Are sewers and storm drains the same?
No. Contrary to common belief, they are two totally separate systems. A sanitary sewer collects waste from sinks, toilets, showers, and washing machines from our homes. This wastewater is carried through underground pipes to the city’s wastewater treatment facility where the wastewater is treated before the effluent is discharged to an area waterway.

Runoff from our roofs, streets, and parking lots are collected in a storm drain system. This is a system of collection basins and pipes that transport the water entering this system to a nearby lake, river, or wetland where it is discharged untreated along with any contaminants it has collected along the way.

Show All Answers

1. Are sewers and storm drains the same?
2. What can you pour down the storm drains?
3. Why plant a rain garden?
4. How does a rain garden work?
5. Are rain gardens mosquito breeding grounds?