If you're thinking of dumping water from a swimming pool or hot tub down a conveniently-located storm sewer drain, make sure you treat it first.
Due to pool chemicals such as chlorine, bromine and salt, pool and hot tub water should be treated first before sending it down a storm sewer drain, which are eventually emptied into streams that have fish and other aquatic life.
Pool and hot tub water should not be drained into sanitary sewer systems.
City staff also recommend slowly discharging treated pool and hot tub water into the ground, in a manner that doesn't flood neighbouring properties, streets or alleys.
Treating pool and hot tub water means dechlorination, which can be achieved with dechlorination tablets and exposure to sunlight. Water should be continually tested to ensure chemical levels are as close to zero as possible before drainage into a storm sewer.
Contact the city's engineering department before draining into a storm sewer to ensure it isn't clogged or eroded and can handle the volume. Water should be discharged as close to the storm sewer as possible without running over sidewalks, driveways or roadways.
Salt water pools have a high level of chloride and aren't safe to discharge into a storm sewer. Water from salt water pools must be handled by a licensed hauler.
Anyone with questions or concerns on the differences of the sanitary and storm sewers and the practice of pool and hot tub drainage can contact the engineering department at 250-489-0230.