I'll bet you already know that litter, cars, various machines and other things can affect the planet in a negative way. However, some people are unaware of the harm everyday household activities, like washing your car or walking your dog, can do to our clean water resources. Harmful substances dumped into storm drains run untreated into our nearby lakes and streams, directly affecting the fresh water and the aquatic life living in it. You may be thinking, whatever I do isn't going to matter very much to the purity and quality of our freshwater.
Every person counts in the preservation of water quality.
Some of the pollutants that are dumped down storm drains include used cat litter, used motor oil, and leftover paint. Scummy soap water runoff from home car washes, pesticides in fertilizers, and overlooked pet waste can all run down into a nearby storm drain when it rains. Heidi Donut, an educator from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, showed the kids how just a bit of motor oil can affect acres of fresh water with a visual model. The CWPP has also sponsored other activities within other communities. The Gunnison Middle School had a poster contest with the theme of prevention of polluted runoff, and they hung the posters around on Main Street in their town.