Walking around the Back Bay you see storm drain plaques embedded in the sidewalk.
Some say "Don't Dump Drains to Charles River." Others read "Don't Dump Drains to Boston Harbor." I'll easily accept either of those propositions. They make sense.
However, I question the one in the photo. It's on Marlborough Street near Massachusetts Avenue and reads, "Don't Dump Drains to Neponset River." That seems an unlikely route for storm water.
It set me on a hunt for information about these plaques and how storm water travels. In Boston, the plaques are installed by the city and its contractors as a part of side walk maintenance.
In some surrounding areas, volunteers working with the Charles River Watershed Association use stencils to paint the same message near drains.
What's Behind the Message?
According to the Boston Water and Sewer Commission,
"Oil, gasoline, antifreeze, pet waste, cigarette butts, cleaning agents, pesticides, fertilizers, and trash are all pollutants that are illegally dumped on city streets where they are picked up in storm water runoff that enters storm drains through catch basins. From here, these pollutants can discharge from the storm drain system to Boston's many rivers, beaches and harbor. These pollutants can seriously degrade water quality and can result in beach closures and restricted use of rivers and the harbor."
With the help of the Charles River Watershed Association staff, I'm trying to determine if the plaque on Marlborough is misplaced or if that storm water actually travels six miles across the city to empty into the Neponset River. We'll let you know what we find out.
Details:
Here's the Charles River Watershed Association's program
http://www.crwa.org/projects/stenciling.html
Here is the Boston Water and Sewer Commission page on this program.
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