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Long Creek Cleanup Day06-10-16 | News

Long Creek Cleanup Day
Trash Collected from Watershed to Be Part of Water Treatment Study

Hydro International says that nearly 80% of trash that ends up in lakes, rivers and oceans originates on land. (From left): The United Way Day of Caring cleanup volunteers for the South Portland, Maine portion of Long Creek included John Larson, Dave Mongeau and Kristy Greco from Hydro International. The creek is one of the most polluted bodies of water in the state. The trash collected from the cleanup will be used in a study of trash and stormwater.

The United Way, Cumberland Country Soil and Water Conservation District and volunteers from Hydro International (Portland, Maine supplier of storm and wastewater products and services) picked up trash in the Long Creek Watershed on May 19. The waste collected during this collaborative volunteer cleanup day will be used in a research study to help enhance water quality treatment.

The research study will take place in Hydro International's hydraulics laboratory in Portland. The facility is one of the largest manufacture-owned testing facilities in the country. It has been used for water quality performance verification for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, the Massachusetts Stormwater Technology Evaluation Project, the Maine DOT, as well as many industrial facilities operating under a stormwater discharge permit. Results of the study will be made available in the coming months (https://tinyurl.com/ztdc68d).

Over a decade ago, Long Creek, which runs through Westbrook, South Portland, Scarborough and Portland, Maine, was identified as an urban impaired watershed. In 2007, with guidance from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, along with funding from the EPA, those communities put together a local watershed steering committee that included area businesses and state agencies.

The scheduled cleanup focused mainly in and around the South Portland mall area to help prevent trash and harmful pollutants from making their way into the Long Creek.

Understanding the types and quantity of materials that eventually make their way into drainage lines and water bodies helps the water treatment industry advance its water treatments systems.