• Pollution control for Georgia's Satilla River; Waycross slated to install Bandalong Litter Trap
CLEVELAND, GA, Feb. 11, 2010 -- One of Georgia's treasured natural resources, the Satilla River, has been endowed by the City of Waycross with the state's first Bandalong Litter Trap in an effort to cease the flow of human generated trash into the invaluable blackwater river system. The Waycross Bandalong Litter Trap, manufactured for North America by Georgia-based Storm Water Systems, will be the second installed in the United States and the 193 in use worldwide.
The purchase of the Bandalong Litter Trap by the City of Waycross was made possible by environmental infrastructure project loans by the State of Georgia partially financed by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act announced in November 2009 by Georgia Governor Sonny Purdue. The Waycross Bandalong Litter Trap is anticipated to be operable and in place on a canal leading to the Satilla River by the spring of 2010.
"Communities across the nation like Waycross are making clean water a priority. It is no longer acceptable to have rivers and streams clogged with litter. We are proud that our home state of Georgia has taken the lead in restoring our waterways to create a more healthy, safe and enjoyable environment," said Gary Hopkins, President of Storm Water Systems.
The Satilla River basin drains nearly 4,000 square miles of upper and lower coastal plain habitat in Southeast Georgia and is an important ecological link between the systems whose headwaters are the Okefenokee Swamp, the Altamaha River System and the coastal barrier islands. The region's increased development and subsequent increase in pollution has led to community-wide interest in preserving the river's quality and precious eco-system which is home to numerous rare, threatened and endangered species of plants and animals.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, nonpoint source pollution as a result of stormwater runoff is the nation's largest water quality problem. Floating trash -- one such pollutant -- finds its way from streets to storm drains and then creeks, rivers and other waterways.
Storm Water Systems installed the nation's first Bandalong Litter Trap in Washington, D.C in 2009 on a tributary into the Anacostia River, well-known for its critical levels of pollution and litter. Within the first six months of operation the Bandalong Litter Trap collected more than 5,000 lbs. of litter including plastic bottles, cans, cups and even a shopping cart. Read more >
The Bandalong Litter Trap floats in waterways and utilizes the water's current to guide and capture litter 365 days a year without any mechanical assistance. Constructed of industrial-grade high density polyethylene, aluminum, and stainless steel, the trap is durable in the harsh marine environment.
About Storm Water Systems
Storm Water Systems offers innovative products and systems to remove harmful pollutants and trash from surface water and stormwater runoff. Based in Cleveland, GA; Storm Water Systems was founded on more than 30 years of expertise in isolating pollutants from the environment. To learn more about Storm Water Systems, visit www.stormwatersystems.com.
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