STORMWATER MANAGEMENT
WHAT WE DO
Stormwater and urban runoff is collected in a system that is completely separate from the wastewater system that transports sewage.
All of the stormwater that our network of storm drains and pipes collects flows untreated into the Suisun Marsh, an environmentally-sensitive area of enormous proportions.
Stormwater and urban runoff is collected in a system that is complete separate from the wastewater system that transports sewage.
Suisun Marsh is the largest contiguous brackish water marsh remaining on the west coast of North America. More than 10 percent of the remaining natural wetlands in California are within the Suisun Marsh.
The marsh contains habitat for more than 220 bird species, 45 animal species, 16 different reptilian and amphibian species, and more than 40 fish species. The marsh also serves as the resting and feeding ground for thousands of waterfowl traversing the Pacific Flyway.
And yes, the Suisun Marsh does play a role in the drinking water supply as well.
The 230-miles of winding levees within the marsh help to protect the drinking water supplies for 22 million people by preventing salt water intrusion into the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
To maintain this pristine environment, the District assists the cities of Fairfield and Suisun City by participating in the URMP (Urban Runoff Management Program), and by maintaining the cities’ stormwater pumpstations.
The URMP is intended to reduce or eliminate pollutants discharged from the urban environment into our storm drains, local creeks and the Suisun Marsh. Water flowing into our gutters and storm drains is not treated before discharge into our creeks, which feed into the expansive Suisun Marsh.
Key components of the URMP include industrial and commercial inspections, education outreach to schools and the general public, monitoring municipal maintenance activities, and ensuring that local residential and commercial construction sites do not contribute to pollution in our local waterways.
All of us at the Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District take our responsibility to protect the Suisun Marsh and our region’s other vital environmental attributes very seriously. We hope you do as well. Together, we can protect and preserve these essential natural resources for generations to come.