ABC Local 10 News - City of Hallandale Beach Public Works City of Miami and SOP Technologies Storm Drain Filters
Emilio Lopez
South Florida cities utilizing high-tech screens to keep litter out of Biscayne Bay and local waterways
SOP Technologies in the news: ABC / WPLG Local 10 News in Miami
Reported by Louis Aguirre on July 20, 2022 (full story on Local 10 news)
“They are working. I couldn’t be more excited about them. Our waterways have reduced the amount of trash and leaves and debris. Now that has dropped tremendously.”
Summary
The City of Miami has installed the first batch of high-tech storm inlet screens to help reduce all the street litter that’s polluting Biscayne Bay.
Miami is not the only South Florida city stepping up to try and fight the growing litter program with this new technology.
Stormwater Filter Baskets
Stormwater Curb Inlet Filters
Videos taken just last month by volunteers with clean a beach up show what the shores of Biscayne Bay look like every time the region experiences a heavy rain. Pounds and pounds of street litter, trash people throw on the street no matter where they are in Miami-Dade County, gets swept into storm drains that empty out into canals that outflow into the dying bay.
“The trash should never make it to the street in the first place, and I think it’s important to educate the public as much as we can,” Lopez said. “In the City of Miami, we started off with District Two, which is more than Downtown, Overtown area, with 195 (screens) that were installed.”
The City of Miami has ordered one thousands of the screens to help manage the enormous amount of street litter.
“We’re seeing some good things and bad things,” said Lopez. “We’re seeing an accumulation of trash in front of some of them, which is good because they’re doing their job. And then of course, a bad thing is that we’re seeing trash.”
That’s because people continue to litter, so South Florida cities now must spend tens of thousands of dollars because some people still haven’t learned how to use a trash can.
“The next step is really how do you address the root of the problem where you have a hotspot of trash? And those are things that might take a little longer to address,” said Lopez.
QR Code Storm Drain Markers
QR codes on plaques strategically placed on the sidewalk above each screen help residents learn about South Florida’s pollution problem, engaging them to be part of the solution by reporting when the screens become cluttered with litter.
“A picture tells 1000 words,” said Lopez. “They can easily upload a photo of what they’re seeing, and then that informs the city as to what it is that the people are seeing in a specific area.”
“What we designed that’s unique…is the upward flow of water through the screen,” said Lopez. “So instead of just having a flat piece of metal that has circles in it that actually clogs very quickly, this does not clog as quickly. It allows the city to have time to come by and they sweep the street, or in some cases, if they have to clean a little bit more they do.”
The screens also have a proven track record. Key West, South Miami and Aventura all use them, and Local 10 News was there when Hallandale Beach installed them last August.
Residents are also noticing the difference.
“They are good, people,” said Hallandale Beach resident Pini Dagan. “They are keeping the canal clean.”
Dagan pointed out a group of ducks, something that had not been seen before the screens were installed, meaning new wildlife was being attracted to the area.
It’s also saving the City of Hallandale Beach money by helping public works manage street litter more efficiently.
“Since we’ve implemented the storm water filters, just our street sweeper can clean up all of the debris, all of the trash that was in the road,” said Casimir. “This way we can allocate the other workers and others parts throughout the city to maintain our other waterways.”
Lopez is hoping more coastal cities in South Florida will also follow suit.
“That’s how you really drive action,” he said. “Everybody has a huge ability to make an impact.”