The City Council created the Environmental Services Department in April of 2001, through a merger of the Environmental Engineering Division (formally with the Engineering Department), and the Hazardous Materials Division (formally with the Fire Department). The newly formed Environmental Services Department (ESD) was created to consolidate some of the functions of the above two divisions into one central department.
Currently, the ESD consists of two divisions: the Storm Water Division, and the Hazardous Materials Division.
The Storm Water Division deals with issues involving water quality, watershed management, household hazardous waste issues, illegal dumping, and construction/ industrial storm water permits. Additionally, the Hazardous Materials Division deals with storage, handling, and transportation issues involving hazardous materials.
In order to preserve and protect Laredo's environment, the ESD has developed various programs to deal with multiple environmental issues that face the City of Laredo. Through these programs and through excellent customer service with the citizens' of Laredo, the ESD strives to ensure a healthy environment for Laredo's future. Below is a summary of the current programs that the ESD has established for the preservation of Laredo's environment.

Storm Water Monitoring Program:
The ESD currently has five storm water monitoring stations placed throughout the City. The monitoring stations are placed in different land use zones (i.e. industrial, light commercial, residential, etc.), which allows the city to accurately measure the pollutant load on the city's environment as a whole. During rain events, the monitoring stations automatically sample storm water periodically during the rain event. After the rain event has subsided, Environmental Technicians preserve the storm water samples and send them off for analysis. The ESD analyzes storm water for various parameters including heavy metals (lead, mercury, etc), pesticides, and sediments, just to name a few. With the analysis, the ESD is able to identify problem pollutants and develop programs aimed at reducing these pollutants.

Water Quality Enforcement Program:
The ESD through ordinances, has the authority to enforce strict water quality limits for the City of Laredo. The Water Quality Enforcement Program deals with handling and investigating water quality complaints through out the City of Laredo. If individuals or businesses are found to be in violation of water quality limits, they may receive a citation per violation per day until the violation is remediated. The fines for water quality violations range from $500 to $2,000 per violation per day. In addition to water quality enforcement, the ESD responds to and remediates spills reported by concerned citizens.

Household Hazardous Waste Collection Program:
Everyone has products in their home that pose a hazardous threat to the environment if disposed of improperly. These products are called household hazardous products, and when they are disposed of, they become household hazardous waste (HHW). These products cover a wide array of categories, including solvents, paints, pool chemicals, automotive fluids, and batteries, to name a few. If these products are disposed of in an improper manner (i.e. in the trash), they pose a threat to the environment by possibly leaching into groundwater and streams.
In order to deal with HHW generated by the citizens' of Laredo, the ESD has implemented a Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Collection Program, which includes a permanent drop-off facility as well as collection events that take place in the spring and fall. This program has been extremely effective in reducing the improper disposal of household hazardous waste. In fact, to date, the program has collected over 140,000 lbs. of household hazardous waste.

Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generator (CESQG) Hazardous Waste Collection Program:
Until recently, the ESD has only been able to accept Household Hazardous Waste, due to regulations preventing the City from accepting commercial waste. This, however, has changed with a recent grant from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which will provide funding for the ESD to offer hazardous waste disposal assistance to small businesses. This new program, known as the Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generator (CESQG) Hazardous Waste Collection Program, which applies to small businesses that produce less than 220 pounds, of hazardous waste, or 2.2 pounds of acutely (extremely hazardous waste) per month.
Due to the exorbitant cost of hazardous waste disposal, this program should be welcomed news to small businesses.

Used Tire Buy Back Program:
The ESD has successfully implemented a used tire buy back program that pays citizens 50 cents per used tire (limits apply) that they bring in. In addition to cleaning up the thousands of illegally dumped tires found through our city, this program has become a popular source of funding for nonprofit organizations, that are paid for all of the tire that they can bring in.

Storm Water Management Program:
Due to the tremendous growth that Laredo is currently experiencing, the threat of pollutants from development activities greatly increases. Construction activities produce many different pollutants that degrade water quality. These pollutants may come from leaks and spills of finishing materials such as paints, as well as improper disposal of excess concrete. However, the largest pollutant released from construction sites is sediment. Sediment runoff from construction sites causes problems for aquatic life by lowering oxygen levels in lakes and streams. In addition to causing water pollution, sediments clog the City's MS4, which increases cleaning costs and causes flooding due to improper drainage. In order to minimize these pollutants, the ESD requires permits of land disturbance sites greater than 5 acres and smaller projects that are part of a larger planned development. These permits are issued only after the ESD reviews and approves development and construction plans as well as Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPP).

Industrial Storm Water Permit Program:
Like the Storm Water Management Program, the Industrial Storm Water Permit Program is designed to reduce the amount of pollutants that may affect our water quality. Unlike the Storm Water Management Program the Industrial Storm Water Permit Program deals with certain industries and their possible sources of pollutants. In order to access possible pollutants from different industries, the industries are required to submit Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPP) to the ESD for review. Staff from the ESD reviews the plans as well as inspects the different industries on a yearly basis. Once industries meet all of the ESD's requirements, an Industrial Storm Water Permit is issued. Inspections are conducted yearly, or if a complaint is made against the industry. If violations of the permit are found, citations are then issued.

Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) Cleaning Program:
Pollutants on our streets such as trash and sediments, flow into our Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4). Our MS4 is a drainage system that is separate from our Sanitary System (the system that carries waste water from our homes to a waste water treatment facility). Moreover, unlike our Sanitary System, in which wastes are treated before discharge into our creeks and river, our MS4 discharges directly into our creeks and river without treatment.
The MS4 Cleaning Program is designed to clean out all of the trash and debris that enter our MS4. Not only does this improve water quality for our creeks and river, but it also prevents flooding by allowing the proper drainage of our MS4.
The MS4 Cleaning Program is a labor-intensive program, which involves the use of a large vacuum truck that vacuums out debris from the MS4. On average the ESD removes over nineteen tons (38,000 lbs.) of debris from our MS4 per week!

Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) Monitoring Program:
The MS4 Monitoring Program is designed to identify illicit discharges (such as sanitary hookups) into the City's MS4. This is accomplished through various techniques such as water quality testing as well as smoke testing. The ESD also conducts inspections during dry weather events, which help identify possible illicit connections. Additionally, the ESD also has a Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) unit that allows an operator to remotely control a robot with a camera into the MS4 to look for violations. The CCTV is also used for integrity and maintenance inspections on the MS4.

Storm Inlet Stenciling Program:
Storm drain stenciling involves labeling storm drain inlets with painted messages warning citizens not to dump pollutants into the storm inlets. This program is designed to remind citizens' that our Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) drains directly to our creeks and river without being treated.

Illegal Dumping Enforcement Program:
Illegal Dumping creates an eyesore for the city and is a source of pollution for creeks, rivers and wetlands. The majority of illegal dumping that takes place in Laredo is from construction contractors, landscapers, demolition and paving companies, as well as local citizens.
The ESD patrols the City in search for illegal dumping activities, however, the majority of citations that have been issued, started as anonymous tips from concerned citizens.
In order to successfully investigate and cite individuals and companies suspected of illegal dumping, the ESD needs in-depth descriptions of that are used for illegal dumping practices. Vehicle make and model, license plate numbers, and company names or logos, greatly help in the enforcement of illegal dumping cases.

Hazardous Materials Permit Program:
The ESD monitors the hazardous materials that are stored and handled at the hundreds of warehouses through out the city. Through the Hazardous Materials Permit program, ESD staff inspect for proper storage, handling, labeling, and transport of hazardous materials at over 400 warehouses in Laredo.

Environmental Education Program:
In order to accomplish a cleaner city and environment the ESD realizes that we need to educate the general public on our different programs as well as general environmental issues. The ESD actively promotes its programs through seminars, presentations at local schools and civic groups, as well as through radio, television, and newspaper messages. If you would like additional information on any of the above programs or to schedule a presentation for your school or civic group, please call the Environmental Services Department at (956) 727-7794.
In addition to the aforementioned programs, the ESD works closely with local, state, and federal agencies in order to ensure that the city and it's citizens are informed on current environmental regulations, and cutting-edge technologies, as well as up-to-date issues facing Laredo. Furthermore, to implement new programs, the ESD aggressively seeks out new sources of funding through grants and partnerships.