Homeowner Programs

 

Every homeowner plays a vital role in maintaining our healthy backyard streams to our major waterways.  In fact, homeowners are the best line of defense in the battle to preserve water quality.  

 

Stormwater washes across our lawns, driveways, streets, storm drains, etc., picking up pollutants along the way.  Any pollutant that is in or on the ground and is not absorbed into the ground gets picked up by runoff and carried to the nearest stream.  In your yard, stormwater runoff can pick up car fluids like oil and antifreeze, excessive pesticides and fertilizers, sediment, grass clippings, detergent, dirt and grease from driveways and streets, chlorine from backyard pools, and nitrogen from pet waste and failing septics to name a few.  All of these are pollutants and detrimental to the health of our waterways and aquatic life.

 

Make just a few changes to prevent pollutants from getting into runoff, and add a few new habits such as composting and recycling to make a big difference in protecting water quality.

 

Below are a few websites to visit that provide good information on water quality pollution control at home.  The last three websites offer information on a variety of topics that may be of interest to the homeowner.  You can also visit the Publications section and the Resources section of this Stormwater website for more information.

 

The Show Me Yards Program    www.springfieldmogov.org/showmeyards

 

Lawn Care and Rain Gardens:   http://clean-water.uwex.edu/pubs

 

Storm Drain Stenciling:   http://www.mostreamteam.org/

 

Missouri Extension Center Information:    http://extension.missouri.edu/publications 

 

All About Soil:  http://soilplantlab.missouri.edu/soil/

 

Department of Agriculture  Natural Resources Conservation Service  (NRCS)  Publications

        http://nrcspad.sc.egov.usda.gov/DistributionCenter/search.aspx?show=all

 

Missouri Department of Conservation:  Order Publications Form

  http://mdc.mo.gov/sites/default/files/resources/2010/05/free_information_2011.pdf  

 

Flood Outreach Toolkit.  Materials to help you through a flood disaster.

  http://www.floodsmart.gov/toolkits/flood/index.htm

 

Plan For Emergencies Information:  http://www.ready.gov/ 

 

May the footprints you leave behind show that you have walked in kindness toward the earth and everything living.

               Inspired by American Indian Philosophy