What is Polluted Stormwater Runoff?
When snow melts or it rains, water runs over roads, parking lots, sidewalks and lawns, removing oils and grease, sand and salt, tiny metal and soil particles, and fertilizers. This stormwater runoff and the pollutants it contains then flow directly into storm drainage systems. From there, it's carried without treatment into our streams, ponds, rivers and reservoirs.
If we want to continue making progress, more effort is needed to control polluted stormwater runoff, such as by fixing any oil and other fluid leaks on our cars, reducing the amount of fertilizers we use, and washing our cars at commercial car washes where the water is recycled and/or filtered. And remember, don't dump! Only rainwater should go down a storm drain, not used motor oil or pet waste.
Clean water bodies are important to all of us!
You don't have to live near a stream or lake to affect their water quality. For example, spilled oil may eventually find its way there no matter where it's spilled. The environmental impacts from polluted runoff are gradual, but severe. The cumulative effects of polluted stormwater runoff can make the water very unhealthy for fish, animals and people.
It's up to all of us to keep our water resources clean. Polluted runoff can be reduced significantly if everyone incorporates small preventive measures into their regular everyday activities such as properly disposing of pet waste or minimizing use of lawn fertilizers. Click the links below to find out how you can change your everyday activities to minimize your contributions to stormwater pollution.
If you wash your car on the street or driveway, the soap and oily grit picked up by your car will be washed into nearby storm drains and then into our streams, ponds, reservoirs or estuaries, without any treatment. This pollution is unhealthy for all of us.
What can you do?
Wash your car on grass or gravel surfaces so the ground can filter the water naturally.
Use soap sparingly and use non-phosphate detergents.
Use a high-pressure, low-volume hose with a trigger nozzle to save water.
Empty your bucket of used, soapy water down the sink.
Best of all, take your car to a commercial car wash where the used water is captured, recycled and/or filtered to remove pollutants.
If you plan to hold a fund-raising car wash, try to have the cars washed on a permeable surface where the soapy water can be absorbed into the ground.
If pet waste is not properly disposed of, the waste may be washed into nearby storm drains by rain or melting snow. Pet waste is a source of bacteria. Many storm drains empty into our streams, ponds, reservoirs, and estuaries, delivering bacteria and other pollutants to these waters.
What can you do?
Scoop up pet waste.
Flush it down a toilet, as long as it's not mixed with litter or other materials. This is the best method because your septic system or community sewage plant will treat the waste.
Or seal the waste in a plastic bag and put it in the garbage.
Never dump pet waste or plastic bags containing waste into a storm drain.
If your community does not regulate pet waste, encourage your local government to adopt a “pooper-scooper” ordinance.
If your local parks do not provide pet waste stations, encourage them to do so.
If you apply too much fertilizer, especially before a heavy rain storm, a lot of it may be washed into nearby storm drains and then our waterways and water bodies without treatment. Once in the water, fertilizers promote a growth and decay process in algae. The decaying algae then use up oxygen, which fish need to survive.
What can you do?
Use fertilizers sparingly. Lawns and many garden plants do not need as much fertilizer as you might think, especially if you use certain grasses and native plants.
Use slow-release fertilizers.
Don't fertilize just before a forecasted heavy rain storm.
Use commercially available compost or make your own using yard waste. Mixing compost with soil means your plants will need less chemical fertilizer and puts your waste to good use.
Compost may be available from your local public works facility or a garden store.
Don't bag grass clippings. Us a mulching lawn mower and naturally fertilize your lawn with the clippings.
Wash your spreader and equipment on a pervious area like a lawn, not on the driveway. This allows natural absorption of excess fertilizer.
Maintain a buffer strip of unmowed, natural vegetation alongside streams, ponds and wetlands to trap excess fertilizers and sediment.
When oil leaks from our cars onto driveways, streets and parking lots, there's a good chance ti will be washed into nearby storm drains, eventually making its way into our streams, ponds, reservoirs and estuaries. Picture the number of cars in your area and imagine the amount of oi8l that finds its way from leaky gaskets into our waterways and water bodies.
What can you do?
Check your car often for oil and fluid drips and other leaks and fix them promptly.
Have your car regularly tuned-up to reduce oil use.
Use ground cloths or drip pans under your vehicle if you have leaks or are doing engine work.
Recycle used motor oil. Many auto supply stores, car-care centers and gas stations accept used oil. Some public works facilities also accept used oil.
Clean up spills immediately. You can use kitty litter or sand to soak up the liquid. Properly dispose of this material after the spill.
Collect all used oil in containers with tight-fitting lids. Do not mix waste oil with gasoline, solvents or other engine fluids. This contaminates the oil, which may otherwise be reused, and may form a more hazardous chemical.
Never dump motor oil, antifreeze, transmission fluid, or other engine fluids down storm drains, into road gutters, on the ground, or into a ditch.
