Charles River cleanup: New environmental regulations on the way, but are they enough?
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BOSTON, Nov. 11 /PRNewswire/ - The saga of the Charles River cleanup has taken a new turn as the Massachusetts Department of Environment Protection (MassDEP) debates more stringent regulations for pollution-control devices targeting phosphorus and other toxins in stormwater runoff.
Environmental watchdogs are concerned that competing manufacturers of stormwater management systems are lobbying for regulations that favor their products, which may negatively impact the strength of the final regulations.
Nutrients such as phosphorus, heavy metals, and hydrocarbons from vehicles, fertilizer runoff and other sources are major contributors to the toxic algae and other pollution that threatens the Charles River. These also negatively impact the environmental balance in the Nashua River Basin, Chicopee Basin Lakes, and the Connecticut Basin Lakes - leading to beach closures, fish kills and the specter of "dead zones" devoid of all sustainable plant life, fish or fowl.
A project manager for a local environmental organization recently blogged that the current situation "has allowed property developers to opt for storm-water systems that are cheaper, undersized or incapable of meeting not just the E.P.A.'s phosphorus goals, but more general requirements mandated under the federal Clean Water Act".
Vendors are pressuring the MassDEP to approve smaller-sized systems that focus on the volume of water passing through from stormwater drainage systems, rather then improving the quality of the water. Potentially, this will jeopardize our waterways and the commonwealth.
There is also pressure from some vendors to approve systems that do not remove fine sediment from runoff. This is crucial because the majority of pollutants attach themselves to fine sediment. Only a properly sized device is capable of removing fine-pollutant bound particles.
"Water is our most precious resource," says a source close to the issue. "The hope is that the MassDEP will not bend to low-balling vendor pressure, but will strengthen the regulations."
About Imbrium
Imbrium (imbriumsystems.com) is a green-tech company that designs and develops stormwater treatment technologies to protect water resources from pollutants, including enhancing water quality within LID and other Environmental Site Design (ESD) practices. Imbrium has a strong record of environmental innovation in the industry as the creator of the Stormceptor oil and sediment separator, the Jellyfish fine sediment filter, SorbtiveMEDIA and SorbtiveFILTER.
SOURCE Imbrium
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