Storm Drain Regulatory Breach Hits New Mexico

Contaminated water systematically entered storm drains in Albuquerque for two years despite regulations against it.

“At least 300,800 gallons of contaminated water were illegally dumped into storm drains at the Transit Department’s West Side facility between 2014 and 2016, the city’s Inspector General found,” The Albuquerque Journal reported.

That’s because “the hose used to carry wastewater from the steam clean and bus wash bays to an underground tank — where it would be decontaminated — wasn’t long enough,” the report said.

The use of this disposal method breached rules designed to protect the water supply.

“The water used to clean those massive busses then flows into grates and is supposed to be dumped into sandpits. However, a new report from the city's inspector general reveals a transit maintenance supervisor was ignoring those rules,” KRQE reported.

The water included oil, grease, brake and transmission fluids, and cleaning products, reports stated. It flowed into a retention pond.

“Water from the bus wash and steam clean bays is supposed to be transported to underground tanks that would separate contaminants from the water before it was discharged into the retention pond,” The Journal reported.

Most of the blame for the breach was leveled at one particular supervisor.

“There is sufficient evidence to substantiate that the maintenance supervisor improperly used his authority to mislead and train employees to improperly discharge the contaminated water from the steam clean bay and bus wash facility into the storm drainage system,” the report states, per The Journal.

In other unusual storm drain news, baby foxes were recently found in a storm drain in Colorado.

“Firefighters in Colorado plucked eight animals they thought were puppies from a storm drain, only to find out later they were young red foxes,” the Associated Press reported.