Is Your City Flooding? 4 Tips For Keeping Your Storm Sewers Clean

If you don't want your city to flood, you need to take care of your storm sewers. Water damage from a flood can cost you millions or even billions of dollars to repair, money that could be well spent on beautification and community projects. While residents may have some insurance coverage, you will be responsible for all of the damage that occurs on public grounds. And you may not be able to rely on a government grant to help out. Keeping your storm drains clean is vital. Following are four tips for doing just that. 

Initiate Citizen Involvement

City workers cannot be everywhere at once nor can they spend all of their time cleaning out sewer drains. Therefore, it's imperative that you get your citizens involved. Have a public announcement several times per year, asking residents to clean the debris out of their sewer grate. This is especially necessary after all of the leaves have fallen in the autumn. Encourage residents to call in whenever they see minor flooding around a storm drain. This will help you identify where your problem areas are. 

Educate Area Residents

Only storm water is supposed to go down your city's storm sewers. Educate residents so that they will not try to place forbidden items, such as plastic bottles, leaves, and chemicals down the drains. Many clogs are caused by trash and debris getting into the drains, and unfortunately, some of it is put there intentionally by residents who don't know any better. 

Inspect Sewers Frequently

As city workers are around and about doing other types of work, ask them to inspect the sewer drains around their work site. You may also want to have someone drive around the city every now and then to see if there are any clogged drains or standing water. Always try to address small clogs before they become huge problems. 

Establish An Annual Routine

Your storm drains should be cleaned by a professional company each year. Most companies recommend cleaning in the fall, so you can remove all the leaves and broken tree branches before snow and ice are a problem. Environmental sewer cleaners will remove debris and flush your drains out thoroughly, which will allow for a quick removal of storm water from your city streets. 

As you can see, there are several ways you can keep your drains flowing freely and prevent your city from flooding. If you have any questions regarding your sewer drains, call an environmental sewer cleaning company. 

For more information, you will want to contact a company such as Tierra Environmental & Industrial Services.