Highway runoff is generally not harmful. The Federal Highway Administration encourages all jurisdictions to learn about highway runoff and its properties before implementing any strategies for its control. The adverse effect of highway runoff water quality can be minimized through structural or non-structural best management practices (BMPs) or through a combination of both. Structural BMPs operate by physically trapping runoff until contaminants settle out or are filtered through the underlying soils. Non-structural BMPs, on the other hand, are source control practices such as street sweeping, land use planning, vegetated buffer areas, and fertilizer application controls. They are used to reduce the initial concentration and accumulation of contaminants in runoff. Non-structural BMPs may reduce the need for costly structural controls. Structural BMPs can be thought of as largely corrective measures to address existing and anticipated water quality problems. To select the most appropriate BMP, it is recommended that one takes into account the expected amount of runoff, type and amount of contaminants, availability of land, and physical characteristics of the site. References at the end of the article can help localities determine the management practice best suited for the sites in question.
Washington (State). Dept. of Transportation. Water Quality Unit
1996-10-01
Abstract:
The prioritization system, which compares the impacts of one outfall to anotherand makes a determination of their overall impacts, was developed in th...
The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has the mission to ?develop and maintain the best possible transportation system for Colorado.? This ...
Links with this icon indicate that you are leaving a Bureau of Transportation
Statistics (BTS)/National Transportation Library (NTL)
Web-based service.
Thank you for visiting.
You are about to access a non-government link outside of
the U.S. Department of Transportation's National
Transportation Library.
Please note: While links to Web sites outside of DOT are
offered for your convenience, when you exit DOT Web sites,
Federal privacy policy and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation
Act (accessibility requirements) no longer apply. In
addition, DOT does not attest to the accuracy, relevance,
timeliness or completeness of information provided by linked
sites. Linking to a Web site does not constitute an
endorsement by DOT of the sponsors of the site or the
products presented on the site. For more information, please
view DOT's Web site linking policy.
To get back to the page you were previously viewing, click
your Cancel button.
United States Department of Transportation
[PDF-732.00 KB]
