Part 5 - Good Housekeeping Welcome to the last module in this series of training sessions Preventing Stormwater Pollution at Your Public Works Facility: A 5-Part Workshop Series

Training Modules Why Stormwater Matters  What is a SWPPP?  Spill Prevention & Response  Materials Management  Good Housekeeping By now, we’re all familiar with the concept of watershed and concerns over runoff. We know what a SWPPP is, and we’re familiar with the SWPPP for this facility. We’re being careful to prevent spills, and know what to do if one occurs. We’re improving the way we order, store and use materials. Now, we’re going to wrap up with a final discussion of good housekeeping practices.

Good Housekeeping Operations Preventive Maintenance Runoff Management Some of this material is going to sound familiar, because it is basically an expanded version of spill prevention and materials management. Today’s focus is on improving operations to reduce pollutant exposure, managing runoff to keep the water clean, and preventive maintenance to ensure that everything works the way it should. Sort of like home, where you have to mow the lawn, water the garden and clean out the gutters. Preventive Maintenance

Operations We’ll start right in with mowing the lawn, that is, operations that are performed out of doors.

Move operations indoors or under roof Vehicle maintenance & repair Vehicle washing Requires individual permit The first thing to consider is moving the operation indoors, or at least under a roof or cover. Working on vehicles almost always generates hazardous waste, which falls under other regulatory programs, so all that will be said here is ”Do it indoors”. Washing the vehicles may also dislodge hazardous wastes. A separate RIPDES permit is needed for the discharge of vehicle washwater to a waterway, wetland or storm drain. The simplest thing for us to do is send the vehicles to a commercial facility that recycles the washwater.

Move operations indoors or under roof Waste storage Waste fluids Dumpster Waste fluids should be stored indoors or under cover, in good-condition, labeled containers with secondary containment. Dumpsters need to be covered and out of any runoff flow paths.

Move operations indoors or under roof Putting idle equipment under a roof or tarp extends the life of the machinery, as well as reducing the potential for rainwater to pick up any pollutants.

Sweep/vacuum paved surfaces There are some specific good-housekeeping operations we need to add to our schedules. For example, we need to periodically sweep or vacuum the pavement in the facility, to remove accumulated pollutants, such as sand ...

Sweep/vacuum paved surfaces And salt. As we get a better handle on preventive maintenance and materials management, there shouldn’t be as much of this to pick up in the future.

Pick up litter & debris A routine litter patrol will reduce storm drain clogging, water pollution and potential scavenging by wildlife

Dispose of waste materials properly in appropriate locations Then there’s this issue of reconsidering how we handle the bulky waste materials from our primary purpose operations. Some can be recycled; some can be sent to a licensed landfill, but in the interim we need to construct some proper storage facilities.

Runoff Management Let’s turn now to runoff management, or making sure the water goes where you want it to go.

Follow the flow Remember the rough maps we made in the first exercise? We looked at how stormwater flows onto, across and from our facility. Here are some general tips on what to do about it.

Minimize run on First, we want to minimize the amount of runoff we have to deal with, by reducing what flows onto our work areas from above.

Diversion Waterway A classic method of doing this is by creating a diversion to intercept the runoff and send it to a safe outlet.

Minimize run off Next, we need to minimize the amount of runoff from our maintenance areas, stockpiles and dumpsters. Roofs and covers help a lot, or we can create sumps to be pumped out, or…

Install basins We can install structures that are designed to treat the runoff. This basin should allow heavier sand particles to settle almost as soon as the runoff enters on the right-hand side of the slide. Then the berm in the middle creates a longer flow path to the outlet, allowing for additional settling and treatment.

Stabilize outfalls The outfalls into and out of a basin, or the end of a storm drain system should be stabilized to prevent erosion.

Sheet flow from impervious areas to vegetated buffer Relatively clean runoff from impervious areas that is flowing like a sheet rather than concentrated can be treated by establishing a vegetated buffer at the edge of the pavement.

Biofilter/bioremediation Or a biofilter can be created with designed growing medium and plants specially selected for their ability to take up pollutants.

Preventive Maintenance The final category of Good Housekeeping to explore today is preventive maintenance

Inspect & clean structural BMPs Gutters & downspouts Inlets And the first step is to literally clean the gutters and downspouts so they flow freely and aren’t sending debris and pollutants toward the flow paths. We also need to care for the storm drain inlets: mark them with paint or signs so we keep vehicles, dumpsters & stockpiles away from them, insert oil & grease separators if they’re downslope from any petroleum products, locate an emergency kit nearby in case of spills, and clean them out on a routine basis.

Do you think this catch basin is ready for a little maintenance?

Inspect & clean Discharge points Structures Inspect all the discharge points and BMPs. Structures should have an Operation & Maintenance Plan; we need to know where it is, or make a new one, and then follow it. Accumulated sediment needs periodical removal, and we need to maintain vegetation.

Inspect outdoor storage areas Cover prior to rain Monitor vehicles & equipment for leaks Make sure outdoor storage areas are ready for the next rain event. If they’re small enough, cover piles that you won’t be working with in the next few days. If they’re too big for a cover, make sure the minimal amount of water flows through them, and that runoff from them slows enough to drop its load in a place you can readily clean up. Periodically check outdoor equipment for leaks. Fix the leak or, if you must delay repair, contain the leak with a drip pan and make sure the equipment is covered.

Erosion & sediment control Regularly inspect unpaved areas for signs of erosion Run-on Concentrated flow Do a regular check of the unpaved areas at the facility to control erosion and sedimentation. Pay particular attention to areas above your pavement, where run-on can wash sediment into your facility, and below the pavement, where concentrated flows can easily create gullies. This one was most likely created because a storm drain inlet was plugged – once again demonstrating that cutting down on maintenance time just means more time spent fixing! If you think something like this is probably going to re-occur, take the time to construct a waterway or drop structure that’s designed to carry the flow – don’t just fill it up with crushed stone because you’ll have to pick that up from the bottom of the hill after the next big rain.

Erosion & sediment control Stabilize unpaved areas with Vegetation or Mulch Concentrated flow areas need a designed solution. But other bare areas can and should be stabilized with either vegetation or mulch.

Erosion & sediment control Avoid over-irrigation of landscaping If you do any irrigation, do it sparingly, to conserve water and avoid soil movement.

Erosion & sediment control And finally, we need to be cleaning up any areas of accumulated sediment, and either composting it or sending it to the landfill. Remove accumulated sediment

Preventive Maintenance: How often is “periodic” or “regular”? As scheduled by Operations & Maintenance plans When need is noted Minimum once a year Tie to annual SWPPP inspection How often do we need to be performing this maintenance? It should be written into our annual work plans. If you see a maintenance need, tell your supervisor so it can get added to the schedule. At a minimum, everything needs to be checked and needed maintenance done at least once a year in order for the facility to be in compliance with the General Permit.

Public Works Facility Operations & Maintenance for Stormwater Management: Employee Training Brought to you by: One more reminder that this series has been brought to you by… This program was developed by the Southern Rhode Island Conservation District in partnership with the URI Cooperative Extension RI NEMO Program and the Rhode Island T2 Center. Funding was provided by the RI Department of Environmental Management and the RI Department of Transportation under the Phase II Stormwater Education and Outreach Program.

Exercise! Conduct a SWPPP Inspection of the facility And speaking of annual inspections, that’s just what we’re going to do for our wrap-up exercise.