Clean Water Starts With You!

SCHOOLS

Help Lincoln’s youngest residents understand the significance of stormwater pollution and how they can protect the local creeks and ravines! Stormwater-friendly yard care practices, responsible pet care, and auto care are all ways individuals can help reduce stormwater pollution. Even very young children will understand why it’s important to pick up pet waste, conserve water, and never dump anything into the storm drains.

Stormwater Concepts For Teachers & Parents:

  • The water that we use today may have fallen as rain last week, but they are the same water molecules that the dinosaurs drank! Water re-circulates through a process called the water cycle: evaporation and transpiration; condensation; precipitation; collection; infiltration.
  • Groundwater and surface water are connected as one system.
  • Water is important to all living things.

  • Stormwater: Water that results from precipitation and which occurs immediately following rainfall; surface water from rain that does not seep into the ground.
  • Stormwater runoff: Rainwater that runs off the land (usually paved or compacted surfaces) and often flows into storm drains, ditches, streams, and waterways.

  • Stormwater runoff is not natural. When it rains in a forest or field, some of that rain evaporates, and much of it is absorbed into the ground, where it is used by plants or replenishes groundwater.
  • In developed places with houses and roads, rain falls on pavement and other impervious surfaces such as roofs, driveways, sidewalks, and parking lots that don’t allow the water to be absorbed by the ground. The water that you see flowing down the street is called stormwater runoff.
  • Optional for older kids: Address hydrologic impacts of increased flooding, reduced recharge to groundwater and stream base flow, and loss of natural pollutant removal processes in soil.

  • When stormwater hits the pavement, it picks up and mixes with what’s there. That might include: oil, grease and fuel from cars and other engines; fertilizer and pesticides used on lawns, gardens and in the home; bacteria from pet waste, horses, waterfowl and other animals; bacteria and nutrients from improperly maintained septic systems; sediment eroded from construction sites and farm fields; road sand and salt; soap from car washing; grass clippings and leaves; trash.
  • Optional – Older kids could address types of pollutants found in these sources: nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus); pathogens – bacteria and viruses; sediment; organic materials – biological oxygen demand; toxins; trash; temperature – thermal stress.

  • Stormwater picks up and mixes with whatever pollutants are on the pavement, then transports it to the storm drain system. Storm drains rush all this water directly to the nearest stream, creek, or river without treatment, so the pollutants end up in the water we drink, fish, and swim in.
  • Storm drains are not the same as sanitary sewers or combined sewers. They do not treat or clean the stormwater.

New Activity Sheet

Complete the activity sheet in English or Spanish to see how YOUR FAMILY can keep our waterways safe and clean!

Lincoln Stormwater School Activity Sheet in Spanish
Lincoln Stormwater School Activity Sheet in Spanish

Resources For Teachers:

Videos:

The Water Cycle,
The Dr. Binocs Show

The Scoop on Stormwater
(Environmental Protection Agency)

What is a Watershed
(LA Stormwater Program)

Stormwater Pollution & Green
Infrastructure Solutions (Nassau County)

Freddy the Fish
Teaches About Stormwater

Freddy the Fish Teaches
About Water Pollution