on reducing stormwater pollution. It is an easy, cost-effective, and accessible way for individuals to contribute positively to their environment and showcase how small changes in daily habits can lead to broader ecological benefits.
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Wash cars in designated areas
Washing your car at home can generate up to 140 gallons of wastewater in just 10 minutes, which is often contaminated with soap, surfactants, oil, and sludge. This polluted water then flows into storm drains, rivers, and lakes, causing serious environmental damage.
To prevent this, it is important to wash your car in designated areas, such as commercial car washes, which are designed to treat and recycle wastewater. Commercial car washes are better equipped to handle wastewater, as they can discharge it to the sanitary sewer system. This helps to maintain the clarity, temperature, and oxygen levels of downstream water bodies by keeping associated pollutants out of storm drains.
Many commercial car washes are part of programs designed to manage vehicle wash water. These programs include elements such as plumbing, recycling, and pretreatment systems, which require periodic inspection and maintenance. For example, containment berms should be regularly inspected for failures, and emptied when they reach 75% capacity. The area surrounding the wash rack should also be visually inspected for leaks, overspray, or other signs of ineffective containment.
If you are washing your car at home, it is important to wash it in an area where the water can be directed onto lawn or landscaped areas, allowing it to slowly filter into the ground. This helps to reduce the impact on stormwater systems and prevents pollution. When washing your car at home, only use soaps, cleaners, or detergents labeled non-toxic, phosphate-free, or biodegradable.
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Use green infrastructure
Green infrastructure is a network of natural and semi-natural systems that manage stormwater runoff by slowing the rate of water flow and filtering out harmful pollutants before they drain into waterways. It is a cost-effective solution to stormwater woes, cutting down on the amount of flooding and reducing the polluted runoff that reaches sewers, streams, rivers, lakes, and oceans.
Green infrastructure prevents runoff by capturing rain where it falls, allowing it to filter into the earth and replenish groundwater supplies. It improves water quality by decreasing the amount of stormwater that reaches waterways and by removing contaminants from the water that does. Soil and plants help capture and remove pollutants from stormwater through adsorption, filtration, plant uptake, and the decomposition of organic matter. Green infrastructure practices can be integrated into existing features of the built environment, including streets, parking lots, and public recreational areas such as parks and sports complexes.
One example of green infrastructure is vegetated swales, which are shallow channels that convey, slow down, and infiltrate stormwater runoff. They are designed to trap pollutants such as particulates and fine metals. Swales are best placed in residential, industrial, and commercial areas with small drainage areas that generate low volumes of runoff. They can be used to replace curbs and gutters, but they are not practical in areas with large drainage areas. Another example is permeable pavement, which allows rainwater and runoff to move through the pavement's surface to a storage layer below, with water eventually seeping into the underlying soil.
Green roofs are another form of green infrastructure that sequesters rain and carbon pollution. Green roofs can retain between 40 and 80 percent of the total volume of rain that falls on them, and the water that is released is done so slowly, reducing the amount of runoff that rushes into a watershed all at once, thereby curbing flooding and erosion. The vegetation found on green roofs captures CO2, which gets stored in plants and soil.
When planning green infrastructure, it is important to carefully coordinate its placement to avoid conflicts with utility placement, high water table levels, and subterranean conditions such as the location of bedrock. Considering the soil conditions is critical, and high-quality plant stock and appropriate planting techniques are vital to the success of any planting. Green infrastructure must also be properly maintained, repaired, or replaced at the end of its life cycle to function properly.
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Frequently asked questions
Stormwater pollution is rainwater contaminated with bacteria, toxic chemicals, oil, dirt, and trash that flows through storm drains into local waterways.
Stormwater is the excess water from rain, snowmelt, and irrigation that doesn't absorb into the ground and flows over streets, parking lots, and roofs, collecting pollutants before entering into a storm drain or water body.
There are several ways to prevent stormwater pollution, including:
- Properly disposing of trash, including cigarette butts, pet waste, paint, cooking oil, and grease.
- Avoiding the use of toxic chemicals, fertilizers, and insecticides outdoors.
- Using non-toxic, phosphate-free, or biodegradable soaps and detergents when washing your car or outdoors.
- Volunteering for stream restoration or other local environmental projects.
