Municipalities and homeowners struggle with best practices for stormwater treatment. While stormwater runoff goes directly into rivers and lakes, stormwater treatment is difficult because of the sheer volume of water. Fortunately, there are various techniques, such as catch basin inserts and stormwater filters, that make the job a bit easier.
The challenges to effective stormwater treatment are legion. Gone are the days when stormwater pollution could be attributed to a ofew factories or major polluters. Instead, nonpoint source pollution, such as lawn chemicals, agricultural runoff, and many other tiny pollutants in a large area, are the culprit. In urban environments, macroscopic pollution, such as floatable trash, pose a problem.
There are tricks to effective stormwater treatment, though. Drain filters, when well designed, can keep out larger debris. Drop inlet spillways lower water through a box or pipe structure, and can help sort out some liquid pollutants, like oils or chemicals. Taken together, these systems can create effective stormwater treatment, even after large rainstorms.
Stormwater treatment is never easy, but it is doable. Using inserts and filters at the drain itself, stormwater treatment can be provided, even for large nonpoint source contaminants. This means municipalities and homeowners can better protect their watersheds, and provide drinking water to future generations.