Archive for March, 2011
April Showers Bring … A Month Full of Eco-Events!
Mar 31st
March came in like a lion and went out like a lamb and now April is here! That means it is time to pull out those work gloves, pull on your jacket and head to a local community event. Below is a list of a few events you’ll find in the area.
>Cabrillo Marine Aquarium will be at it on Saturday, April 2nd, doing a beach clean up and a native garden workday. TreePeople will be in Compton planting trees and the City of LA will be providing rain barrel education and distribution!
>On Thursday, April 7th, the Green Gardens Group will be at the Nakoaka Community Center teaching all things garden.
>Saturday, April 9th, is a busy one. Generation Earth is hosting a water pollution prevention workshop, the Theodore Payne Foundation will be in Sun Valley giving native garden tours and Santa Monica Baykeeper will be facilitating a creek restoration project.
>Saturday isn’t your day? How about Sunday? On April 10th the City of LA will be picking up eWaste in Pacoima and Friends of Ballona Wetlands will be holding nature tours of salt marshes and dunes. Fun times!
>Lili Singer is holding a native plant course in Burbank on Wednesday, April 20th, and on Thursday, April 21st, TreePeople More >
Learning our Watersheds: Dominguez Channel
Mar 23rd
Recently, right here on the LA Stormwater blog, Joe Linton of the popular LA Creek Freak asked us to learn a bit more about our watersheds. That’s a suggestion we fully embrace, so we are here to help.
If you live in Southern LA County in the communities of Inglewood, Hawthorne, El Segundo, Gardena, Lawndale, Redondo Beach, Torrance or Carson, you likely reside in the 110 square mile Dominguez Channel Watershed.
Most of this land is developed to handle runoff and when it rains water flows through our streets to the storm drains where it enters the stormwater system, in this case the Dominguez Channel, and then directly to the Pacific Ocean untreated. The Dominguez Channel extends all the way from LAX to the Los Angeles Harbor.
Currently there are a number of Prop O projects that directly impact the Dominguez Channel and LA Harbor Watershed, including the Machado Lake Restoration Project, Rosecrans Recreation Center Stormwater Enhancements, the Peck Park Canyon Water Quality Improvement Project, Inner Cabrillo Beach Bacterial Water Improvement Project and the Wilmington Drain Multi-use Project.
All of these projects are being implemented in order to improve stormwater pollution and increase the watershed’s ability to handle runoff in a more efficient and environmentally friendly More >
Big Change Happens in Small Ways at New School-West
Mar 16th
by Kristin Sherman
As a preschool director I’m witness to change over time and certain shifts in social consciousness. The philosophy in our school, The New School-West Preschool, is influenced by schools in Reggio Emilia, Italy. There’s a great respect for the children’s ideas, and curriculum is based on their reactions and interests in the world around them, of which the environment is a major part.
Our curriculum, guided by the students, becomes communication about the hazards of littering and its impact on stormwater and the ocean at large. They insist on making signs and setting up phone trees to inform their community that littering hurts our environment. Underneath their efforts, I begin to understand that their solution to the unchanging habits of older generations like mine is to inform-because they think we don’t know.
This is such an innocent, sweet, and terrifying realization, that I begin to wash my Yoplait cup each morning, and toss it in the recycling bin. After all, I know better, and I’ve been held to a higher standard, a new normalcy struggles to take hold.
I think about the world around me in regard to our environment and it is something our staff strives to share with the More >
It’s Pet Trivia Time!
Mar 8th
In celebration of St. Patrick’s Day, try your luck at answering some pet related stormwater trivia questions by commenting on this blog post and you could win a FREE one week (five full days) Doggie Daycare Package valued at $150 courtesy of Canine Cabana! All entrants will receive a FREE LA Stormwater container of doggie waste bags. Entries are due by end of March – we can’t wait to see your answers!
1. What is a large source of stormwater pollution?
2. What can pet owners do to prevent stormwater pollution and protect their pet’s health?
3. True or False: Unattended pet waste can flow untreated into our local waterways and ocean.
4. What do you use to pick up after your pet?
*Check out the LA Stormwater Pet website for some helpful hints to answer these questions!
March into Spring Being Green: Volunteer or Attend an Eco-Event
Mar 1st
Winter is almost over and spring is right around the corner. The changes coming our way aren’t as stark as in some parts of our country, but most of us certainly enjoy the days getting longer and the temperature getting a little warmer. So, why not welcome in Spring by attending an eco-friendly event this month? Here’s a list of a few cool ones below.
> On every Thursday during the entire month of March, Heal the Bay, along with local leaders, will be hosting a five session workshop to educate and empower people that live in the San Fernando Valley community.
> On Saturday, March 5th, Cabrillo Marine Aquarium will be holding a beach clean-up in San Pedro. Generation Earth will also be hosting a Waste Reduction and Recycling Workshop at Paul Revere Middle School that will show us how to make our schools more eco-friendly.
> TreePeople and volunteers will be in the Angeles National Forest replanting an area damaged by wild fire on Saturday, March 12th, they will also be in Eagle Rock doing a bit of tree care. Volunteers are needed!
> Friends of Ballona Wetlands will be providing nature tours of the Playa Del Rey salt marshes and dunes on Sunday, March 13th.
> Saturday, March 19th is More >
