BCNA stencils 100 drains to help keep Casco Bay healthy
The Back Cove Neighborhood Association gave neighbors the opportunity to become clean water stewards by partnering with the City of Portland to stencil catch basins—commonly referred to as storm drains—throughout our neighborhood. The city first partnered with Friends of Casco Bay after identifying a problem with people throwing pet waste bags, along with other pollutants, into these drains. Because our neighborhood is located directly beside Back Cove and near several Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs), we felt it was important to remind neighbors and visitors that storm drains discharge directly into our waterways without filtration.
The city has partnered with organizations and neighborhood associations for many years to re-stencil catch basins every one to three years because the program has proven to be effective. For example, following the Capisic Pond Restoration Project, the city found that residents were disposing of pet waste bags in storm drains that flowed directly into the newly restored pond and park. By adding signage and stenciling in those areas, the city saw approximately a 40% reduction in pet waste bag dumping over the following years. The city also identified Clifton Street as a problem area, likely because of its proximity to the Back Cove Trail and its popularity as a dog-walking route.
Our small but mighty team stenciled more than 100 catch basins throughout the Back Cove neighborhood, and several board members have continued the effort by stenciling even more. You may wonder: why stencil every drain instead of just a few? The city explained that experience has shown that if only some drains are marked, people may assume it's acceptable to dump waste into the unmarked basins and change their behavior accordingly.
Catch basins connect to one of two systems: a separate storm drain system, which carries runoff directly to the nearest water body, or the city's combined sewer system. Under normal conditions, water in the combined system flows to the East End Treatment Plant, where many pollutants are removed before the treated wastewater is discharged into Casco Bay. However, during heavy rainstorms, the combined sewer system can become overwhelmed and discharge excess stormwater and wastewater through designated Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) into Back Cove or Casco Bay. These overflows help prevent sewage and stormwater from backing up into our homes, businesses, and streets.
That's why we remind residents that catch basins and storm drains are for stormwater only. Never dump anything into a storm drain that you wouldn't want to swim in, fish in, drink, or boat on. The city and its partners are doing a great deal to reduce stormwater pollution and eliminate CSOs, but everyone can help by keeping trash, pet waste, and other pollutants out of our storm drains.
We are grateful to have provided our neighbors with an opportunity to get involved in the community, learn where storm drains lead, and become better stewards of our local waterways. By respecting our neighborhood and properly disposing of trash, we can all help protect Back Cove and Casco Bay for generations to come.
