Storm water can carry some of the worst pollutants and debris downstream which usually ends up in water ways like Biscayne Bay, but North Bay Village has partnered with a Miami-based company to help tackle this problem.
The City of North Bay Village has begun installing high-tech storm inlet screens across the community to stop pollution, debris, and other harmful materials from entering the water ways.
"Whether its landscape or yard debris or plastic cups and bottles, the drain inlet filters are catching all of that stuff before it enters our drains and ultimately ends up in the bay," said Treasure Island Commissioner Rachel Streitfeld.
Stop Ocean Pollution Technologies has created a design that has applies an upper flow of water through the screen which will allow it to continue to flow even as debris is collected.
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CEO Emilio Lopez told NBC6 they see a lot of organic debris, which is also problematic for Biscayne Bay, because that leads to nutrient loads, like phosphorus and nitrogen. This can cause algae blooms, which then harm aquatic life.
"If you had something like a mesh material or just circles all around, those will clog up, clog very quickly and then you would actually contribute to flooding," Lopez said. "That's why we have this patented design to prevent flooding.”
Neil Krasner is a resident of the island and a volunteer with the resilience sustainability task force. It was his idea to push the elected officials to stop the pollution at its source.
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"As a starting project to get involved, I said 'what can we do to protect our bay?'" Krasner said. ”Since we are the heart of the bay, I thought that maybe, primarily holding all of the manmade garbage and the leaves and the debris from getting into the bay was a first point of stoppage.”
The inlet screens have unique QR codes located nearby so residents can help address any misuse or report any excess debris with a simple picture that is uploaded and sent directly to public works.
“Its very expensive to clean out stormwater pipes, because you have to have a truck with a vacuum on it," Lopez said. "By doing this, keeping the debris closer to the street, it's way easier for public works to actually collect the debris."
The project was funded by state appropriations after the mayor and commission lobbied in Tallahassee. They were awarded $150,000 to design, create, and install the filters.
“I have been to Tallahassee three years in a row to ask legislators for financial support for these infrastructure projects," Streitfeld said. "Our residents really appreciate that our small village has been incredibly vocal about keeping Biscayne Bay healthy.”
There will be between 40 and 50 storm screens and baskets installed by the end of the project.
The city is also keeping track of the plastics, debris, and trash to know exactly how much they are preventing from getting into the drains.
