Worker climbing metal fabricated stairs placed in sidewalk, behind a barrier and running along facade. (Photo: Jan Thomas)

Thanks to Adam Thompson for posting a Circle Safety blog while I’ve been traveling.   Adam has an environmental specialty that adds nicely to the safety and health services we provide.  Sometime soon he will post his ideas on how the LEED industry and safety match-up.

Meanwhile, let me show you some of my travel photos… As readers know, I like to take photos of construction sites.  On my recent trip to France I paid particular attention to construction. Was it happening? How large were the sites? How many tower cranes could I count from the Eiffel Tower or Montmartre Cathedral?

My impression is that construction is steady.  There are many sidewalk barricades for building and storefront renovations.  In the central districts the count was at least one every other block.  Plenty of tower cranes were in use but this was probably due to a lack of ground.  And what is “normal” in the old world?  Construction vans, superintendents’ trailers, haulage equipment and excavators—even barricades—are all small.  Almost like toys.

Small tower crane on a tight footprint of new construction where old facade was maintained. Along Avenue des Champs-Élysées. (Photo: Jan Thomas

What about safety?  On the larger jobsites safety – as we know it – is present.  On the small store front renovations… o’la, la… OSHA would be saying something to the small “white van” construction guys.

These two photos are from a “large” site where an older building came down – they left the front façade and entrance arch and are building a new interior.

Good use of silt fence as inlet protection and matting for erosion control.

We have a substitute blogger for this week. Jan is out of the country and hopefully enjoying herself. This blog will focus on an environmental compliance issue that is of concern to the construction industry in Virginia and beyond. Stormwater management can be a major headache in the planning process for new construction, and new legislation is being considered right now in the Virginia General Assembly. You all need to know what you need to do.

                Stormwater is a major pollutant of our nation’s groundwater. A lot of that pollution comes directly from construction sites. Sediment, suspended solids, nutrients, oil and grease, pesticides and metals are all common pollutants from stormwater runoff. These things end up in our drinking water! I don’t think I want to pour a glass of iced “Roundup” rather than iced water.  Yuck!

                So, what does a construction company need to know? Well, first off, you need a permit. But only if the area of disturbed land is equal to or greater than one acre. Now if you are in an area subject to the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act, and your disturbance area is equal to or greater than 2,500 square feet, then you need a permit. Check these in the planning stage of work.

The most important part of this permit is the requirement for a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP).  Your SWPPP outlines how you will comply with the permit. This document serves as your “bible” in ensuring the protection of groundwater from pollutants in your site’s area. The Department of Conservation & Resources deals with the permits and, along with the Environmental Protection Agency, may perform inspections of your site.

Basically, you need your permit and your SWPPP before you start work, and you need to follow that SWPPP as closely as possible to avoid citations. Remember, you wouldn’t want to be drinking in metals and oils on a hot summer day, so do your part to protect our drinking water!

                Refer to http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/soil_and_water/vsmp.shtml for more info on Stormwater Management.