Storm Water Quality

The District is involved in a program designed to clean urban storm water runoff and protect our creeks and the Cosumnes River. Our aim is to support a partnership with other public agencies in Sacramento County to:

  • Educate and inform the public about urban runoff pollution
  • Encourage public participation in community and clean-up events
  • Work with industries and businesses to encourage pollution prevention
  • Require construction activities to reduce erosion and pollution
  • Require developing projects to include pollution controls that will continue to operate after construction is complete

Before the Rancho Murieta area was developed, most rainfall fell onto natural areas and the water soaked into the ground. Over the last century, we've changed the landscape dramatically by adding roads and buildings and drainage pipes. Storm water that once soaked into the ground now flows quickly into street gutters and drains. It is then carried in pipes to our creeks and the Cosumnes River without treatment.

Everyday activities also add water: activities such as car washing, lawn watering, and cleaning buildings and streets. Along the way, the fast-moving urban runoff picks up pollutants such as pesticides, fertilizers, eroded soil, and oil and grease from cars. These pollutants make their way into our creeks and rivers where they pollute the water and harm the ecosystem of both plants and animals. Eventually, this affects all of us, since we eat the fish and use the rivers for recreation. Some of us in the Sacramento area also drink treated river water.

There are plenty of ways for Rancho Murieta area residents, students, community groups and businesses to get involved in pollution prevention efforts. We need volunteers to help us get the word out. Take the first step by practicing pollution prevention in your own home, then join us in the many activities and events sponsored throughout your community. You are also encouraged to visit Sacramento County's Storm Water Quality Program to learn more about how you can improve storm water quality.

River-friendly Car Washing Tips

The Problem
When you wash your car in the driveway, pollutants from dirty water such as detergent, motor oil, gas, and residue from exhaust fumes wash off cars and make their way into nearby storm drains. These pollutants flow through the storm drain system and drain into local creeks and rivers, without going through treatment. The pollutants that end up flowing into creeks and rivers may end up harming fish and other wildlife.

Carwash Tips
The following practices can help protect our creeks and rivers:

  • Take your car to a commercial carwash. Most commercial car wash facilities recycle water or are connected to the sanitary sewer system that will treat dirty water.
  • Wash your car on a grass or gravel surface to filter runoff
  • Consider using environmentally-friendly products labeled “non-toxic”, “phosphate free” and “biodegradable.”
  • Conserve water by using a spray nozzle with an automatic shut off or shutting off the hose when not in use.
  • Use a bucket of soapy water to re-soap rags or sponges throughout the wash rather than adding more soap directly to rags or sponges. Always empty buckets of dirty wash water onto landscaped areas (where the water cannot reach a storm drain) or into sinks or toilets.

Storm drain inlets, located near curbsides and streets, act as a conduit to local waterways, including the Cosumnes River. Unlike household drains that route directly to a wastewater treatment plant, storm drains travel underground and funnel directly to our waterways untreated. And when water is contaminated with pollutants, it creates storm water pollution, which seriously impacts our natural water resources.

 

To report illegal discharges or construction erosion runoff, call us at 354-3700 or email Paul Siebensohn, Director of Field Operations.