Introduction to Best Management Practices

Water Quality

Introduction to Best Management Practices

Goal > Disclaimer > Legislation > What is Non-Point Source Pollution? > What are Best Management Practices? > Implementing BMPs > References

Goal

As a service to municipalities, regional offices, contractors and other agencies who are trying to control non-point source pollution the Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection (WLAP) has begun to collect and edit into a common format many accepted best management practices (BMPs) from around the world. Since this is a large and active field of study and new materials are becoming available daily, we have chosen to put the information on a web page so that it can be readily and economically updated.

The Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection is not the originator of most of this information. It has been extracted from many other published documents where it was either explicitly or implicitly intended as a best management practice for non-point source pollution prevention. This information is therefore not WLAP or British Columbia Government policy and is presented as a public service only. Qualified professionals may be required to decide what is an acceptable practice for a specific situation.

There are many other documents on similar topics which are local or regional in extent or deal only with certain specific types of non point source pollution. Many go into extensive detail on how to implement best management practices; our goal is to provide an overview of the available practices with links and references for those who wish to find more detailed information.

Disclaimer

Nothing in this document shall be construed as waiving compliance with regulatory requirements imposed by law. These guidelines are intended to provide common sense and cost effective suggestions for achieving a basic level of environmental protection of water quality. It remains the responsibility of commercial or industrial operators to satisfy themselves that the measures adopted in the specific instance satisfy all legal requirements.

This document should not to be taken as Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection or British Columbia Government policy. Most of the information included is already available in published documents, government reports and on the Internet. This report is meant to help bring the data from many widely disparate sources together in one place in an edited, common, format. Original sources are listed and a full bibliography is given so the interested reader may go to the original sources for more details.

This document is meant to provide an overview of BMPs that are available to deal with a wide variety of NPS problems. Specific BMPs for specific problems can not be given since solutions will be site specific. Narrative BMPs are given indicating the type of measure which may be useful. Technical engineering prescriptions on how to build specific works or devices is beyond the scope of this report and the assistance of consulting engineering firms is recommended if you do not know how to construct, maintain or operate the relevant BMP or device.

This document should not be considered as complete. There are both known and unknown sources of data which have not yet been incorporated and topics which have not yet been treated. These topics and data will be incorporated and new versions of this document become available. By their very nature many specific BMPs soon become obsolete as 'better' BMPs become available but the concept behind the examples given usually remains valid.

In many situations there may be legislation or some other form of protection afforded to the environment in addition to, or instead of, these BMPs. Such legislation will take precedence over these recommendations. These recommendations may form the basis of efforts to limit or minimize water pollution, but are nothing more than recommended guidelines.

Legislation

In many jurisdictions there exist legislation, policy, rules, regulations and other legal requirements which take precedence over BMPs. These must be followed where they exist. Some references to environmental legislation which is pertinent to pollution control in British Columbia are listed below.

Internet Sources

Paper Sources

British Columbia Asphalt Plant Regulations. Order in Council #0721. June 26, 1997.
The ISO 14000 series of standards is an internationally recognized code of good practice for environmental protection.

What is Non-Point Source Pollution?

Non-point source (NPS) pollution may be defined as the input of contaminants into surface or ground water supplies, generally from non-direct, intermittent or diffuse sources and often associated with storm, rainfall or snowmelt events. Non-point source pollution is caused by one or several activities taking place over a broad area. Agriculture, forestry, urban development and many of our everyday actions are examples of activities that contribute to NPS pollution.

Most NPS pollutants fall into six major categories, sediments, nutrients, acids and their salts, heavy metals, toxic chemicals and pathogens (Ohio, 1992).

Sediments
Sediments are generally inert particles of sand, silt, grits and other fine to coarse materials that are carried by flowing water and deposited when the water slows down. Excess sediments may cause physical damage to fish gills and filter feedering organisms, reduce water flow through spawning gravel and reduce light penetration and visibility. Other contaminants, like metals, are often bound to sediments and can affect the impact on the receiving environment. Sources include construction sites, mining operations, gravel pits, logging operations, stream and shore erosion, livestock grazing, farming and off-road vehicle use.

Nutrients
Nutrients, like phosphorus and nitrogen, may contribute to the excessive weed growth and algal blooms. Nutrients come from fertilizers, manure, organic matter and dead or dying organisms. Sources include agriculture and livestock operations, gardens, lawns, forests, heavily vegetated lakes and streams and landfills.

Acids
Acids and their salts affect the pH and ionic balance of waters and may eliminate species by either physical or chemical reactions. Sources include irrigation runoff, mining activities, urbanized areas, road and parking lot runoff and landfill leachate.

Heavy metals
Heavy metals are generally directly toxic to organisms in excessive concentrations. Examples include mercury (batteries), lead (paint, batteries), zinc (galvanized fencing and roofing), copper (wiring, plumbing, pesticides), tin (plating, anti-fouling paint), silver (photographic processing), nickel (industrial catalysts, alloys), chromium (plating) and cadmium (paint). Sources include mining operations, vehicle emissions, landfills, urban settings, roads and parking lots.

Toxic chemicals
Toxic chemicals include organic and inorganic pesticides, anti-fouling compounds, drugs and other chemicals designed to kill above a defined concentration. Sources include farming, nurseries, orchards, residential areas, gardens, lawns and landfills.

Pathogens
Pathogens include viruses, bacteria and protozoa such as Cryptosporidium and Giardia. They arise from malfunctioning domestic septic systems, livestock operations, pet and wildlife feces and landfills.

What are Best Management Practices?

Best Management Practices (BMPs) are practices or combinations of practices, industrial techniques and good housekeeping principles determined to be the most effective and practical known means of preventing or reducing non-point source water pollution. The overall philosophy is to conduct everyday activities in an ecologically sound manner in order to keep pollutants out of the water, since this is generally cheaper and more practical than removing them after they are present. They are meant to protect and maintain the environment including soil, air and water resources and the associated dependent organisms. There are two general types of BMPs:

source control or nonstructural BMPs which are designed to prevent contaminants from getting into the water in the first place; and
treatment control or structural BMPs which involve after-the-fact removal of contaminants.

BMPs must be feasible and economically-competitive practices and should be tested under real world conditions. They are subject to change as new and better practices are discovered and evaluated. Minor differences in local conditions may result in different BMPs in order to achieve the same degree of protection from one site to the next. This means that today's BMP may be just a guideline and will need to be updated when better information is available. Best management practices should indicate a desired goal and some currently known ways to approach this goal, leaving the opportunity for immediate implementation of newer and better ways as they become available.

Implementing BMPs

There are a number of general procedures related to the management and administration of BMPs which can minimize or prevent pollution and identify potential pollution problems which might not otherwise be noted. Incorporating these practices into an organization's corporate philosophy is a necessary first step in reducing non-point source pollution. These practices include the following:

summarize the chosen BMPs applicable to your operation and display them at appropriate locations in the workplace;
conduct an audit of your site to establish baseline conditions and do regular follow-up audits to determine whether conditions are improving or deteriorating;
develop a daily checklist of office, yard and plant areas to ensure cleanliness and proper storage and security of materials. Specific employees should be assigned inspection responsibilities and given the authority to remedy any problems found;
display waste disposal charts at appropriate locations in the workplace which describe each waste's hazardous nature (poison, corrosive, flammable), prohibitions on its disposal (dumpster, drain, sewer) and the recommended disposal method (recycle, sewer, burn, storage, landfill);
ensure every user of hazardous materials is responsible for tracking the amount taken, amount used, amount returned and disposal of spent material;
keep any records of water, air and solid waste quantities and quality tests;
be aware of new products which may do the same job with less environmental risk and for less or the equivalent cost;
use and reward employee suggestions related to BMPs, identifying pollution hazards, pollution prevention and reduction, work place safety, cost reduction, alternative materials and procedures, recycling and disposal;
train all employees in BMPs and pollution prevention;
have regular seminars or visits by outside experts to provide an objective perspective on your pollution prevention procedures and the relevance of the BMPs you are using;
maintain a contingency plan for spills, leaks, and other hazards. Make sure each employee knows their role in the event of an emergency.

References

Chilibeck, B., G. Chislett and G. Norris. 1992. Land Development Guidelines for the Protection of Aquatic Habitat. Editor. B. Chilibeck. Habitat Management Division, Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Co-Authors. G. Chislett and G. Norris. Integrated Management Branch, Ministry of Environment Lands and Parks. Canada’s Green Plan. ISBN 0-7726-1582-9.

Ohio. 1992. http://www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~ohioline/aex-fact/465.html.

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