Best Management Practices

Best Management Practices (BMPs) outline specific information on how to prevent or mitigate negative impacts to our creeks and natural water bodies.  The California Stormwater Quality Association (CASQA) has developed a range of institutional BMPs, grouped into three categories:

  • Operational BMPs - For custodians, gardeners and tradespeople who work in the field daily
    • Note: Because of the presence of chloramines in Berkeley's drinking water, no wash water is allowed into storm drains even if clean. The following BMPs may state otherwise because they are state-wide guidelines (not everybody has chloramines in their water). At UC Berkeley, only clean rainwater is allowed into storm drains, with very few exceptions (i.e. groundwater and cool HVAC condensate). Contact Us if you have any questions.
  • Design BMPs - For planners and architects to include pollution controls in the design of new development
  • Treatment BMPs - For engineers, architects and planners to design storm water treatment facilities

Contact us if you have any questions or to request information on another BMP not listed below.

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SC-10 Non-Stormwater Discharges

How to contain, educate, and reduce/minimize the non-stormwater discharges in the system

SC-30 Outdoor Loading/Unloading

Implementation of the following protocols will prevent or reduce the discharge of pollutants to stormwater from outdoor loading/unloading of materials. 

SC-31 Outdoor Container Storage

Accidental releases of materials from ground liquid storage tanks, drums, and dumpsters present the potential for contaminating stormwaters with many different pollutants.

SC-32 Outdoor Equipment Maintenance

Outside process equipment operations and maintenance can contaminate stormwater runoff.

SC-33 Outdoor Storage of Raw Materials

Raw materials, by-products, finished products, containers, and material storage areas exposed to rain and/or runoff can pollute stormwater.

SC-34 Waste Handling and Disposal

Improper storage and handling of solid wastes can allow toxic compounds, oils and greases, heavy metals, nutrients, suspended solids, and other pollutants to enter stormwater runoff.

SD-10: Site Design and Landscape Planning

Integrating and incorporating appropriate landscape planning methodologies into the project design is the most effective action that can be done to minimize surface and groundwater contamination from stormwater.

SD-12: Efficient Irrigation

Irrigation water provided to landscaped areas may result in excess irrigation water being conveyed into stormwater drainage systems.