KEEP THE STREAM CLEAN
How?


Frasers Creek Image

A once barren stream restored in the nineties.

It's really simple and easy!

AT HOME:
Use environmentally safe products and practices
Recycle- to reduce the landfill's size
Compost grass clippings, trimmings and food scraps
Dispose of hazardous substances safely


Key household environmentally safe products and practices

Car maintenance

Many common car features and activities contribute to stream pollution-via:
Oil drips
Rubber from tyre friction
Brake fluid drips
Oil changes
Car washing and grooming soaps and detergents

Water runoff from roads, driveways and carparks carries grease, oil, metals, rubber and organic chemicals into gutters and stormwater drains. There they harm aquatic life.
Oil and grease clog fish gills and block oxygen from entering the water.

CAR FLUIDS:
• use a drip pan or tray to avoid spills
• drain fluids from any stored vehicle
• use a funnel when pouring liquids
• prepare and use non-toxic and easy to find spill containment and clean-up gear, like sawdust, paper, sacks

CAR WASHING:
• Use biodegradable (phosphate-free) detergents
• Use a bucket of water as a water source rather than a hose
• Wash on a lawn or grassed area
• Use baking soda paste on battery heads and clamps, tyres and wheels
• Use white vinegar or lemon juice in washing water for windows

House painting

Removing paint- all lead paint and marine-paint chips and dust are hazardous and especially needs to be captured, but other non-biodegradable paints also must be caught or swept up to prevent entry to waterways.
• Place rags, old carpets or similar material down to catch paint and dispose of this at the landfill.
• Block access of paint chips and flakes to drains whilst blasting/scraping paint off.

Storage-
• keep all paints, solvents and wastes in a covered safe place, away from gutters and drains
• thoroughly dry all used brushes and dispose of used rags or drop cloths and empty paint cans
•
Safe Materials-
• select water based paints especially recycled water-based paints or even better, use certified bio-paints
• re-use thinner and drain off the residues into a cloth or paper to dispose of it


Gardening and landscaping

Weed control-
• use hand tools and mulching to control weeds
• pick up weeds, leaves, twigs, clippings etc and compost or take to greenwaste recycling depot

Pest control-
• use organic or non-toxic pesticides such as pyrethrins, soap, pepper spray or garlic spray for plant pests like aphids
• use beer dishes, salt trails and ground-up shell trails as barriers for slugs and snails
• control ground and leaf pests also through companion planting and planting specifically to attract pest predators such as insectivorous birds

Material management-
• store all chemicals in a covered secure place, away from gutters, drains etc
• cover bare soil with tarpaulins or droprags or similar to prevent erosion
• store bags of cement and plaster away from the weather
Window Cleaning

Vinegar for Cleaning

Preparation-
• brush down window frames with a cloth or hard brush
• remove dust and other loose material from windows also

Window cleaners-
• make up dilute solution of white vinegar and water in a spray bottle and spray onto surfaces
• buff window panes with crumpled newsprint or sturdy paper until clean


AT WORK

Service stations

• Sweep clean the mechanical service areas and fuel dispensing areas- don't hose them down
• Use rags and absorbents like sawdust, paper etc to soak up spills and leaks
• Use baking soda paste for cleaning battery heads, clamps etc and white vinegar to clean engine surfaces
• Use drip trays to collect use oil and other fuels during servicing and repairs
• Recycle used oil, antifreeze, scrap metals etc
• Maintain a spill response plan and a waste management plan with employees trained to fulfil these
• Keep pollutants such as oil and grease out of stormwater drains

Metal industries

Storage
• Store all materials under cover; using containment methods if outside, such as
sealed containers
• Keep raw materials off the ground and finished products on impervious surfaces
• Store hazardous wastes in sealed drums on pallets in a contained area
• Clean empty drums and contaminated wooden pallets before storing

Operations
• Enclose and cover delivery areas, with berms, dikes and kerbs to contain fluids
• Sweep clean all areas rather than hosing down; collect and dispose of pollutants appropriately
• Use straw, sawdust, absorbent clay or similar materials to soak up spills and then dispose of to landfill or other appropriate place
• Recycle oil, antifreeze, wastewater, scrap metals, filings etc
• Use drip pans and funnels to reduce spills; use non-toxic cleaners such as white vinegar and baking powder paste to remove grease etc
• Use paints made from non-toxic materials such as bio-certified paints or at least water-based paints
• Conduct painting and sanding indoors to contain dust, fumes etc
• Inspect: containers such as drums; storage areas, piping, valves and pumping equipment regularly- and repair promptly
• Dispose appropriately of chemicals and hazardous wastes
• Post notices for all practices in operational areas and train all employees to meet standards of management


Timber Industries

• Contain all chemicals in sealed containers and contain all areas of chemical application and spraying; cover these areas or perform indoors and store sprayed materials under cover
• Line wood storage areas with impervious materials so as to capture any seepage; elevate treated woodin storage and contain the area with berms, dykes and sumps
• Use drip trays under conveyance equipment

Textile Industries

• Reuse bleaches and other wash wastes
• Segregate non-mixed water to return to use
• Use low or non-toxicity dyes
• Dispose of all hazardous wastes appropriately
• Label all materials clearly
• Inspect all storage facilities regularly and repair or replace promptly
• Use permanent sealed containers for chemicals

Food Outlets and Production Places
• Contain all chemicals safely
• Avoid cleaners which are chlorine-based or contain phenols, fomaldehydes , phosphates, dyes and perfumes. Look for 'non-toxic' and 'ammonia free' labels
• Use water-based products with recycled and recyclable containers
• Use durable products such as ceramic dishware, cloth towels and paper napkins- this will reduce landfill volumes
• Clean floormats, filters and rubbish bins in a sink or tub or into a floordrain which connects to a sump or the sewage system
• To control fats, oil or grease using a grease interceptor in plumbing facilties and recycle fats where possible
• store materials inside a building or covered area from which runoff does not enter stormwater drains; store foodstuffs inside rodent-proof and water-tight containers

Construction and Other Industries

• Store glass, clay, cement, concrete and gypsum in an enclosed building
• Use dust collection systems eg. baghouses for processing
• Use sweeping and shovelling for cleaning of dust, particles , dry spills etc
• Install buffer zones of native plantings and pollution filtration facilities eg raingardens, vegetated swales and retention ponds, to keep pollutants out of streams and to filter debris and sediment to reduce stream pollution and sedimentation of the estuary
• Inspect and maintain all equipment regularly; conduct maintenance and refueling away from stormwater drains
• Limit tracking of soil from excavation sites and soil compaction with gravelled approaches
• Clean up spills on soil/grass by digging up and disposing of contaminated materials
• Cover soil heaps to prevent soil runoff

Council Practices To Reduce Urban Stream Pollution

Management of Council activites
• Street sweeping and collection of leaves and other yard waste, rather than hosing down
• Reduce fertlilizer use and herbicide use in parks through use of leguminous cover plants, mulching, weed eating etc
• Use natural areas and systems (mown swales, raingardens, retention ponds and bioretention areas) to slow water flow and increase infiltration and water purity
• Regularly conduct environmental audits
• Convert buses and cars to low or no-emission models

Implement Council policies to advance water quality

• Entrain development of Stormwater Plans to address water quality management needs and future objectives, involving all stakeholders and creating catchment plans for all urban catchment basins, which create a 'whole solution'- by
A) Enhancing urban aesthetics and amenity facilites through improving and adding parks and ponds,
B) Enhancing residential and commercial facilities through enhancing flooding control and beautification through natural flooding and stormwater control facitlites,
C) Enhancement of fisheries , through use of natural structures and native plantings and reduced pollution
D) Biodiversity enhancement through all of the above

• Plan to reduce pollution as a first priority through education of householders and businesses in safe practices and products

• Plan catchment- level, low-cost, natural pollution prevention measures


• Set clear performance levels for the Stormwater Plan, it's administrators ( which ideally are a dedicated Council department or a stand-alone fee-receiving Council Utility) with routine monitoring and consistent enforcement- this is key!

• Require all new development to be low-impact and to conform to Council standards ( Councils must set Low-Impact Development Standards: see LIDS info box)

• Set Standards for stormwater discharge for all landowners,

requiring businesses to to seek a permit or a consent for their stormwater systems using industry-based standards and setting a practicable timeframe for implementation;

and providing incentives for householders to adopt safe practices, such as stormwater management fee reductions