Household Tips
Tips for home, sidewalk and driveway
Water that runs off your driveway and sidewalk usually runs down the gutter, through the familiar metal grating and into a storm drain. Storm drains are not sewers; the water they carry is not treated before being discharged into a lake, wetland, stream, or Puget Sound. Excess oil, gasoline or anything else you wash off your driveway or pour into a gutter or storm drain goes directly – untreated – into the natural water cycle.
Recycle your used motor oil and anti-freeze.
Take it to your local gas station or auto parts store. Don’t use draining receptacles with “absorbants” like sawdust or cat litter. Clean up spilled anti-freeze and don’t leave it sitting around open. It smells and tastes sweet to dogs and other animals and is highly toxic if swallowed. Call 1-800-RECYCLE for more information about recycling. And buy re-refined motor oil for your car.
… more information about recycling your motor oil
Fix oil leaks.
Check for oil leaks regularly and fix them promptly. Use ground cloths or drip pans under your car when you work on your engine. Clean up spills immediately.
Take care with paint, cleaners, and other chemicals.
Household cleaners, paints, thinners, and other household chemicals can harm streams when they are washed into storm drains and then into streams. Don’t wash brushes or painting equipment in the street or driveway. Dispose of paint, rinse water, and soapy water responsibly.
… more information about planning your painting projects carefully
… more information about safer cleaners
Sweep your walks and driveway.
Don’t use water for these cleaning chores. Rainstorms and garden hoses just wash the litter and dirt into the gutter and then into our streams.
Tune your car regularly.
Tuneups and anti-pollution devices not only help keep the air clean, they reduce the fallout from your exhaust that is picked up by runoff on streets and parking lots.
Keep suds out of the storm drains.
Use low phosphate soaps or cleaning/waxing compounds when you wash your car. Wash your car on the lawn (not the street) to take advantage of natural filtering. Or take your car to a commercial carwash, where washwater is treated or recycled.
Tips for lawn and garden
Pesticides and weedkillers create serious problems when they enter lakes, wetlands or streams. Some chemicals stay active for a long time and build up in the environment. Others kill desirable insects, animals and plants as well as pests. Fertilizers – chemical and organic – cause excess weed and algae growth when they enter water. This growth not only looks and smells bad, but depletes the water of oxygen and chokes out fish.
Encourage birds and “friendly” insects in your yard.
Attract birds by providing native trees and shrubs for food and cover throughout the year. Spiders, ladybugs, lacewings and mantises all eat pest insects. Learn to recognize and respect them. You can even buy these helpful insects and release them onto your land.
Care for your plants – and your soil.
Healthy soil means healthier plants that will need less pesticide, fertilizer, water and work. Locally adapted plants are more resistant to local pests and diseases. Regular weeding, row covers, crop rotation and mulching may eliminate the need for pesticides altogether. more information about compost and mulches
Consider scaling back on your lawn size.
For steep slopes, shady areas, or near streams and lakes, alternatives to grass will need less maintenance and fewer chemicals.
Don’t overspray chemicals.
Apply pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers sparingly and only as directed on the label. Use them only on windless days and never near lakes or streams or when rain threatens.
… more information about safe gardening & pest control
Water your treated garden or yard carefully.
Too much watering will wash off the chemicals and create excessive – and polluted – runoff. Water infrequently but deeply and slowly to moisten the entire root zone.
Dispose of lawn and garden chemicals carefully.
Follow instructions on the container. For information on recycling chemical yard wastes, call 1-800-RECYCLE or the Hazard Line at (206) 296-4692.
… more information about safe disposal of your household hazardous waste
Courtesy of http://www.metrokc.gov/exec/esa/sidewalk.htm