DEQ Northwest Region Document

that additional and more effective environmental pollution prevention practices were required to meet water quality standards and the basin beneficial uses criteria and that more commercial and industrial businesses would be required to participate in the permitting process in order to achieve water quality standards and restore those beneficial uses within the Slough. This lead to the development of the Best Management Practices (BMPs) addressed in this document and the concept of treating the potential point sources that may contribute to the non-point storm water discharges. Best Management Practices: BMPs are practices or procedures that include methods to prevent toxic and hazardous substances from reaching receiving waters. They are designed to address the quality of a facility’s practices with respect to storm water leaving the site, and may ultimately affect the ability of the facility to meet environmental control standards or benchmarks. They are most effective when organized into a comprehensive Storm Water Pollution Control Plan. Many different practices can be used to achieve similar environmentally protective results. With facility-specific or activity-specific pollutant(s) of concern as the major consideration(s) in selecting appropriate BMPs, this flexibility allows a facility to tailor a Storm Water Pollution Control Plan to meet its needs using the capabilities and resources available. The BMPs included in this document, for the most part, address activities and operations that take place outdoors or have a direct impact on the areas outside of the buildings. These BMPs are to be considered a work-in-process and are by no means to be considered a complete list of appropriate pollution control measures. Additional BMPs will be added periodically to this document