Storm Water Pollution

What is the storm drain system?

The storm drain system is the drainage network that carries water away from our neighborhoods. You generally see the catch basins or inlets on the side of the curb or gutter. These carry runoff to a pipe network that usu ally drains to a creek or the ocean. Storm drains and sanitary sewers are not connected. Storm drains are not connected to a wastewater treatment plant so the drainage goes straight to the beach! If you don't want to swim in it at the beach, don't dump it in the gutter.

What is storm drain pollution?

Storm drain pollution is a loose term for a variety of pollutants that are found in the drainage from our streets and neighborhoods. In general, the more urbanized an area, the more polluted the runoff. Most of the pollutants come from the way we live our lives. Pollutants are picked up and carried to the storm drain when it rains (stormwater) and when we over irrigate, hosedown outdoor areas, and wash our cars, etc.

Here are some examples of typical storm drain pollution:

Do we really have these pollutants in our watershed?

Definitely! Water quality has been monitored for nearly ten years in Encinitas. We see all of these pollutants in our waterways, but the most serious are bacteria, soaps, nitrogen (nitrates and ammonia), pesticides and copper.

How does storm drain pollution affect me?

When our creeks, lagoons and beaches are polluted, the y become a public health and environment al threat. The most direct result of polluted water is when a beach is closed or posted with contamination warning signs be cause of high bacteria levels. The City and County of San Diego test the beaches frequently and when levels exceed set standards, the beaches must be posted with warning signs or closed altogether.

Postings and closures aren't good for our health or our economy, which thrives on good, clean beaches.

How do I affect storm drain pollution?

The good news is that many of the pollutants we find in our waterways come from urban activities that we can change! Here are just a few things that you can do:

What causes water pollution?

When we construct new buildings, homes, streets, parking lots or other hard surfaces, we decrease the amount of land that can absorb rainwater and increase the amount of surfaces that are impervious, or cannot absorb liquids. Therefore, storm water runs off these impervious surfaces and flows into storm drains, or the holes in the gutters that carry rainwater away from our streets to prevent flooding. Storm drains divert runoff to the nearest waterbody (creek, river, lake or ocean). Unfortunately, storm drains do not filter storm water, so all the pollutants on our streets, and carried in runoff, end up in these waterbodies.

There are a variety of pollutants that contaminate storm water.

Pollutants
This is a snapshot of the inside of a storm drain, before it was cleaned.

Pollutant Factsheets

The leaf litter, trash, sediments and chemicals listed above are just a few of the many pollutants that contaminate storm water. For more information about storm water pollutants and ways you can help prevent or reduce these pollutants, click on the Oceanside Clean Water Program links below, download storm water brochures or visit your city or county storm water web site see Whom to Contact or Members.

Courtesy: City of Oceanside and City of Encinitas