Only Rain Goes Down the Drain
Never dump anything down a storm drain. Storm drains discharge directly to a lake, pond, creek, or wetland area. In Lakeland, storm drains do NOT drain to a wastewater facility.
Best Management Practices
Stormwater ponds, treatment wetlands, and other types of systems known as Best Management Practices (BMPs) help reduce the amount of pollution getting to the lake. Pollutants may either settle out, be filtered through the pond bottom, or be taken up by the wetland plants that surround these ponds.
Construction sites are also required to use BMPs to prevent sediment from leaving a site and entering a storm drain. There are several effective BMP methods that can be used at construction sites. Some of these include using silt fencing, storm drain protection, and stabilizing the entry.
Pollution Control Devices
Pollution Control Devices (PCDs) capture and/or filter pollutants such as litter, yard waste, dirt, debris, and oils. Stormwater flows through PCDs and pollutants are trapped. Pollutants can be removed from the PCD before polluting the lake. The City of Lakeland, Lakes & Stormwater Division has installed many PCDs in strategic locations around several lakes.