The Environmental Protection Agency’s new guidebook, National Management Measures to Control Nonpoint Source Pollution from Urban Areas, is an information
The Environmental Protection Agency’s new guidebook, National Management Measures to Control Nonpoint Source Pollution from Urban Areas, is an information source for state and municipal officials who devise pollution-management programs to protect waterways. Unlike pollution from industrial and sewage treatment plants, nonpoint source pollution has many origins. Contaminated runoff from paved surfaces, malfunctioning septic systems, pet wastes, over-applied fertilizers and pesticides, improperly disposed household chemicals, and motor-vehicle fluids constitute some of its forms.
Our guidance is a textbook and toolkit for cooperative conservation and sustainable management of urban and suburban runoff, notes EPA’s Benjamin Grumbles, assistant administrator for water. Since stormwater pollution can harm surface and groundwater, this guidebook identifies effective ways to reduce pollution and increase low-impact development.
Twelve management measures have been included in the guidebook to help establish performance goals for stormwater control programs. Also useful in determining means to minimize other negative factors associated with urban runoff, the measures offer guidance on setting up a framework Û including stormwater management Û to mitigate urban pollution. Included are the following subjects:
- Watershed and site protection
- New development
- On-site wastewater treatment (septic) systems
- Transportation
- Construction, bridges and highways
- Construction-site erosion, sediment, and chemical control
- Existing urban areas
- Pollution prevention
- Operation and maintenance
- Program evaluation.
The guidebook is available at no cost at EPA’s website: www.epa.gov/nps/urbanmm/. More information about nonpoint source pollution and urban runoff can be obtained at www.epa.gov/nps