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SUBJECTSENVIRONMENTSTORMWATER › Best Management Practices (BMPs) for Storm and Surface Water Management: Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping
Updated 04/08
 

Best Management Practices (BMPs) for Storm and Surface Water Management: Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping

Contents

About Best Management Practices (BMPs)

Best Management Practices (BMPs) are a method by which the adverse impacts of development and redevelopment are controlled through their application. BMPs are defined in the state's draft Storm Water Manual "as schedules of activities, prohibitions of practices, maintenance procedures, and structural and/or managerial practices, that when used singly or in combination, prevent or reduce the release of pollutants to waters of Washington State." The types of BMP identified by the state are source control, runoff treatment, and flow control.

The primary purpose of using BMPs is to protect beneficial uses of water resources through the reduction of pollutant loads and concentrations, and through reduction of discharges (volumetric flow rates) causing stream channel erosion.

It is generally more cost effective to prevent impacts using source control than using runoff treatment to remove pollutants. However, since source controls cannot prevent all impacts, some combination of measures will always be needed. Adapted from Minimum Technical Requirements Vol. I, Storm Water Management Manual for Western Washington, Washington State Department of Ecology, April 2005, p. 8.

General Resources

Best Management Practices for Specific Facilities

Agricultural Practices - Protecting Water Quality - MRSC ESA Page

Construction BMPs  

Homeowner BMPs

Commercial/Industrial/Manufacturing BMPs

Public Property

Runoff Reduction BMPs - Low Impact Development

Rainwater Harvesting

Treatment BMPs 

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