Watertown DPW The Department of Public Works will start stormwater catch basin cleaning during the week of April. 24.
The following announcement was provided by the Department of Public Works:
Beginning the week of April 24, 2023, the City will be cleaning stormwater catch basins throughout the City, utilizing our contractor, BMC Corporation. There are about 3,500 catch basins in the City and it will take about a month to clean them all.
Catch basins collect stormwater off the streets and connect to drain pipes that ultimately flow to the Charles River.
Over time, catch basins can fill up with sediment, debris and pollutants. Cleaning the basins regularly helps to reduce the risk of flooding and remove potential pollutants so they don’t go into the river.
Remember, only rain should go in our storm drains. Here are some ways you can help the City keep our streets and drains clean:
- Don’t blow your grass clippings or leaves into the street. Instead compost them or place them out for curbside pickup. Check out the 2023 calendar here.
- Do your “duty” and scoop the poop. Regularly scoop your dog’s poop from public areas AND your back yard, before it washes into our waterways.
- Don’t park on our planting strips. Parking on our planting strips leads to erosion that not only enters our storm drains, but also makes our sidewalks less safe. Keep Watertown green and clean by parking on the street and not on the side of the road.
For additional information, please refer to the DPW website.
How lame this Public Works statement is since these storm drains all
feed winter road salt to the Charles River. And don’t we put down a lot of road salt even when it it totally unnecessary. It seem to me with all the financial resources P W has at its disposal they could demand that all
plower/salters have proper dispensing equipment.
I am a life time resident and home owner of Watertown. I am elderly with limited mobility. I can not even walk out to the storm drain I n front of my house without assistance. How can I keep the storm drain clean from debris?
Ms. Durak, the article isn’t asking residents to clean the storm drains, the DPW is going around cleaning them. They’re just asking people not to put extra debris into them. The article suggests not blowing grass clippings or leaves into the street, picking up dog poop when you walk your dog, and not parking on the grass. If you are a person of limited mobility, I doubt you are doing any of those things. The headline may be a bit misleading.