The good news is we can do a lot to prevent water pollution by making small changes in our everyday lives. The City of Spokane is committed to promoting behavior changes through increased public awareness of local water quality problems associated with stormwater runoff. We accomplish this by creating educational materials, forming partnerships, and conducting outreach events, among others.
There are simple things you can do to keep our waterways healthy while maintaining your yard and outdoor spaces. Check out the videos below for tips you can use in the Pacific Northwest region.
The purpose of the Elementary Stormwater Curriculum is to develop an understanding of the serious issues facing our community from stormwater runoff and to share specific actions we can take to improve the quality of our water. In this unit, students will be introduced to a problem-solving model where they think like an engineer and explore ways to solve the problem of polluted stormwater runoff. The lessons in this unit are specifically designed to meet classroom requirements of the Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards. Content about polluted stormwater runoff, engineering design, and literacy skills are integrated throughout the unit so that students can practice and apply the new standards with relevant content. This curriculum is free to anyone and can be modified as needed.
Investigating Polluted Stormwater Runoff in Secondary Grades is a three-week unit begins with students investigating the role of the stormwater engineer using online resources, responding to research questions, and writing an essay explaining the role and job description for a stormwater engineer
For more information on protecting the Spokane River and Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer, check out the City of Spokane's Water Wise web page. Receive stormwater stewardship and water conservation information regularly at the Water Wise Facebook and Water Wise Instagram social media channels.
We love to get out in the community and educate people about the operations of the City’s Stormwater system. We think it's really cool and important! If you have an event you would like us to attend, we would love to know about it. Please reach out to Education Coordinator Meghan Havko at mhavko@spokanecity.org.
Meghan Havko Education Coordinator mhavko@spokanecity.org
Anything other than stormwater that goes into a storm drain is an illicit discharge. If you see an illicit discharge report it at 509.625.7900
