Clean Sound Facts - What Businesses Can Do

Urban Runoff | Landscaping | Maintenance Facilities | Low Impact Development

Preventing Pollution from Urban Runoff

What is urban runoff?
Urban runoff is either wet weather (rainwater) or dry weather (waste water) flows from urban landscapes into storm drain systems that lead to the Puget Sound .

Why is urban runoff a problem?
Urban runoff carries contaminants - such as litter, food, human and animal waste, automobile fluids, industrial pollutants, fertilizers and pesticides - to Puget Sound creating health risks for people, killing marine life and contributing to localized flooding and beach closures.

Pollution from runoffs also increases health risks to swimmers near flowing storm drains and toxicity to aquatic life. These impacts translate into economic losses, loss of recreational resources, dramatic cost increases for cleaning up contaminated sediments, degraded water quality and impaired function and vitality of our natural resources. Clogged storm drains can lead to area flooding when it rains, creating traffic problems and unsanitary conditions.

What can a business do to prevent urban runoff pollution?

Don't put anything in storm drains but rainwater. Storm drains carry surface runoff directly to Puget Sound. Make sure that runoff carries only rainwater.
Use a broom instead of a hose. Hosing paved surfaces is not permitted. Sweep up litter and debris from sidewalks, driveways and parking lots. Do NOT sweep into the street or gutter, where it will get washed into a storm drain.
Cover dumpsters or close dumpster lids to prevent the entry of water. Check dumpsters for leaks, report leaky ones immediately and replace them.
Cover any exposed chemicals or building materials that could spill or leak, sending harmful materials into the storm drain system.
Redirect rainwater downspouts. If your downspouts direct uncontaminated runoff directly to the street or alley, you may want to disconnect the downspout and direct runoff to your landscape. Most major home improvement centers have plastic, corrugated and flexible pipes that connect to downspouts and expand to carry the runoff to your landscape.
Berm around fueling area to keep any spills or runoff in the fueling area and directed to a sanitary connection.

The illegal dumping of hazardous waste carries fines.

Landscaping Tips

Beautify your business, and reduce the negative impacts of landscaped areas.

Be smart when you apply pesticides or fertilizers. Do not apply pesticides or fertilizers before it rains. Not only will you lose most of the chemicals through runoff, but you will also be harming the environment. Do not over water after application and read label to make sure that you don't apply more than the recommended amount of pesticides and/or fertilizers.
Do not over water plants. Irrigation runoff is not permitted. Consider installing water-efficient irrigation systems.
Check irrigation systems regularly and adjust them, if necessary, to prevent runoff.
Automatic Irrigation Controllers should be reset when there are power outages, seasonally and during rainy season, before and after rain events.
Redirect runoff from roofs, driveways and other paved areas to landscape.
Compost or mulch yard waste. Do not leave it in the street or sweep it into storm drains.
Cover piles of dirt or mulch to prevent wind or rain from carrying it offsite.

Maintenance Facility Tips To Protect Public Health, the Groundwater and Puget Sound Water Resources

Clean up spills immediately and properly dispose of cleanup materials.
Provide full and complete cover over fueling areas and design or retrofit facilities for spill containment
Install and maintain oil-water separators and other devices, such as storm drain inserts and a berm around fueling areas, to remove runoff pollution.

Cost-savings when Implementing Low Impact Development (LID) in a Project*

Simultaneously reduce land development and infrastructure costs while protecting a property's natural resources and functions:

Minimize runoff from any new construction project by reducing impervious surfaces; disconnecting runoff from impervious pathways and using onsite infiltration techniques can reduce or eliminate the need for more costly structural stormwater treatment devices on the property.
Preserve open spaces and minimize land disturbance
Protect and incorporate natural systems (stream/wildlife corridors, trees, landscapes) as design elements
Utilize non-traditional street and lot layouts and designs (reduced use of wider than necessary hardscapes (streets, sidewalks) and increased use of wider permeable areas
Use bioretention areas to direct uncontaminated storm water to shallow topographic depressions in the landscape where it is s filtered, stored and infiltrated into the ground.
Use native grass swales to filter the water as it flows across the area and as it slowly percolates into the ground. These systems can act as low-cost alternatives to curbs, gutters and pipes, i.e. the public storm drain system.
Divert storm water away from disturbed or exposed areas of construction.
Cover any exposed areas of dirt
Install vehicle mud/sediment removal areas and other sediment and erosion controls, and properly maintain them, especially during a storm event
Protect downstream storm drains to prevent sediment-laden runoff from entering

* Source: NAHB Research Center

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