Water pollution trap and methods of use thereof

A device for filtering pollutants from fluid, the device comprising:

• a chamber having an inlet and outlet;
• and
• a plurality of pivotal filter assemblies arranged in series in the chamber between the inlet and the outlet, wherein each filter assembly includes a weir and a filter extending from the weir,
• wherein the filters each pivot from a filtering position to a bypass position, in the filtering position the fluid flows through the filter to remove at least some of the pollutants from the fluid, in the bypass position the fluid flows around and bypasses the filter, and the filter pivots from the filtering position toward the bypass position under increased pressure from the fluid flow as the filter becomes clogged with the pollutants, wherein each one of the filters is pivotal from its filtering position to its bypass position independently of each other one of the filters so that as one of the filters becomes clogged it pivots to its bypass position while the other unclogged filters remain in their filtering positions, and wherein the filters each include a filter medium having a porosity defining a flowrate capacity, wherein the filter medium of the pivotal filter assembly nearest the inlet has a greater porosity than the filter medium of the pivotal filter assembly nearest the outlet, and
• wherein the weirs each have a bypass opening with a depth, the depth of the weir bypass opening of the pivotal filter assembly nearest the inlet is less than the depth of the weir bypass opening of the pivotal filter assembly nearest the outlet, and the depths of the bypass openings are correlated to the porosities of the filter media of the corresponding pivotal filter assemblies so that at least a portion of the fluid flows through the bypass openings of the weirs when or before the corresponding filter media flowrate capacities are reached and so that the filters pivot from their filtering position toward their bypass position in response to filters clogging before the fluid overflows through the corresponding bypass openings.