The City of Shelbyville Street Department offers a great yard waste and leaf pick up service to the residents of Shelbyville.  This article will explain the details residents need to know about leaf pick up.  The duration of leaf pick up is weather dependent, but usually runs mid-October through early December.  Leaves need to be raked into piles near the curb.  Please keep the leaves out of the street gutters and sidewalks.  Leaves obstructing our street drains are a major drainage issue.  The leaves will be picked up on your normal trash day during the bulk of the season.  After the majority of leaves have been picked up, the leaf truck may not run the entire trash routes.  Homeowners may call Jennifer Jones at the Street Department to schedule their leaf pick up.  The Street Department’s phone number is 317-392-5169.

 

Please try to keep all trash and non-compostable material out of the leaf piles.  The City takes all of the leaves to a large compost pile.  In the Spring, Solid Waste Management will mulch the leaves.  The composted mulch is then made available to Shelby County residents at the Street Department located at 605 Hale Road.  Mulch will not be delivered.  Residents are allowed three loader buckets of mulch per month.  The mulch program begins in April and will run until the mulch is gone.

 

It is important to keep yard waste separate from the leaf piles.  Yard waste pick up will run on your normal trash day.  Yard waste pick up will also run into early December dependent on weather.  The yard waste needs to either be set out in paper yard waste bags or un-bagged in a trash can clearly labeled “Yard Waste.”

 

Questions about any of these great services can be answered by Street Commissioner Shane Peters or Jennifer Jones at the number listed above.  The City’s Stormwater Utility is very appreciative of these services because they help limit the amount of debris that washes into the storm sewer system.  Please take advantage of these programs and keep Shelbyville looking good.

As summer winds down, many people drain their swimming pools to reduce maintenance and potential damage from freezing during winter.  Many have questioned why pool water is not allowed to be discharged into out municipal storm sewer system.  Chlorinated water has an adverse effect on local water quality.  Aquatic life in our waterways is also threatened by copper used as algaecide in pools.

 

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) an average swimming pool holds 19,000 gallons of highly chlorinated water, which is toxic to wildlife and fish.  Chlorine is especially harmful to organisms that reside in soil and water.  It causes environmental harm at low levels.  Once in the air or water, chlorine reacts with other chemicals.  It can combine with inorganic material in water to form chloride salts, and with organic material in water to form chlorinated organic chemicals.

 

Instead of discharging pool water to the storm sewer system or directly into a water body; homeowners should consider the following advice from the City’s Storm Water Utility:

 

·         Discharge water into a sanitary cleanout.

·         If the only option is to discharge into the environment, water quality must be tested and comply with applicable water quality criteria:

o   De-chlorinate the water before draining the pool.

§  Pool water must sit for at least 1 week after the addition of chlorine and bromine or until levels are below 0.1mg/L

o   The pH of discharge water must be between 6.5 and 8.5

o   Total suspended solids must be below 60 mg/L

o   Discharge over a land surface so that some level of filtration by soil particles can occur.

 

As always, feel free to contact Derrick Byers of the Stormwater Utility for advice on all stormwater related issues.

Not all of the water that flows into the city’s many miles of storm drains is due to runoff from rain events and snow melt.  Some is due to illicit and/or inappropriate discharges and connections to the storm sewer. Illicit discharges enter the system through direct or indirect connections.  These discharges are considered "illicit" because storm sewer systems are not designed to accept, process, or discharge wastes.  The result is pollutants, including heavy metals, toxins, oil and grease, viruses, and bacteria entering the receiving water bodies untreated.  The same water bodies that may people use for fishing, swimming and other recreational activities.   

 

An illicit discharge is an illegal connection or tie-in to a storm sewer. Municipal storm sewers are designed to convey storm water runoff to nearby lakes and streams to prevent flooding.  Generally, there is no treatment to the runoff before it empties into a receiving stream. Dumping anything other than storm water into a storm drain is illegal and considered an illicit discharge.  Sources of illicit discharges include: sanitary wastewater, effluent from septic tanks, car wash wastewaters, improper oil disposal, radiator flushing disposal, laundry wastewaters, spills from roadway accidents, and improper disposal of auto and household toxics.

 

The City’s MS4 is required by a federal mandate to prohibit illicit discharges into the storm sewer system and implement appropriate enforcement actions. This is being done through the development and implementation of an ordinance and program to detect and address non-storm water discharges.  The easiest way to detect an illicit discharge is through a visual inspection of the system.  This is done by:  looking for makeshift pipes or hoses that lead to a storm drain or body of water, watching for stains, unusual odors, structural damage to streets or gutters and abnormal vegetative growth in nearby lakes and streams

As a citizen, you can prevent illicit discharges to the storm sewers by adopting these practices at home:

• Never dump anything down a storm sewer or drain.
• Take used oil to your local quick lube or auto shop.
• Dispose of pet waste in a trash can.
• Wash your car on your lawn so excess water, chemicals and dirt are filtered through grass and vegetation.

Anyone in need of storm water related assistance or with questions regarding the City’s MS4 program is encouraged to contact me Derrick Byers.