Worst Practices 03/23/09

As you may well know the Clean Water Act, and specifically the states NPDES Permit are the guiding documents for Storm Water issues within the state (Ca). I was recently in Orange County Ca, and saw a great example of worst practices, as opposed to best practices. Being a certified erosion & sediment control person, I was absolutely amazed to see the complete lack of understanding of basic controls, and proper implementation. There appeared to be little or no regard for either the environment, the regulations, the construction companies reputation as a polluter or the trade craft of erosion & sediment control. I realize that budgets are beyond tight, but I also realize that failure to implement properly, the most basic of BMP's, Best Management Practices, violates us all. It allows pollutants, sediment and other contaminants to flow into our storm drains and straight out to the ocean. As you probably know storm drains, unlike sewers, have no treatement and flow straight into the streams and rivers and ultimately to the ocean.