UDOT is known for managing Utah's interstates and highways, but they are also responsible for managing storm water from their facilities, rights-of-way, and construction sites.
UDOT also does a lot of maintenance that positively benefits storm water quality, like cleaning out culverts and catch basins, removing invasive species from roadside basins, sweeping, cleaning up roadway diesel spills, and picking up trash.
Those are also things things that homeowners and business owners can do on a smaller scale to protect the quality of runoff in their area.
Cleaning out drains, sweeping the curb and gutter, using drip pans when working on your car, and of course picking up trash are all small, easy things that the public can do to protect the local waterways in their communities.
That's important because trash and debris can clog drains, which causes flooding on the roadway.
But if that debris does get through the drains, then it ends up in the local stream, which
negatively affects oxygen levels and other water quality parameters.
Oils and chemicals that seep into local waterways can be toxic to wildlife and those pollutants can also make it unsafe for people.
Litter is UDOT's biggest visible pollutant and there is a new program that has replaced Adopt a Highway that is called "Keeping Utah Beautiful."
It is a volunteer litter pickup program where you can sign up to cover two miles of UDOT road and pick up trash and debris. You can volunteer on any route in the state, and they will provide you with the necessary materials.
As you're out driving and you see UDOT or other municipal or construction workers working on the side of the road, please slow down and move over.
You can learn more at connect.udot.utah.gov/public/stormwater and on stormwatercoalition.org.
