cleaner streams grady erickson city of lincoln - lancaster health department & mandi conway...
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Cleaner StreamsGrady Erickson
City of Lincoln - Lancaster Health Department&
Mandi ConwayWatershed Management Division
Who We Are
Watershed Management Division Manage stormwater Reduce flood hazards Improve water quality Outreach & Education
Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department Keep America Beautiful Keep Lincoln-Lancaster
County Beautiful
Work closely with other entities
What We Are Doing
Promoting and educating the importance of clean waterways Help reduce Non-Point
Source Pollution Keep streams and lakes
clean and beautiful
EPA has identified non-point source pollution to be the largest threat to the lakes, rivers, and streams of the United States 70% of all pollution
How Does This Effect Lincoln?
Storm drains don’t treat water for pollutants
Streams aren’t capable of protecting themselves against chemical and debris influx
Water quality directly affects the health of fish, birds, mammals and plants
5 streams in Lincoln don’t meet EPA standards
Facts on Non-Point Source Pollution
Pet Waste
Illegally dumped down storm drains Storm drains are NOT treated first so waste
ends up directly in places such as Holmes Lake
Spreads bacteria, illnesses and parasites Ex: E. Coli, cholera and tapeworm
EPA classifies pet waste as a dangerous pollutant in the same category as toxic chemicals and oil.
One dog can produce 274 lbs of waste annually 60 million dogs in U.S. = 16.4 billion lbs each
year 36,358 dogs in Lincoln = 9.96 million lbs each
year
Fertilizer
Too much fertilizer isn’t a good thing
Plants can only use so many nutrients
One pound of excess phosphorus in a lake can create 300-500 pounds of algae
Algae blooms create hypoxic water
Low oxygen = Fish kills
N-P-K on bag, P should be 3 or less
Oil
Do-it-Yourself oil changes dump or spill more oil in a month than major tanker disasters
In the U.S. 200 Million Gallons of used motor oil is improperly disposed of, Annually
The BP Oil Spill and Exxon Valdez Disaster have released 211 Million Gallons. Those occurred 21 Years Apart
One quart of motor oil can contaminate 250,000 Gallons of drinking water
When poured into water, one quart of motor oil can form an oil slick covering 9,680 square yards (almost 2 football fields)
Debris
Eroding soils create sediment which can change the flow of streams and add unwanted nutrients and microorganisms
Sediment pollution causes $16 Billion in environmental damage annually.
Grass clippings, leaves and organic debris add excess nutrients to water
Trash can be appealing to many animals, they can become entangled or ingest them and suffer severe consequences
Our City
5 Streams in the Lincoln area do not meet EPA standards.
All streams and lakes impaired in some way
YOU CAN HELP!
What Will Cleaner Streams Volunteers Do?
Spend 2 – 3 hours picking up litter in and around a stream
Sample water for pH, oxygen, turbidity, and temperature
Learn about our lakes and streams!
Things You Will Do If You Join SWAP
Mark storm drains with “No Dumping: Drains to Creek” emblem
Survey conditions of storm drains
Help clean areas around storm drains and some waterways (i.e. neighborhoods)
Distribute door hangers to Homes in neighborhoods to educate families
Only With a Strong
Community Effort Can We Help
Keep Our Waterways Clean
and Healthy
We Need You!
Contact the Adopt-A-Stream Coordinator Mandi Conway
[email protected] (402) 441-7075
Contact the SWAP Coordinator Grady Erickson
[email protected] or Call (402) 441-8645