The chill in the air and the falling leaves are good reminders that some simple fall clean up tips can help improve and protect our environment! 

Don’t sweep leaves and grass clippings into the street. When leaves and grass wash into storm drains, they end up in our lakes and streams where they feed algae and consume oxygen as they decay!  Grass clippings can also carry pesticides which harm fish and other aquatic life.

Turn your leaves into valuable compost – either by bagging them for your waste hauler to take from the curb, composting them in a backyard compost bin, or hauling your leaves, grass, and brush to a drop-off site. 

Prepare your lawn for next year. While it might seem like your yard goes dormant in the fall, this is actually a great time to prep your lawn for the spring. Aerating will allow oxygen and moisture to reach the roots of plants during winter and will also improve the water retention of your yard, which will reduce the need for irrigation.

Get a workout and reduce harmful emissions! Gasoline-powered mowers, leaf blowers, and string trimmers may be faster, but they also use a lot of energy and create hazardous fumes. In fact, a typical riding lawn mower actually produces four times as much pollution per hour as a car! In addition to harmful emissions, the force from gasoline-powered leaf blowers can create clouds of potentially hazardous substances such as mold, pesticides, and allergens. Use a good old fashioned rake and burn calories at the same time!

Keep oil, antifreeze, and other automotive chemicals out of the street. Bring them to a Hennepin County drop-off facility for safe disposal.

Seven cities, eight agencies and the Elm Creek Watershed Management Commission have collaborated on a six-year project to evaluate conditions in the lakes and streams in the Elm Creek watershed and to plan how best to protect and improve water quality in those waters. 

The end product, the Elm Creek Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategies (WRAPS) report, provides detailed information about thirteen lakes and four stream systems in this northwestern watershed of 103 square miles. The WRAPS report found that seven of those lakes do not meet state nutrient standards, and the streams contain excessive levels of E. coli bacteria, have low dissolved oxygen, and at least one suffers from excessive chloride concentrations from road salt. 

The Bassett Creek Watershed Management Commission (BCWMC) is excited to announce the completion of their Watershed Management Plan. What started in 2012 as a simple update progressed into complex, thorough, and productive conversations about how to manage and protect the lakes and streams in the watershed while balancing the interests and needs of multiple entities.

The public and local officials weighed in with their concerns and ideas early in the process by responding to a BCWMC survey, attending small-group meetings, and participating in a large “Watershed Summit” in June 2013. 

Once the issues were framed, the BCWMC Plan Steering Committee met 24 times over two years to develop policies and programs to address the issues. The BCWMC Technical Advisory Committee, consisting of staff from BCWMC communities, state agencies like the Board of Water and Soil Resources and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and partners like the Minneapolis Park and Rec Board and Three Rivers Part District, also provided valuable recommendations, insight, and assistance in developing policies for the plan. 

In the end, the BCWMC prioritized and classified their lakes and streams, adopted new requirements for development and redevelopment (the Minimal Impact Design Standards), adopted requirements for buffers along some streams and wetlands, and developed a list of large capital projects, like stream restoration projects and stormwater infiltration basins, to implement over the life of the plan.

“This plan sets the stage for a productive decade of protecting and improving our lakes and streams,” noted BCWMC Chair, Jim de Lambert.  “We look forward to continuing watershed management in partnership with cities, residents, businesses, lake associations, park districts, and agencies!”

Students at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic School in Brooklyn Park are cleaning the streets!  Fourth grade students have participated in the WMWA "What is a Watershed?" lesson for the last 3 years and decided to put the messages into action. The lesson unveils the impacts of leaves, grass clippings and other nutrient-loaded pollution on water quality. Students are encouraged to become Storm Drain Goalies by letting nothing but rain down the drain.  

For the second year, the St. Vincent de Paul Catholic School's Green Team will venture out to the streets of Osseo to rake, sweep and collect leaves. The City of Osseo staff work in partnership with the school groups to collect the bags of leaves for composting.  Students, parents and neighbors enjoy working together and spreading the word.

Organizing a street clean-up can be an easy and fun community service project.  For tips or assistance in bringing a clean-up or lesson to your school community contact Jen Schaust, jen.schaust@gmail.com.

Students involved in Hennepin County’s River Watch program can now compare the data they collect to historical data for their stream and learn about how land cover may impact water quality in the recently launched Hennepin County River Watch interactive map. River Watch is a hands-on environmental education program in which teams of youth assess the health of local streams by identifying and quantifying the stream's biological community. There are currently 18 sites being monitored in the county.

For more information, contact Mary Karius at mary.karius@hennepin.us or 612-596-9129.