Pollution Prevention and Good Housekeeping

Municipalities conduct numerous activities that can pose a threat to water quality if practices and procedures are not in place to prevent pollutants from entering the MS4. These activities include winter road maintenance, minor road repairs and other infrastructure work, automobile fleet maintenance, landscaping and park maintenance, and building maintenance. Municipalities also conduct activities that remove pollutants from the MS4 when performed properly, such as parking lot and street sweeping and storm drain system cleaning. Finally, municipal facilities can be sources of stormwater pollutants if BMPs are not in place to contain spills, manage trash, and handle nonstormwater discharges. 

Phase II MS4s are required to train staff on ways to protect stormwater, particularly when maintaining MS4 infrastructure and performing daily municipal activities, such as park and open space maintenance, fleet and building maintenance, new construction and land disturbances, and stormwater system maintenance. This primarily includes:

• Developing inspection and maintenance procedures and schedules for stormwater BMPs,
• Establishing procedures for properly disposing of pollutants removed from the MS4, and
• Implementing BMPs to treat pollutants from transportation infrastructure, maintenance areas, storage yards, sand and salt storage areas, and waste transfer stations,
• Identifying ways to incorporate water quality controls into new and existing flood management projects.

The City of Fredericksburg has a set of management processes and procedures known as the Environmental Management System (EMS) allowing the City to analyze, control and reduce environmental impacts of its activities. Some other activities to meet these requirements include: Household Hazardous Waste Disposal in cooperation with Stafford County, bulk item pickup, and weekly street sweeping within the City's limits. 

For information or questions contact Kevin W. Utt.