Most urban areas sweep their streets, often as an aesthetic practice to remove trash, built-up sediment and large debris from curb gutters and increasingly as a water quality practice to reduce stormwater pollutant loadings. Effective street sweeping programs can remove several tons of debris a year from city streets (Franklin Soil and Water Conservation District, 2017) minimizing pollutants in stormwater. In colder climates, street sweeping during the spring snowmelt can reduce pollutants in stormwater from deicing materials, sand and grit. 

Creating (and following) a schedule can increase the efficiency of a street sweeping program. A successful program should be flexible to accommodate climate conditions and areas of concern. Municipalities should base their identification of areas of concern on traffic volume, land use, field observations of sediment and trash accumulation, and proximity to surface waters (MPCA, 2017). They should develop up-to-date maps Street sweepers, such as the one shown above, can be used to clean roadways on a regular schedule. Photo Credit: Mark Mauno/Wikimedia and impervious surface inventories to help find and designate these areas. They may want to increase street sweeping and amend schedules for areas of concern. Schedules should include sweeping at least once a year.