Inspections part 3

Summary

In this insightful video, the presenter continues their exploration of construction stormwater mock inspections by emphasizing the importance of having Best Management Practices (BMPs) in place. They discuss the need for perimeter protection, containment of pollutants, and proper documentation of inspection reports, including using photos and maps. They also address common compliance issues found on construction sites and offer tips for maintaining compliance with permits.

Highlights

• No BMPs at a site could mean missing perimeter protection and ground cover. 🌿
• Ensure exits are in place where vehicles enter and exit, with appropriate perimeter protection. 🚪
• Containment around stockpiles is essential to prevent pollutants from escaping. 🏞️
• Concrete washout areas must be properly contained to prevent contamination. 🏗️
• Inspection reports should include forms, maps, and photo logs for accuracy and completeness. 📝

Key Takeaways

• Always check for missing BMPs on construction sites to ensure proper stormwater management. 🏗️
• Perimeter protection is crucial to prevent pollutants like dirt from leaving the site. 🚧
• Use inspection reports that are detailed and align with permit requirements. 📋
• Photos are a vital part of inspection reports, capturing the state of the site accurately. 📸
• Avoid common compliance issues by covering exposed soil and controlling sediment effectively. 🌱

Overview

In this video, 'Erosion and Stormwater Videos' takes us through part three of their construction stormwater mock inspection series. The focus is on recognizing where BMPs, or Best Management Practices, are needed on construction sites to prevent water contamination and erosion. The host highlights the significance of perimeter protection and proper containment around stockpiles to ensure pollutants do not leave the site.

The video further explores the intricacies of documenting construction site conditions. It emphasizes crafting detailed inspection reports that meet permit requirements, using forms, maps, and photo logs to paint a clear picture of site conditions. Detailed, factual reporting is stressed, considering the legal audiences that might review these reports, including regulators and potentially lawyers.

In ensuring compliance, the video advises on common issues like inadequate soil coverage and sediment control. Taking and storing photographs is strongly encouraged, both to document problems and to highlight compliance successes. The video's practical tips are geared towards helping construction sites stay within legal environmental guidelines, preventing both natural and legal troubles.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 02:30: Introduction and Site Evaluation The chapter 'Introduction and Site Evaluation' starts with an example of a construction stormwater inspection. It highlights the importance of checking for Best Management Practices (BMPs) on-site and evaluating if additional BMPs are needed. The focus is on identifying areas without BMPs and determining whether there should be any in place.
• 02:30 - 04:30: Concrete Washout Areas The chapter titled 'Concrete Washout Areas' focuses on the management and protection of areas where concrete washout occurs. Key points include the need for perimeter protection to prevent contamination and the importance of ground cover to manage and contain concrete slurry. Observations are made about a stockpile area, highlighting the absence of Best Management Practices (BMPs) and suggesting considerations for improvement in washout area management.
• 04:30 - 07:30: Inspection Reports and Documentation The chapter titled 'Inspection Reports and Documentation' discusses the absence of Best Management Practices (BMPs) in a certain area. There is no visible exit, although vehicular activity suggests otherwise, indicating the need for proper exit designation or perimeter protection. Additionally, the presence of dirt on the street is noted, as well as a lack of adequate containment measures.
• 07:30 - 10:00: Common Compliance Issues and Conclusion The chapter discusses common compliance issues related to construction sites, focusing on Best Management Practices (BMPs) that are often neglected. It mentions the importance of implementing silt fences or bio rolls around soil piles to prevent pollutants from leaving the site. The transcript stresses the need to monitor materials leaving the site to ensure they comply with environmental standards.

Inspections part 3 Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 continuing with our construction stormwater mock inspection you'll want to look at where there are not bmps in place and see are there any that are needed for example on this site you can see there are no bmps in place here but do we need something should there
• 00:30 - 01:00 be some sort of perimeter protection along here probably so has this area not been worked recently and should there be some sort of ground cover here things to think about when you see areas that don't have any bmps here's another example we see a stockpile and there's a couple of things we could notice here
• 01:00 - 01:30 we don't see any bmps from anywhere from here all around this area so we don't see an exit here although it looks like they're driving in and out there so should there be an exit in place there if that's not being used as an exit we should have some sort of perimeter protection along there we see dirt in the street right here and we also do not see containment
• 01:30 - 02:00 around our pile we should have some sort of silt fence or bio roll along that pile as well as these smaller piles so while there's no bmps in place here there are quite a number that should actually be there look and see if there are pollutants that leave the site that shouldn't be leaving and that includes dirt and if materials on the site are being
• 02:00 - 02:30 handled properly so for example if you come upon a site and see this you know there's numerous issues we've got pollutants namely dirt leaving the site you can see that the street will need to be swept we have an inlet protection device here that's going to need to likely be replaced likely cleaning won't be good enough for this in addition there's no perimeter
• 02:30 - 03:00 protection here and we can also ask the question well if there's all this dirt coming down is there an area up gradient from this photo that needs to be stabilized pollutants include more than just dirt this is a concrete washout area we know that concrete washout areas are required to be contained they cannot go onto the ground so we've
• 03:00 - 03:30 got a number of issues here with the fact that the concrete washout has leaked all over the ground in contrast here's another concrete washout project site and this is for a single family home site you'll notice there's no concrete washout on the ground everything has been contained within the box the box is lined with poly
• 03:30 - 04:00 and while it's a small box it is effective this is working well again when inspecting make sure you're looking at the plan when you are around the construction site are there bmps that are in place on the plan but not in place on the site or
• 04:00 - 04:30 conversely in place on the site and not on the plan the plan and the site should match look at disturbed areas that are not being worked have they been stabilized within the appropriate time frames look at areas where final stabilization has occurred is that final stabilization in place is it growing and look at those wetted perimeters as
• 04:30 - 05:00 we mentioned previously in terms of writing all of this down documenting it your inspection report your inspection report is likely going to consist of three different things a form a map and a photo log it should at least have a form and a photo log and i find
• 05:00 - 05:30 maps to be very very helpful in inspection reports to show where things need to be repaired replaced or supplemented your inspection report should be written in a factual manner not a speculative manner it must be legible and understandable and write it considering that it may be read by a lawyer by the pollution control agency or by a judge
• 05:30 - 06:00 when construct when the minnesota pollution control agency or other regulators come onto the site they look at inspection reports to make sure that they have been filled out completely so they are frequently read by people other than those on your construction site while there are lots of different types of construction sites there are lots of different types of inspection reports minnesota does not have a specific form
• 06:00 - 06:30 that is required however they do require that the inspection form that you use meets permit requirements so take a look at your inspection form that you're using and make sure that it meets the requirements that were set forth in the permit that it covers all of the things that the permit says it must cover again
• 06:30 - 07:00 you can use any type of form you want to use you just must make sure it contains the information that the permit says it must contain in terms of photos in photos are very very helpful in your reports they show an example of what the site
• 07:00 - 07:30 looked like at that moment in time so for example when adding photos to your inspection reports note what you were looking at in the photo where you were looking at it and if there's any action that is required so for example in this photo photo one we have a well maintained and labeled concrete truck washout there is no maintenance that is noted to
• 07:30 - 08:00 be needed whereas in this photo here photo two we have hay bales and silt fence that are in need of maintenance it's noting that it's in need of maintenance it would be even better if there were a map that pointed and showed where these two photos were taken you can take your site map and simply write a number one by where that concrete washout truck location is and number two by where the hay bales
• 08:00 - 08:30 are so that the people who are looking at the report can see where exactly to go to maintain those hay bales in photo two don't be afraid to take lots of photos during your inspections photos are very very helpful they should be taken when you have an issue on your site when an issue has been repaired for example you had a silt fence that was needing maintenance once it's been maintained
• 08:30 - 09:00 take a photo of that silk fence again and also don't forget to take photos of things that are good on your site many times when bad things happen people are able to go back and look at the photos and say you know what my site was in good shape look at all these photos of things that were in good shape so don't forget to take photos of things that are looking good
• 09:00 - 09:30 finally some common compliance issues that are found on construction sites these are things that regulators typically find knowing that these are common compliance issues you can make sure that these are not issues on your site coverage on exposed soil make sure you are covering soil in the appropriate time frame that's set forth in the permit sediment controls make sure you have appropriate perimeter protection
• 09:30 - 10:00 that it's functioning make sure you have appropriate sediment controls on your soil stockpiles your inlet protection is in place your track out controls are working you do not have dirt on the road that you are appropriately handling your waste and that you are appropriately de-watering avoiding these common compliance issues will do a lot to help you stay in compliance with the permit