Water Quality

Are You Killing Your Fish?

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Do You Know What This Is? This is called a 'storm drain' or 'catchbasin'. There are many of these drains located throughout your neighbourhood. Their purpose is to collect rain and melted snow that drain off exposed surfaces such as roads, parking lots and driveways.

Do You Know Where It Leads To?

Many of these basins empty into underground storm sewer systems. Their contents are quickly discharged into nearby streams, which are important habitat for trout, salmon and other fish. Unlike domestic wastes collected by sanitary sewers, the contents of many storm sewers are not treated at sewage plants prior to their discharge into a stream.

Are You Polluting a Stream? Many people don't realize that household hazardous products that they wash or dump into these drains go right into their neighbourhood streams. Oils, detergents, paint compounds and solvent, pesticides and many other common household products often end up in streams via the storm sewers. Most of these contain chemicals that are toxic to fish, and many small discharges from hundreds of households can poison many miles of neighbourhood streams.

These Common Household Products are Hazardous to Fish:

1. AUTOMOTIVE PRODUCTS

• motor oil
• antifreeze
• brake fluid
• carburetor cleaner
• gasoline
• gasoline additives
• transmission fluid
• degreasers
• sealers

2. PAINTS AND SOLVENTS

• paints
• shellacs
• lacquers
• varnishes
• enamels
• paint thinners
• paint and varnish strippers
• rustproof coatings

3. RECREATIONAL PRODUCTS

• swimming pool contents (chlorine)
• outboard motor products (oil, gas, etc.)

4. PESTICIDES

• disinfectants (bathroom, kitchen, etc.)
• insecticides (garden products, flea collars, etc.)
• fungicides (mold and mildew control)
• rodenticides (rat and mouse bait)
• molluscicides (slug bait)
• wood preservatives (creosote, pentachlorophenol)

5. CLEANING PRODUCTS

• detergents
• drain and toilet cleaners
• rug and upholstery cleaners
• leather preservers
• dry cleaning agents
• car wash detergent
• polishing agents (shoe products)

What Can You Do?

Please don't dump household hazardous products into storm drains. Some products, such as used motor oil are collected for recycling. The paint industry has established paint collection depots in your community to collect unwanted paints, stains and varnishes. Other products (such as solvents and chemical pesticides) must undergo special processing to render them harmless. See the Product Stewardship website for more information on recycling.

Can You Do More To Protect a Neighbourhood Stream?

Fisheries and Oceans Canada runs a Storm Drain Marking Program. Storm Drains can have yellow fish painted beside them to remind us that storm drains on our roadways empty directly into local streams. We need to keep harmful things out of the the storm drains. Contact Fisheries and Oceans Canada for more information.