The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has classified dog waste as a dangerous pollutant in the same category as toxic chemicals and oil.

Contaminated water and beach closings can be caused by chemical pollution such as paints, solvents, and motor oils. Yet bacterial contamination from animal waste, failing septic systems and garbage also threaten waterways, beaches, wildlife and public health. Beach closings are actually most often triggered by bacterial contamination. While goose droppings are more difficult to control, pet waste is a preventable contamination that should be picked-up to help keep our surface water healthy.

Seasonal actions for water and soil health:

• Keep grass clippings off of paves surfaces. If mowing around a ditch, spray clippings away from the ditch.
• Pay attention to watering needs more than relying on assigned odd/even watering days. Your assigned day for watering doesn't automatically mean watering is necessary on that day. Turfgrass typically requires only 1"/week to survive. Summer dormancy is a normal part of grass' life cycle just as it goes dormant in the winter. 
• Check-in on irrigation systems. Be sure they're set to water 1"/week so that grass stays alive but reduces excessive watering. Accommodate for rainfall into the weekly count, and avoid irrigating when it's raining. 
• Fix errant sprinkler heads so that they're not spraying onto pavement. 

Looking ahead: 

• Adjust downspouts to drain onto a grassy area or to flow over grass before it reaches pavement. 
• Observe where stormwater runoff is traveling over pavement and visualize how this impacts winter maintenance. Redirecting downspouts, extending downspouts, or even channeling downspout connections beneath sidewalks can all reduce ice formation and winter maintenance chores. 

Cost-share spotlight meme - White Bear Montessori

Cost-share spotlight meme - Shoreline restoration

Cost-share spotlight meme - Family Raingarden

More info on the VLAWMO cost-share program: vlawmo.org/grants