Virtual Stormwater Pollution Prevention Events
May 2021
We all play a part in preventing stormwater pollution. Here are some ways to get involved in May and help protect our local waterways! All events are free unless otherwise indicated. Please click the event topic below to jump straight to the related events.
I Love A Clean San Diego VIRTUAL Community Cleanups
Several VIRTUAL community cleanups are being offered during the month of May. Participants will collect trash around their communities to divert litter from their respective watersheds. Participate in these cleanups to protect the environment as well as each other, and ‘walk-your-block’ and neighborhoods with your family and neighbors.
-
May 1, 9am to 11am – Watershed Warriors Spring Valley Community VIRTUAL Litter Cleanup – Join the Zoom kick-off call at 9am and then collect trash from around the Spring Valley community to divert litter from the San Diego Bay watershed. Learn more or register.
-
May 9, 9am to 11am – Watershed Warriors Bancroft Point Community VIRTUAL Litter Cleanup – Join the Zoom kick-off call at 9am and then collect trash from around the Bancroft Point community to divert litter from the San Diego Bay watershed. Learn more or register.
-
May 15, 9am to 11am – San Diego River Days Community Cleanup – Join the Zoom kick-off call at 9am and then collect trash from various communities around the San Diego River watershed to prevent litter from reaching the Pacific Ocean. Sponsoring partners include the San Diego River Foundation and SDG&E. Learn more or register.
Ongoing – Solo Cleanups
Organized by Surfrider San Diego, participate in safe, physically distant ‘solo’ cleanups on your own – at the beach, in your neighborhood, at your local park – or anywhere in your watershed. Learn more about solo cleanup guidelines, how to tally your trash cleanup activity, and how you can make a difference in preventing trash from reaching the beach in the first place.
WaterSmart Residential and Professional Landscape and Irrigation Online Programs
The San Diego County Water Authority’s WaterSmart program is providing free residential and professional landscaper webinars on landscape design and irrigation management during the month of May and throughout 2021. These classes are sponsored in part by Member Agencies and the County of San Diego.
-
May 5, 12pm to 2pm – Soil Properties, Issues and Water Interaction – Focused on landscape operations and the landscape industry, this webinar provides information on how water and soils interact to help guide efficient irrigation. Topics include understanding soil properties, plant water needs, and evapotranspiration. Learn more or register.
-
May 12, 5:30pm to 8:30pm – Design: Shape Your Space – Learn how to integrate your landscape into your personal lifestyle. Learn more or register.
-
May 26, 5:30pm to 8:30pm – Plants: Inspiring Choices for Our Region – Learn about which plants to use in designing a low-water-use landscape and why some are more water-efficient than others. Learn more or register.
WaterSmart Landscape Contest Entries Due May 14, 2021 – Formerly known as the California-Friendly Landscape Contest, customers of participating water agencies are invited to enter this annual WaterSmart Landscape competition to create water-efficient landscapes and be recognized and rewarded for their work in water conservation and neighborhood beautification. See participating agencies, sign up, and learn more.
University of California (UC) Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Program – The UC IPM program is offering a variety of pest management and pesticide safety program webinars during the month of May.
-
Healthy Garden, Healthy Home Program: May 15, 10am to 11:30am – Controlling Ants in Your Home & Garden – Offered through the University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE), San Diego County. Learn how to improve our water resources through healthy gardening and proper pest control. Learn more or register.
-
Pest Management Program: May 20, 1pm to 2pm – Household Pests – Offered through the Urban & Community Statewide IPM program. Learn about pest identification, management, and using pesticides around the home and garden. Learn more or register.
-
Pesticide Safety Program: May 25, 3pm to 4pm – Organic Herbicides in Landscape (fee $40) – Learn about glyphosate alternatives and organic herbicides in landscapes. Featuring Guest Speaker, Karey Windbiel-Rojas (UC IPM). Learn more about the webinar series or register.
The Water Conservation Garden – May 26, 11am to 12pm – How to Hire a Landscaper – The Water Conservation Garden is offering a common-sense approach webinar to hiring a landscape professional, led by Pam Meisner, Director of Operations & Programs. Learn which questions to ask, how to properly plan, and receive money-saving tips too! Sponsored by the County of San Diego. Learn more or register.
Landscape and Water-Savings Webinars
A series of landscape and water-savings webinars are being offered throughout the month of May. Dates and times vary. Hosted in part by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. Several webinars are being offered in Mandarin this month. See calendar and learn more or register.
-
Lawn Care and Maintenance – Learn how to maintain your lawn as efficiently and organically as possible including managing the big three: weeds, pests, and diseases.
-
Turf: Remove, Replace or Maintain Organically – Learn how to design your yard using principles of watershed-wise landscaping including removing your lawn without chemicals, building healthy soil, and selecting climate-appropriate and water-wise plants.
-
Watershed Wise Landscaping – Learn the basics of watershed landscaping including building a healthy living soil sponge, capturing rainwater, selecting native plants, and controlling your irrigation.
-
Garden Design Workshop – Learn how to identify critical steps for successfully designing a watershed-wise landscape including developing a successful planting plan, developing a palette of climate-appropriate plants, and sizing/siting rainwater capture area.
-
California-Friendly Native Plant Webinar – Learn how to design a yard using the four principles of gorgeous and watershed-wise landscaping including building healthy soil, capturing rainfall, selecting native plants that minimize water use, and controlling irrigation.
-
Compost: Building the Soil Sponge – Get an introduction to the Soil Food Web and learn how to make your own compost and other amendments for your garden.
I Love A Clean San Diego (ILACSD) Waste Reduction Webinars – Learn how to reduce waste at your home and at your business during these May webinars.
-
May 1, 10am to 11am – Step Up Your Sustainability Webinar – Learn how to develop sustainable habits in niche areas of your life, namely pets, hobbies, and how to avoid greenwashing. Sponsored by the City of Encinitas. Learn more or sign up.
-
May 13, 5:30pm to 6:30pm – Cooking for Change: Zero Waste Cooking Demo with Kitchens for Good – Join ILACSD and Kitchens for Good for a zero-waste cooking demonstration and to learn about reducing food waste and getting creative in the kitchen. Sponsored by the Escondido Community Foundation. Learn more or register.
-
May 19, 3pm to 4pm – Green Business Solutions: Commercial Kitchen Food Waste Reduction – Part 1 of a two-part series. Learn tips and tricks for food waste reduction in commercial kitchens. Includes the importance of food waste reduction, environmental and economic benefits for your business, edible food recovery resources, and strategies to implementing lasting, sustainable practices. Sponsored by the City of San Diego. Learn more or register.
-
May 26, 3pm to 4pm– Green Business Solutions: Commercial Kitchen Food Scraps Recycling – Part 2 of a two-part series. Learn the importance of food scrap recycling in commercial kitchens including organic recycling regulations and how to meet requirements, and tools and strategies for successfully implementing a composting program through the City of San Diego’s Food Scraps Recycling Program. Sponsored by the City of San Diego. Learn more or register.
Solana Center for Environmental Innovation Waste Reduction Webinars/Training – A variety of residential and business waste reduction events are being offered during May. Partners include the County of San Diego Recycling and the Urban Corps.
-
May 5, 12, 19, 26, and June 2, 6:30pm to 8:00 pm -- Master Composter Training (fee $25) – A five-week Master Composter course is being offered via weekly webinars. Trainings will include a combination of Zoom meetings with instructors, dedicated Q&A time, independent study, and a virtual field-trip to observe a large-scale composting operation in action. Note, event is now full but you can get on a waiting list. Learn more or register.
-
May 19, 10am to 2pm (scheduled pickups) – Free E-Business Waste Pickup – Coastal North County Cities – A FREE e-waste pick-up service is being offered to businesses in coastal North County cities. Sign up by Friday, May 14th for the Wednesday, May 19th pick up. Learn more or register.
-
May 20 and 27, 4pm to 4:45pm – ‘Meet the Decomposers’ Family Composting Virtual Webinars – Learn about the composting process in this two-part family fun series.
-
May 20 – Crawl, Slither and Scurry Family Webinar (Part 1) – Find a new friend in your compost pile and discover how small creatures such as pill bugs, earwigs and worms can make a BIG difference. Learn more or register.
-
May 27 – Fun with Fungi Family Webinar (Part 2) - The mighty mushroom is delicious, beautiful, and an important player in the composting process. Learn what makes it so special! Learn more or register.
-
May 25, 2pm to 3pm, Backyard Chickens ‘Cluckinar’ – Learn about raising backyard chickens and how they can improve the quality of your soil, reduce waste, and help save you money. Learn more or register.
May 20, 11am to 12pm – Keep America Beautiful – Building Community Partnerships for a Zero-Waste Approach Webinar
Join Keep America Beautiful in their continuing series on ‘Exploring the Transition to Zero-Waste Communities.’ Hear from industry leaders, sustainability experts, and more. In May’s webinar, learn how municipalities are defining zero-waste, creating an inclusive process for building a city-wide consensus, identifying key elements of a zero-waste plan, and securing measurable gains. Learn more or register.
UC Davis Production Agricultural Water E-Learning Workshops – UC Davis is offering a three-part e-learning series on risks associated with production agricultural water, management best practices, treatment options, and updates on the Produce Safety Rule water testing requirements. Learn more or register.
-
May 6, 1pm to 3pm – E-Learning Session #1 (NOTE: POSPONED TO JUNE 17th, 10am to 12pm) – An update on agricultural water and the Produce Safety Rule.
-
May 13, 1pm to 2pm – E-Learning Session #2 – Assessing on-farm risks associated with pre-harvest agricultural water systems.
-
May 20, 1pm to 3pm – E-Learning Session #3 – An introduction to options for treating agricultural water.
UCCE San Diego’s 3rd annual Climate Action & Agriculture VIRTUAL Symposium – This year’s event, held over one week (1 ½ hours per day), will feature different topics covering current updates on climate activity and agricultural impacts and solutions. Participants include agricultural producers, policy makers, government agencies, researchers, educators, consultants, and other public and private agricultural service providers. Learn more or register.
- May 24 through May 27, 3pm to 4:30pm
|
