Abstract

Airport stormwater management has been an issue of national and international concern for several years with considerable focus directed to the impact of de-icing activities on runoff quality. In Canada, the principle statute for effluent quality management is the Fisheries Act. This report focuses on the statute fundamentals and, from them, developing chemical limits for runoff quality that will enable airport management to meet the intent of the Act (no fish lethality at the end of the pipe) with confidence.

This presentation will consider the aquatic toxicity data from effluents reflecting collective airport activities (gates, de-icing pads, taxi ways, runways) chemical measurements (glycol, ammonia, nitrite, petroleum hydrocarbons), the relationship of biological oxygen demand (BOD) materials to dissolved oxygen concentrations in receiving waters, and aesthetic considerations of colour. Chemical limits for all these are recommended, based on the products used, to permit airport managers to consistently comply with all aspects of the Fisheries Act.

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