Do Your Part

Doing Your Part (a.k.a. Project Ideas)

Do you dream of being named “Champion of the Environment” but you don’t know where to start? Then read on for some ideas.

The most successful projects are those that are homegrown. Think of the phrase “local solutions to local problems” and apply it to your school or community.

A Champions’ project can be a hands-on action project or an education campaign. If nothing comes to mind at the moment, look over some of the project ideas below. Choose one that looks interesting or one of significance to your school or group. Visit the suggested Web sites for more information. Feel free to do your own research too. You might even find a knowledgeable resource person right in your own backyard.

Seven steps to a successful project:

1. Identify a local environmental need or problem, or pick an environmental topic that interests you. (You could work to reduce erosion on school grounds, or tell people about the environmental damage done when used oil is dumped, or find out about local air quality and the factors that can affect it.)

2. Research your environmental topic.

3. Suggest a solution. This could be an action, a series of actions or an educational effort.

4. Create a plan to make your solution happen. Identify the resources necessary to make your plan happen.

5. Secure any necessary resources and carry out your plan. Be sure to educate others about the problem. Tell them how you plan to solve the problem, and what they can do to help. Involve the local media.

6. Evaluate what you accomplished. Did your plan work? Has the environmental issue you were dealing with been solved or improved? Is work needed to sustain the accomplishment? Are there other projects that can be carried out in the future?

7. Reward yourself for a job well done.

Don’t be shy about asking local experts for help with ideas and project assistance. Call on garden clubs, community recreation centers, Clemson Extension Service, your local Soil and Water Conservation office, and others.

DHEC Environmental Outreach staff may be able to give you information useful to your project. Look at the EQC Outreach page to find out what is going on through DHEC’s environmental outreach.

If you develop a project that teaches healthy habits or promotes healthy life style choices, check out DHEC’s All Health Team.

Environmental project ideas:

Storm drain marking

Water efficiency/conservation campaign

Rain Gardens

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Storm Drain Marking :

storm stenciling Storm drain marking is labeling a storm drain inlet with a pre-printed marker, tile, sticker, or stencil that reads “Dump No Waste - Drains to River”, "Drains to Stream”, or a similar written message that specifies the waterbody to which the storm drain inlet drains.

 

 

 

 

stormdrain stencling Storm drain marking addresses the issue of runoff pollution. Rainwater washes soil, street litter, oil, leaves, grass clippings, pet wastes, and fertilizers into storm drains. Uninformed people also dump various liquid wastes into storm drains too. Material flowing into a storm drain does not get treated before emptying into streams, rivers, and lakes. This untreated material can pollute the waterways in your community. Although individual storm drains may contribute small amounts of pollutants, the combination of many storm drains can cause a negative impact on water quality.

There are a lot of resources available on the Internet about “how to” mark storm drains. A very thorough manual titled, Storm Drain Marking Manual, is available from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

On the Internet, the phrase storm drain stenciling will return the most information, but you can also search for storm drain marking and storm drain tagging.

Planning

Don’t forget that sharing the message about storm drain marking is essential to reducing the pollutants that are carried into storm drains; fliers and door hangers are a great way to do this.

Mylar stencils can last for 20 to 100 applications (be sure to clean the paint off when finished). You may also choose to contact a local sign shop and see what they can create. Stenciled messages wear off over time and need to be redone, usually within three to five years. Drain markers, tiles and metal signs are glued down with adhesive and remain in place for up to ten years.

Some vendors of storm drain marking products:

Storm drain stencils

Storm drain markers

Information on the products referenced here is not intended as an endorsement by SCDHEC. The user is ultimately responsible for determining the suitability of the products. Additional vendors and sources of information pertaining to storm drain marking may also be available through other sources.

Water efficiency/conservation campaign :

Water efficiency and conservation should be a part of our everyday lives. The growing global population is putting a strain on the supply of clean water. Even in the US there are places where water is used at a greater rate than it is replenished by rainfall. In addition, some communities lack the resources to provide large quantities of clean drinking water. As a result water may be scarce and conservation is crucial. Even in communities where water is plentiful there are many good reasons to conserve water:

 

Teach others about the benefits of reducing water use both inside and outside homes and businesses. Water use can be reduced by both physical methods such as changing faucets or through behavior changes – turning off the faucet while brushing one’s teeth.

To get students ready for a water conservation campaign have them research how water is used in your community, state or region of the country and where their drinking water comes from. Also have them estimate how much water they use each day. (You can also think about how much more is used to create the products we use each day, clothes, furniture, food, etc.) Then have them brainstorm or research ways to conserve water.

Create a public information campaign about water conservation using posters, brochures or public service announcements. Students could focus on conserving water around their home and school. Or, they could encourage water efficient gardening, such as using native and drought tolerant plants when landscaping, using efficient watering methods (drip irrigation, automatic waterers with rain sensors,) or using rain barrels. (Maybe they could raise money to buy a rain barrel for use at the school or to raffle off for home garden use.)

There is a lot of information about water conservation on the Web. Search water conservation tips or water efficiency tips.

Here are a few sites to get you started with water and water conservation:

For general water topics and water issues

Install a rain garden

rain gardenThe Rain Gardens of West Michigan Web site explains, “A rain garden is constructed as a place to direct the rain from your roof or driveway, and is landscaped with perennial plant species native to our region. Rain gardens have loose, absorbent soils; a shallow, bowl-shaped ponding area; and are made to resemble the function of a natural meadow or light forest ecosystem.”

A rain garden is a natural way for you to help solve our stormwater pollution problems, help recharge groundwater, and protect our water resources. A rain garden keeps rain on your property, where it naturally belongs. By creating a rain garden, you can help improve water quality in local streams, rivers, and lakes. You can use rain the way nature intended, instead of throwing this resource away.

In addition, rain gardens are attractive landscaping features. They use native species of plants that are adapted to our region, and can be low maintenance while providing habitat for native wildlife and butterflies.

oil in parking lotWhy do we need rain gardens? Studies by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have determined that up to 70% of the pollution in our creeks, lakes, rivers and streams is carried there by stormwater runoff. Some studies show that about 50% of such pollution comes from individuals and homeowners, due to yard care, yard waste, and chemical pollution from household activities. Rain gardens are a sustainable landscape practice that reduces the pollution that runs off our yards and lawns.

Creating a rain garden involves many disciplines, math, horticulture, ecology and biology. In the process of planning, designing and implementing a rain garden, students calculate impervious area, and how large their garden should be to offset the impervious area, learn about soil types, select the type of plants to use, determine where plants should be placed, learn about plant and animal interactions, and learn about improving water quality. After students go through rain garden development at school, it is a great project for them to carry out at home too.

An Internet search for rain garden or rain gardens for schools will bring a lot of information. Searching for images with these same terms will show many examples of rain gardens for you to see.

You might also want to check out:

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