In the past, the value of cleaning streets was more focused on the aesthetic part rather than its effect to the environment and community health. But in the recent years when the number of vehicles that used city streets increased as well as the level of air pollutant in the air increased, street flushing and brushing received more attention.
Usually, cleaning streets is a two-step process. First, the ground is sprayed with water to make brushing a lot easier. Then vehicles with mounted heavy duty brushers pass the street to loosen debris or dirt which is later on collected. The same vehicles also have suction hoses located behind brushes that collect loosened dirt and debris.
Conserving Natural Resources
The main advantage that street flushing and brushing has is conserving natural resources. By keeping streets clean and free of litter and debris, storm basins and sewer system are clean as well.
Sewer systems eventually lead to receiving bodies of water. And when the water from these systems is dirty, they pollute the bodies of water. Pollutants can have two effects: either they make the water unsafe for swimming and drinking or they increase the level of toxins in fish.
Cleaner Roads to a Cleaner Air
Aside from conserving natural resources, an important advantage of street flushing is cleaner air. Spraying the concrete with water before it is brushed results to better dust control. Without water, sand and dirt will fly in all directions when brushed, therefore reducing the ambient air quality.
In the previous years, creating dust during street cleanup wasn't much of a problem. As long as debris and litter were removed from the streets, the cleaning process was considered to be effective. However in a recent study done in the Greater Toronto Area, road dust was found to be a major part of air pollutants.
What You Can Do to Help
Homeowners in Ontario are encouraged to help street flushing and brushing in any way they can, especially during the initial spring time cleaning. Debris can be very easy to pickup using ordinary brooms, so homeowners are advised to sweep their street portion located in the front or back of their properties. This way, street sweepers can focus on removing the more important particles that accumulate on streets: particulate matter or PM.
Another important thing that homeowners can do to help street flushing and cleaning is keeping vehicles off residential streets during scheduled cleaning. GTA still clean residential streets especially after winter, provided that there is a topcoat of asphalt on them. However, they won't be entirely cleaned when the street is filled with cars and other types of vehicles. Street flushing and brushing vehicles will miss these parked areas plus the area it needs to maneuver around parked cars.
Lastly, homeowners should cleanup after fuel or vehicle waste spills. These chemicals form part of toxic particulate matter content of ambient air. And when water is sprayed on them by street flushing trucks or when it rains, they can end up on storm drains and into receiving bodies of water.
After the discovery that road dust contributes greatly to air pollution, the importance of street flushing and cleaning have been emphasized. Incidentally, cleaning streets also results to conserving natural resources. So as homeowners, participating in the city's street sanitation tasks can be very helpful in achieving a sustainable future and a healthy community.
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