In January, Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA) received a Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) grant on behalf of the Buzzards Bay Stormwater Collaborative to outfit a trailer for municipalities to use to conduct Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination (IDDE) investigations. The trailer is housed at Massachusetts Maritime Academy and is now available for any of the Stormwater Collaborative municipalities. The Buzzards Bay NEP was a partner on the grant, and directed the construction and equipment specifications.

Hands-on training for town officials on how to use the trailer and its equipment has not been possible due to COVID-19. The Buzzards Bay NEP and MMA, with permission from MassDEP, developed a series of YouTube videos for training purposes. These videos provide information on some stormwater basics, considerations for MS4 permitting, GIS mapping techniques, and sampling protocols currently used in the ongoing monitoring program.

For the video series, see the Buzzards Bay Stormwater Collaborative YouTube channel. The Buzzards Bay Stormwater Collaborative page has additional information about the collaborative, and these and other useful stormwater monitoring training videos are on the Collaborative’s Monitoring Discharges page.