Massachusetts Town Initiates Drainage System Inspection Program
The Department of Public Works (DPW) commenced an Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination (IDDE) outfall inspections program in Sudbury, Massachusetts.
The program intended to find and collect illicit discharges in the town's storm drainage system, according to Patch News. According to the program, illicit discharges are direct connections or indirect discharges to the municipal storm drain system that are not composed entirely of storm water, except as exempted in the Town of Sudbury illicit Discharge Bylaw.
Sudbury is authorized by the State and EPA to discharge storm water runoff into local waterways in accordance with the Clean Water Act.
The goal is to meet these conditions and prevent leaking septic or other illegal substances from entering the storm water drainage system. Currently, Sudbury does not have piping systems for handling wastewater, but it does have piping systems for storm water.
Sudbury will begin its IDDE program by monitoring storm water discharge points in November 2020 as required by the Small Municipal Storm Sewer Systems (MS4) General Permit, reported Patch News. The results of the work will be used to direct further IDDE investigations, including visual and building inspections to identify and remove confirmed illicit discharges from the town’s drainage system.
According to the town website, in order to perform outfall inspections, crews may need to access private property.
“The engineering firm, Woodard & Curran, along with their subcontractor SDE Engineering will be conducting this work on our behalf and will be wearing proper identification,” said the town website. “Contact information and photos of the SDE team are below.”
The project is part of the town’s ongoing efforts to improve its waterways.
Read related content about storm water:
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- North Carolina’s Clear Creek Greenway Receives Funding
- Hawaii Receives $23.3 Million in Water Infrastructure Projects
Editor's Note: The headline and deck of this article have been changed and updated for clarity.