Revealing the Hidden Source of Plastic Pollution in Residential and Mixed-Use Laneways

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Project Overview:

When discussing plastic pollution entering the Great Lakes, attention is often focused on municipalities and large industrial or commercial sites. However, residential neighbourhoods and urban laneways can also contribute significant amounts of litter that is washed into the stormwater network.

To better understand this overlooked source of pollution, EnviroPod™ installed a LittaTrap™ within a stormwater catch basin in a Toronto laneway to monitor the quantity and type of litter entering the stormwater system.

The results demonstrated that even a single laneway can generate substantial amounts of plastic and other gross pollutants destined for local waterways.

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The Challenge:

Urban laneways experience constant activity from residents, businesses, visitors, waste collection, and deliveries.

Litter left on these surfaces can be carried by rainfall into nearby storm drains where it flows untreated through the stormwater network and ultimately into rivers and the Great Lakes.

The objective of the trial was to:

• Determine whether residential and mixed-use laneways contribute significantly to plastic pollution.
• Quantify the types of litter entering the stormwater system.
• Demonstrate the effectiveness of capturing pollutants at the source using LittaTrap™.

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The Solution:

EnviroPod™ installed a single LittaTrap™ in a catch basin located within a laneway on Logan Avenue, Toronto.

The location was selected because it served a diverse range of users. Situated adjacent to District 28, a shared office and community space featuring offices, a bistro, and entertainment facilities, the site represented a typical mixed-use urban environment rather than a single land use.

The LittaTrap™ was monitored over a two-month period, from January to March, before being removed for analysis.

The Result:

At the conclusion of the monitoring period, the LittaTrap™ was manually emptied and the captured material sorted and recorded.

Key Results

• 217 pieces of litter captured
• Monitoring period: 2 months
• All litter prevented from entering Toronto's stormwater system

Pollutants Captured

The captured material included:

• 160 pieces of polystyrene
• 20 cigarette butts
• 19 soft plastic items
• 7 hard plastic items
• 2 pieces of chewing gum
• 2 aluminium cans
• 1 plastic utensil
• Other miscellaneous litter

The most common pollutant by far was polystyrene, highlighting how lightweight plastics are easily transported into stormwater systems.

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Impact of the Results:

Although the monitoring programme focused on just one catch basin, the findings demonstrated that laneways are a significant source of urban litter entering the stormwater network.

The trial highlighted two important observations:

• Residential and mixed-use areas contribute meaningful amounts of plastic pollution—not just commercial or industrial sites.
• Small, lightweight plastics such as polystyrene are particularly vulnerable to being transported by stormwater.

When multiplied across the extensive network of laneways throughout Toronto, the cumulative impact becomes considerable.

Capturing litter before it enters underground drainage provides municipalities with an opportunity to significantly reduce pollution reaching downstream waterways.

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Why the LittaTrap™?

The LittaTrap™ was selected because it offers a practical, retrofit solution for capturing litter directly within existing catch basins.

Key benefits include:

• Captures plastics and gross pollutants at the source
• Installs into existing stormwater infrastructure without major civil works
• Simple hand maintenance
• Prevents litter entering rivers and lakes
• Provides measurable data for stormwater management programmes
• Supports municipal litter reduction initiatives

The monitoring programme also demonstrated how LittaTrap™ can be used as a valuable tool for understanding litter hotspots and informing future stormwater management strategies.

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Environmental Benefits:

Plastic pollution entering urban stormwater systems is cumulative.

While a single laneway may appear insignificant, hundreds or thousands of similar catchments across a city can collectively contribute substantial quantities of litter to the environment.

By intercepting litter before it reaches the drainage network, municipalities can:

• Reduce plastic pollution entering rivers and lakes
• Protect aquatic ecosystems
• Prevent plastics from breaking down into microplastics
• Improve urban stormwater quality
• Target maintenance and education programmes where they are needed most

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Conclusions:

The Toronto Laneway Monitoring Project demonstrates that residential and mixed-use laneways are an often-overlooked source of stormwater pollution.

Over just two months, a single LittaTrap™ prevented 217 pieces of litter from entering the stormwater system, with polystyrene accounting for nearly three-quarters of all material captured.

The project reinforces the importance of at-source stormwater treatment and shows how simple retrofit technologies like LittaTrap™ can help municipalities better understand and reduce plastic pollution before it reaches the Great Lakes.

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