October 16, 2024 3:30 a.m.

The Roseburg Public Works Department encourages residents and businesses to protect local waterways and prevent street flooding by allowing only rain down storm drains this fall.

A city release said streets and storm drains are designed to enable rain to drain directly to nearby creeks and rivers instead of flooding streets. However, the storm drain system won’t work as intended if storm drains on a street are blocked with debris.

In addition, Public Works want to keep yard waste, chemicals and other matter from entering the storm drain system and flowing into creeks or rivers as that would pollute the local waterways. Many local communities, including Roseburg, reply on the Umpqua River system for their drinking water.

Roseburg Design/Construction Manager Ryan Herinckx said, “Many of the storm drains do not filter what we put into them. What enters the storm-water system is discharged to nearby creeks and rivers”.

The release said Public Works crews sweep streets year-round and collect homeowners’ leaves in the fall and winter to help keep debris from clogging storm drains and to keep that excess organic matter out of rivers and creeks.

For more information, check out the Roseburg Storm Drainage Master Plan on the city website: www.cityofroseburg.org