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Where's Your Rainwater Running Off To?

November 28, 2007 - Where's Your Rainwater Running Off To?


Test your knowledge about where the rainwater in your neighborhood goes and how it can affect your favorite swimming hole, fishing stream or nearby lake.

1) When it rains, 40 to 70 percent of the rainwater that falls on your property: a) Soaks into the ground, b) Evaporates, c) Runs off your property.

2) Water that runs off a typical one-acre house lot: a) Is the same quality as from an acre of forest land, b) Has twice as much contaminant as forest land, c) Has 5 to 10 times as much contaminant as forest land.

3) Stormwater that drains into a storm drain is: a) Treated by the wastewater treatment plant before reaching our waterways, b) Untreated and flows into nearby lakes, rivers and streams, or estuaries, c) Contained there between rain events until it evaporates.

4) Is polluted stormwater the largest source of water quality problems in the USA? Yes or No

5) Can you help prevent stormwater pollution? Yes or No. A
Answers: 1) c. The Maine Department of Environmental Protection estimates that between 40 and 70 percent of rain and snow melt that falls on the average Maine residential lot runs off. Roofs, driveways, even most lawns do not allow water to soak into the ground. Watch after the next rainstorm. Where does your storm water go?

2) c. Studies in Maine have found that the water running off even well-maintained one- to two-acre lots contains 5 to 10 times as much phosphorus, a nutrient that leads to nuisance algal blooms, and other contaminants than from nearby forested land. Imagine a raindrop falling from the sky. It first flows across your lawn, then down your driveway. It makes its way along the sidewalk and into the road. At this point in the stormwater cycle, the raindrop is no longer traveling alone; it has picked up some pesticides and fertilizer from your lawn, some soil from the eroded area by the road, a bit of bacteria from your pet's waste, as well as some gas and oil from your driveway.

3) b. If stormwater flows into a storm drain, it continues to flow through an underground network of pipes, where it discharges, untreated, into your local waters. It might even be where you swim, fish, or play. Polluted stormwater can cause beach closures, swimming bans, and nuisance algal blooms; it can harm flsh, shellfish, and other aquatic life. It can also contaminate drinking water sources.

4) Yes, both nationally and in Maine, polluted storm water causes water quality problems in more miles of rivers and streams and more lakes and estuaries than discharges from industrial or wastewater treatment plants. Because there are so many of us, we, as individuals, actually cause more pollution than industry.

5) Yes, you can help. You can: Plant trees, shrubs and grass to stabilize eroding soil. Maintain vehicles and dispose of waste fluids at recycling centers.


SOURCE: BETHEL CITIZEN

DATE: 11-15-2007


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