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Fall 2025: Holiday EditionÂ
The High Desert Droplet is a collection of news and tips to help you prevent stormwater pollution in your community.
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Clean Kitchen, Clean River: A Holiday Habit That Protects the High Desert and Your Pipes
Fats, oils, and grease (F.O.G.) are the quiet culprits behind many holiday plumbing problems. And with holiday cooking at its peak, this is a great reminder to protect your pipes! All those delicious trimmings from roasting, frying, sautéing, and baking might seem harmless, but once they hit cold pipes, they harden fast. What starts as a simple rinse down the sink becomes a sticky buildup that clings to pipes like glue. Over time, that buildup can create major clogs that impact not just your home, but entire neighborhoods and sewer systems. And it can be costly.
How does it affect the Mojave River Watershed?
When F.O.G. causes blockages, the mess doesn’t just stay underground. Those backups can push polluted water into our storm drains, and once it reaches the storm system, it flows straight into the Mojave River with no filters or treatment. F.O.G. doesn’t dissolve or break down in water, so it ends up traveling through our watershed, impacting water quality, wildlife habitats and the overall health of our environment. During the holidays when thousands of kitchens are cooking at once, even small amounts of grease can add up quickly.
Here's how you can help.
This holiday season, let’s make “clean kitchen, clean watershed” a new tradition.
- Instead of washing fats, oils, or greasy scraps down the drain, let them cool and toss them in the trash.
- Scrape plates instead of rinsing them, wipe pans with a paper towel before washing, and store used cooking oil in a container for proper disposal
These simple habits keep our pipes flowing, protect our river and help ensure that the only thing overflowing this season is good food and good company.
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MRWG Honored with Community Relations Award
 The Mojave River Watershed Group receives an award for Community Relations at the Public Relations Society of America Inland Empire's 2025 Polaris Awards Gala.
The Mojave River Watershed Group is proud to announce our recent recognition at the Polaris Awards for Community Relations by the Public Relations Society of America Inland Empire chapter. This award celebrates our ongoing commitment to building strong partnerships across the High Desert and raising awareness about the importance of stormwater pollution prevention.
We believe in the power of community to protect the Mojave River Watershed. Through strategic outreach and collaboration with local businesses, schools and residents in the cities of Victorville, Hesperia and the Town of Apple Valley, we have strengthened community ties and set the stage for ongoing environmental stewardship in the area.
Thank you to PRSA Inland Empire for recognizing this work, and thank you to everyone who supports our mission. Together, we’re making real progress in keeping our waterways clean and communities thriving.
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How Trash Travels Through the High Desert
The holiday season brings so much joy. But it also brings something less cheerful … more trash! Wrapping paper, shipping boxes, paper plates, party decor, and other holiday waste tend to pile up quickly during this busy time of year.
What happens when some of that trash doesn’t make it into the bin?
When litter is left on the ground, it doesn’t stay put. Rain, irrigation runoff and even street sweeping can carry trash directly into our storm drains. And unlike household plumbing, storm drains do not lead to a treatment facility. They lead straight into our Mojave River Watershed.
Trash can pollute our environment, harm local wildlife and habitats, and impact the quality of our High Desert groundwater. Every piece of litter has a journey, and once it reaches the storm drain, it’s difficult to stop.
That’s why proper disposal at the source is so important. Using trash cans, securing loose waste, recycling when possible, and avoiding litter altogether help protect the Mojave River Watershed, especially during this high-waste season.
Small actions today help keep our desert clean and our water safe for generations to come.
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Clean Water Champions: Partner Spotlight
Big shoutout to our new partner, Shamrock Flowers! This beloved local flower shop is all about bringing beauty into our community, and now they’re taking that care one step further by pledging to protect the Mojave River Watershed. We’re proud to welcome them into the MRWG Business Alliance!
By taking the pledge, Shamrock Flowers is committing to practices that help keep pollution out of our stormwater system. That means being mindful about what goes down drains, managing waste responsibly, and helping make sure nothing harmful ends up flowing into the watershed. It’s an important step, because everything we do on land eventually makes its way to our shared water. It takes all of us to keep it clean.
Their commitment is more than a promise; it’s a powerful example of how local businesses can play a meaningful role in safeguarding the environment. When shops like Shamrock Flowers take action, it inspires the whole community to follow their lead.
Want to do your part too? Whether you’re a business or a resident, you can help protect the Mojave River Watershed by keeping litter out of gutters, properly disposing of household chemicals and waste, and being mindful of what runs off your property. Together, small actions create a big impact.Â
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 On October 25, residents across the High Desert came together to keep our communities clean and thriving. The City of Victorville and Hesperia’s clean-up day, co-sponsored by the Mojave River Watershed Group, saw an impressive turnout with hundreds of volunteers. Equipped with matching shirts and gloves, volunteers removed litter and debris from neighborhoods, parks, and open spaces.
These efforts make a real difference. By picking up trash before it reaches the storm drains, volunteers help prevent pollutants from entering the Mojave River, protecting plants, wildlife, water quality, and our community. This hands-on approach preserves the beauty of the High Desert and supports the health of our region's groundwater.
We encourage all residents to keep making a difference, whether by joining future clean-up events or by taking small steps at home to reduce pollution. Every action counts when it comes to keeping our watershed healthy for generations to come.
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