Public Works

This kind of discharge is not always visible, since while some pollutants cause obvious discoloration or cloudiness in the water, most don’t.  You often don’t actually see the discharge, but may see telltale signs such as dead plants on the banks, dead fish and so on.

This kind of discharge usually happens during rain (but not always). It generally consists of pollution material that was spilled on the ground or pavement at the site, or possibly from contaminated containers stored at the site and exposed to rain.

CLUES TO LOOK FOR

First, we’ll talk about the runoff type. If it has rained recently, the polluted water may still be flowing in the ditches or culverts.  The water may be discolored or murky.   It may have an odd smell. (However, a word of caution: don’t go sniffing around an illicit discharge! It may be dangerous.)

Maybe the runoff event didn’t happen recently, but there still may be evidence that something happened. The vegetation along the ditch banks may be dead if the material was toxic to plants. There might be dead fish or other animals in the water or along the banks. There might be unnatural discoloration of the mouth of a culvert or on the concrete wing wall below a culvert.
For example, a bumper plating shop discharge might turn the concrete bright green.

Some of these things can be explained naturally; fish can die of natural causes or discolored water may be due to algae for example. But it might just as easily be due to an illicit discharge. Don’t leave it to chance. Go ahead and report it to the Public Works Dept at 850-729-5407.

DELIBERATE DUMPING

Now a word about deliberate dumping.  It is likely you won’t observe this directly, because the people doing it purposely try to do it when they won’t be seen.  This isn’t always the case, however; some people just don’t realize that the storm sewer carries water to lakes and the coastal areas – they think it goes to a waste treatment plant.

Dumping may not consist of a person emptying a bucket or drum of waste. It may be a tank truck draining its contents through a hose into a manhole. Sometimes this is legal; septic tank cleaning people may have a permit allowing them to discharge to the sanitary sewer system through a manhole.

Dumping may consist of a hose running out the back door of an industrial site and into a ditch, or simply into a wooded lot or even into the street.

Often you will see evidence that illicit dumping has occurred, such as discoloration of channels and pipes. 

Another telltale sign of a possible illicit discharge is flow when there shouldn’t be any.  In general, ditches and other channels should be carrying water just after a rainfall event. Depending upon the size of the area being drained, the ditch might continue to flow for a day or more following a large rain. Ditches may have some flow, even when it hasn’t rained recently, since groundwater can seep into the banks of the ditch.  This is called base flow, and is generally very low.  If it hasn’t rained recently, but you observe a significant flow in a ditch, or coming out of a culvert, there is a good chance that someone is discharging wastewater into the system.

You might see a pile of empty pesticide containers or bags discarded on a vacant lot or in a ditch. You might observe pallets filled with bags of fertilizer or other products sitting outside exposed to rain. You might see old drums discarded in an open lot or in the woods.  Even if we aren’t able to trace these to the responsible party, they still are a very likely source of contamination and will need to be reported so they can be removed and disposed of properly.

This kind of discharge is sporadic, often occurring at night or on weekends, when the person involved thinks nobody is looking.

This kind of discharge could be toxic since it is often done by businesses trying to get rid of industrial wastes without having to do it properly. As a result, you really need to avoid coming in contact with it, or even breathing fumes if it is volatile.

Often we need to make a quick decision to respond to this kind of event. If you see it actually occurring, it needs to be reported immediately so proper action can be taken. Later, after it has already happened, it may be too late; the damage may have already been done.

IF I SEE DELIBERATE DUMPING, SHOULD I TELL THEM TO STOP?

People deliberately dumping are breaking the law, and sometimes they know it but do it anyway. You shouldn’t take chances by confronting people like this. Report it to the Public Works Dept or the Police Dept immediately, and if it needs to be stopped, a law enforcement officer can take steps to stop it. Whether it needs to be stopped immediately can be determined depending upon the other observations you make.  We will discuss what kinds of things you need to look for shortly

IF I SEE DRUMS STORED IN THE OPEN AT A PLACE OF BUSINESS, SHOULD I TALK TO THEM ABOUT IT?

You shouldn’t take it on yourself to try to interpret the law to business people. It is only a violation of our ordinance if pollutants are actually entering the storm sewer system. Even then, you can help most by reporting it and letting others decide what needs to be done. If you observe unsanitary business practices such as storage of materials where they are exposed to rain, report it.

LEGAL DISCHARGES

Some discharges are NOT considered illegal under the City’s ordinance. These include:

• Flows from firefighting
   
• Water line flushing and other contributions from potable water sources
• Landscape irrigation and lawn watering
• Irrigation water
• Diverted stream flows
• Rising groundwaters
• Direct infiltration of groundwater to the storm water system
• Uncontaminated pumped groundwater
• Foundation and footing drains
• Water from crawl space pumps
• Uncontaminated air conditioning condensation
• Springs
• Individual residential car washing
• Filter backwash from residential swimming pools
• Flows from riparian habitats and wetlands

Note, not all of these are considered good practices but are exempt from ordinances unless such a discharge is really causing significant harm to water quality or aquatic life.

• It is not a good idea to backwash your swimming pool filter directly into a ditch or other water body; the chlorine that you put into your pool to kill bacterial will also kill aquatic life
• If you wash your own car, it’s a good idea to do it over your lawn, so the soapy water can be absorbed by the lawn and not run down the street and into the storm sewer system, or to a lake

WHAT KIND OF THINGS SHOULD I REPORT?

Location – It is extremely important to provide a good location so that the next person investigating the problem won’t have any trouble finding it. If there is an address at the site, it might be simple to say something like “storm drain in front of 1219 N. Bayshore Dr”, but oftentimes, there won’t be an address.  You can use directional instructions like “200 ft east of the intersection of John Sims and Grandview Ave”.

What you observed – Whatever it was that you observed may not be so obvious to another person. Be sure to describe thoroughly what you saw, or what happened, that made you suspect an illicit discharge.   

Any identifying marks – Was there a commercial vehicle or car at the site? Did the truck have an identification on the door panel?  Any telephone number? Any information of this kind can be very useful in attempting to determine who was responsible. Even an automobile license number is helpful. Remember, however; we don’t want you taking risks. If you have to confront the person dumping in order to copy down their license number, then maybe you’d better not take the chance.

Photos – If you happen to have a camera or cell phone with you, it would be very useful if you were to take a few snapshots of what you observed. If you do, be sure to identify on a piece of paper the date taken, the place taken and sign it.  If you do, it may end up being used as evidence; if you don’t, it probably won’t be useful. It also helps to sketch a map of the site on your report, and identify where each photo was taken, and from what direction.