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1. Urban areas can absorb as much rainfall as a wooded area or grassy field. True or false?

Answer: False. A wooded area or a grassy field is able to absorb up to 5 times as much rainfall as an urban area. Much of the urban area is covered with impervious surfaces such as paved parking lots, rooftops, driveways, streets and sidewalks. Much of the rainfall can not be absorbed and instead runs across the ground in the form of stormwater runoff until it discharges directly into a storm drain and eventually into local waterways.

2. Storm drains and the stormwater sewer system carries stormwater runoff to the local wastewater treatment facility for treatment before it is discharged to local lakes and waterways. True or false?

Answer: False. The storm sewer system is designed to carry stormwater runoff out of the city as quickly as possible to avoid flooding. The majority of stormwater runoff is discharged directly to local lakes and waterways without any type of treatment to remove the pollutants it may have picked up along the way.

3. Which of the following are signs of stormwater pollution? A) Cloudy water B) Algae blooms C) Fish kills D) Oily sheen E) Foul odors F) All of the above

Answer: F) All of the above. Stormwater will pick up sediment, litter, grass clipping, and other yard waste and deposit it in local streams causing turbid or cloudy water. Stormwater will also pick up excess fertilizer and pesticides from the lawn. The phosphates create algae blooms that block sunlight and rob the water of oxygen resulting in fish kills. 

An oily sheen on the water’s surface can be caused by illegal dumping of used oil and other automotive fluids down the storm drains. Rotting leaves, grass clippings and other yard waste deposited in the streams by the stormwater runoff creates foul odors as it decomposes.

4. Which of the following are part of the storm drain system? A) Streams, lakes and ponds B) Ditches and culverts C) Yards, streets, curbs and gutters D) Storm drains and catch basins E) All of the above

Answer: E) All of the above. The storm drain system begins where the rain falls. It is collected in rain barrels, rain gardens and grassy swales. It travels across yards, rooftops, sidewalks, streets and parking lots. It flows through ditches and culverts along curbs and gutters. It enters the piping system through storm drains and catch basins and continues its journey to area lakes, creeks and ponds.

5. The stormwater runoff from your backyard flows to which of the following water bodies? A) Coon Creek B) Elk Fork of the Salt River C) Sweet Springs Creek D) Sugar Creek, Sugar Lake

Answer: This answer depends on where in the City you live.

Coon Creek

Coon Creek and its tributaries accept storm water flow from the area east of the Norfolk and Southern Railroad and south of Sinnock Ave. Coon Creek flows into the Elk Fork of the Salt River just across the Monroe County Line. The Elk Fork flows to the Salt River where it then flows to Mark Twain Lake.

Northeast

Stormwater from the northeastern part of the City limits flows into unnamed tributaries of the Elk Fork of the Salt Rive. This includes areas east of the Norfolk Southern Railroad and the area north of Sinnock Ave.

Sweet Springs

Sweet Springs Creek and its tributaries accept storm water from the southwest side of the City limits. This is the area west of the Norfolk and Southern Railroad and much of the area south of Highway 24

Northwest

Stormwater from the northwestern part of the City limits flows into the unnamed tributaries of Sugar Creek and Creek Lake. This area is mainly north of Highway 24 and east of Business 63.