4 Wise-Ways You Can Protect Our Waters This Spring

Flows To Bay recently held a “Water-Wise” photo contest to gather photographs of fantastic DIY water-related projects in San Mateo County (SMC). We received a lot of great submissions that highlighted a range of ways people in SMC are thinking about mitigating stormwater pollution and conserving our precious water resources. Check out some of these great home projects at the bottom of this blog!

Seeing these creative commitments to our local environment (from Bay to ocean) got us thinking about what it means to be “water-wise,” and how we can be inspired by what early adopters are already doing, and in some cases have been doing for many years. How many of us actually think about the “story of water” — where does it comes from, where does it go, and how do our behaviors affect water quality? Over the past month, we’ve learned that water-wisdom comes in all shapes and sizes. Read on to learn about how to become more water-wise at home this spring, and check out the great inspirational examples provided by SMC residents.

1) Succulent Heaven. Have you ever seen a golf course pond? Though these water basins may seem refreshing from a distance (or while out on the green), large artificially landscaped areas like this are not so water-wise. These ponds can be full of fertilizers which damage our waterways by creating algae blooms that starve the surrounding water of oxygen through a process known as eutrophication. They also require a lot of water use, which golf courses are notorious for.

Not to call out golf courses as the only offender of course! On the whole, they just happen to make a case in point. Yet, any yard that uses fertilizers has the potential to contribute to the destructive process of eutrophication, and lawns in particular (requiring enormous inputs of both fertilizer and water to stay lush) are a primary culprit. Choosing lawn grasses that are native to California is a good water-wise move because they require way fewer applications of fertilizers and pesticides than the non-native grass species you might find in a run-of-the-mill grass mix at the local hardware store. And as we’ve written about previously, pesticides are one of the top four big water pollutants in our County.

Feeling tired of your lawn and all the care it requires? If that’s the case you might want to scratch the grass altogether and consider a succulent garden. Not only are succulents pretty and quirky, but they are very hardy plants that can flourish in both the rainy and dry seasons. They grow quickly and even make great gifts! Take a succulent clipping, put it in a can with some dirt, and chances are it’ll start to root! If you need some help planning a succulent garden, you might want to attend one of BAWSCA’s many free workshops happening all the time. Note: not all succulents are supportive of local habitats, and many are non-native species that can become a nuisance when left uncontrolled. Consider a local variety of the Dudleya genus. Also known as “Rock Lettuce,” this fantastic native will thrive in your yard and coexist happily with its plant neighbors.

2. Harvest Season. Another way to be water-wise and decrease your water usage during the dry season is to install a water catchment system, like a rain barrel. SMC has a great rain barrel rebate available, and many people (including Ray from San Bruno!) have taken advantage of it. But even if you haven’t found the time to purchase a rain barrel at the hardware store and participate in the rebate program, when it comes to conserving water, sometimes the simplest solutions are the best for getting started. For example, Remy, a resident of Daly City, collects rainwater in recycled buckets to water his houseplants, and Sybille, of Menlo Park, collects excess water while her shower is heating up. That extra bucket of cold water that would otherwise be wasted becomes the perfect water resource for plants in the yard (during the dry season), or a great supplement for the cat’s water bowl. The possibilities!

3. Washwater Waste. While the bucket you’ve been using to clean paint brushes out back might not seem like a big deal, when taken together, small amounts of water pollution can have a large impact on our local waters and wildlife. So, when involved in any process outside that could generate polluted water when it rains (e.g. painting, surface cleaning/power-washing, hand-washing cars, applying pesticides or fertilizers, etc.) we have to be very careful about where that water ends up. Nothing other than rainwater should be going down the storm drain. The good news is that there are plenty of preventative, water-wise steps we can take to completely avoid these potential water-polluting scenarios in the first place.

The best thing we can do for the environment for most wash water is to collect and dispose of it in a toilet or another drain that’s connected to the sanitary sewer. If there’s no sewer connection available, dumping water in an area with gravel or grass will allow some natural filtering of the water to occur by plants and microorganisms before it rejoins the water table (this is especially useful for things like washing cars or pets at home). If you hire someone else to paint your home or work on your property, chances are they’re already familiar with best practices, but it never hurts to ask and you can always check out this list of contractors who have completed stormwater prevention trainings to find someone Bay-friendly! Remember: what gets into storm drains flows straight to local creeks, the ocean and the Bay without and treatment. Check out the County of San Mateo’s Household Hazardous Waste website for more information on proper disposal of potentially hazardous wastes.

4. Wanna go to the beach? Let’s face it, while there are many ways we can change our own behaviors to be more water-wise and to limit our personal contribution to water pollution in the future, our lands and waters are already feeling the impact, and so are we. Last year, four out of the 10 beaches listed on Heal the Bay’s “Beach Bummers” list for having the poorest water quality in California were located in SMC. Beach and shore cleanups are a great way to give back to the ocean we so often use, and there are lots of organizations like the Surfrider Foundation and Sea Huggers in and around San Mateo County that regularly host cleanup events. Even if you don’t have time to attend an official cleanup, taking a spare paper bag to the beach (or even around your neighborhood) and picking up a few pieces of trash is always a good call. Who knows, you might just be the domino that leads to an impromptu cleanup event!

While this blog only details a few ways that you can help curb ocean and Bay pollution this spring, as you can see, being water-wise is not a one-size-fits-all kind of shoe. All it really takes to protect the beautiful ecosystems we have in SMC is a little bit of care and a community to help you along the way.

Have you, or anyone you know, done something that we should be talking about? Please share! You can always reach out to us on Facebook, or email us at info@flowstobay.org.