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Stormwater Management

There is an extensive Stormwater Collection System (SWCS) that serves the Quonset Business Park. The system is managed and maintained by the Quonset Development Corporation,  and is regulated by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM).

The SWCS is comprised of a series of roadside catch basins, detention ponds, and manholes, with over 55 miles of collection system piping, varying in size from 8 inch to 54 inch diameter. There are 36 designated stormwater outfalls throughout the QBP.

All new development within the Business Park must comply with the stormwater management requirements as outlined in the Park's Development Package, and RIDEM regulations.

QDC continues to implement actions that comply with the RIDEM stormwater regulations, to achieve goals aimed at improving the quality of stormwater runoff from the Business Park to Narragansett Bay and Sand Hill Brook.

Stormwater Management Policy

Good Housekeeping Means Cleaner Waters. At first, it might feel like one more thing. A business owner's daily to-do list is so long, that news of a local ordinance targeting businesses seems like just one more responsibility. But buried within those requirements is a motivation to keep our local water resources clean. And businesses, offer a public face that makes them ideal to help lead the movement toward a cleaner business park.

This policy asks business owners to observe a set of rules that in essence are just good housekeeping practices, most of which businesses are already practicing. But these practices have the opportunity to significantly reduce water pollution that occurs through the storm drain system when everyone does their part.

The majority of us are probably most familiar with the "front end" of the storm drain system: the grates in the street or the cuts in the curb that seem to lead to nowhere. In fact, those pipes lead directly to Narragansett Bay. There are no filters and no treatment. Whatever enters a storm drain is transported directly to Narragansett Bay.

The storm drain system is designed to channel stormwater away from sidewalks, streets, and parking lots, but the reality is that the water being channeled away is polluted. As it flows over pavement, stormwater picks up and mixes with what's there, including, but certainly not limited to: oil from leaking cars; litter and debris; lawn chemicals from yards; bacteria from pet waste; and soap from car washing.

This policy asks businesses to take steps such as: checking to make sure that they don't have direct connections that pipe dirty water to a storm drain; keeping hazardous materials stored properly so that in the event of a spill, they wouldn't flow to the storm drain; and keeping the business site free of trash that could wash into a storm drain.

Of course, all of us, not just businesses, contribute these pollutants. As with this business policy, many of the good housekeeping measures can be practiced at home also, and as simple as fertilzing more sparingly and sweeping any spilled lawn chemicals off the sidewalk and back onto the lawn. For a list of other simple steps, there's a great resouce at http://www.ristormwatersolutions.org. Keeping our water clean is something we all can help achieve, and our local businesses are simply pioneering the way.