Ohio

RAIN BARREL IMPLEMENTATION

2015, CINCINNATI, OH, UNITED STATES
RAIN BARREL IMPLEMENTATION
Every year, the lower Mill Creek overflows by several billion gallons due to trash, oil, debris, and other harmful substances, resulting in the Metropolitan Sewer District to require a solution. Aleeyah Nurredin of Mount Notre Dame High School heard about the push to reduce overflow by two billion gallons by the end of 2016, and thought of a potential solution in rain barrels. The barrels would be transported around Cincinnati schools for competitions in rain barrel design, ultimately going home to collect water in the neighborhoods to benefit the community.

Since Stormwater can be used to water plants, collection in rain barrels would divert from the Mill Creek and prevent overflow. Aleeyah held an event in Amberley Village where individuals could collect their own rain barrel. Then, a competition was held where younger children could decorate their barrel to demonstrate their love for the environment. By raising awareness and promoting the reuse of storm water, Amberley Village is on the track to continue to improve the wellbeing of the Mill Creek!

Farming for the Future

2014, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Farming for the Future

Within the Ohio River watershed, there are many subunits, including the Little Miami River watershed. The main focus of Nathaniel Polley and Chloe Halsted from Wyoming High School fell in Clinton County, as agricultural development contributes greatly to runoff in the Little Miami watershed. The ability to curtail this runoff would serve as a vital step to maintaining the health of the Ohio River.

After speaking with several local farmers, Nathaniel and Chloe discussed the techniques already being utilized with a proven record of success on farmsteads. Among these, and the easiest to implement, is the process of planting cover crops whose sole purpose is to conserve and improve the soil, thus providing a win-win situation for both the environment and the economic interests of the farmers. Cover crops need only a quarter of each acre on a given plot of farmland, yet they are instrumental in preventing erosion.

They needed to isolate which farms contribute the most runoff to the Little Miami watershed before strategizing where to plant cover crops. Overall, decreasing runoff and soil erosion via cover crops and waterways would ensure the stability of freshwater ecosystems and provide safer supplies of fish for human consumption. The initial money contributed to the activation of their phases I and II, which involved the funding for pinpointing sources of pollution alongside the purchase of cover crops. Moving forward, it is the hope that there could be governmental funding to allow farms to continue to improve and reduce the runoff going into the watershed.

The Dusty Old Trail

2014, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

The campus of Withrow High School is very large and open with a variety of areas that water can flow. At the bottom of each hill on campus, there are sewer drains, contributing directly to the problem of combined sewage overflow. Since the water is running straight into the drain and not being captured by plants or rain barrels, the sewage systems are flooded whenever there is intense rain. Dontaz Hadden and DeAaron Duskin noticed that near their school’s football field there was a dry dirt trail that results in an overflow of the drain and a large puddle when it rains. The water does not soak into the hillside along the fence since the hill is made of impervious clay.

To combat this runoff, Dontaz and DeAaron planted native grasses along the hill. The clay was dug up and replaced with healthy soil and compost, gravel was placed to serve as a walkway, and plants were planted. The Dusty Old Trail was replaced with a lively new one, bringing a breath of fresh air to Withrow’s campus.

Dusty Trail

Thermal Pollution

2014 Wyoming, Ohio, USA

The Mill Creek is in the southwest corner of Ohio and empties into the Ohio River. It flows 28.4 miles through three different counties and about half a million people live within the watershed. It is mainly urban and industrial with some forested and agricultural lands located in the northern section. The Mill Creek also has many CSOs (combined sewer overflows) and SSOs (sanitary sewer overflows).

Thermal pollution is a problem in many of our urban streams, especially in the Mill Creek, that often flies under the radar. While thermal pollution doesn’t involve dumping massive amounts of chemicals into the rivers or many other signs that people generally associate with pollution, the heating and cooling of natural waterways (whether directly or indirectly caused by people) can have a bigger effect on wildlife ecosystems than people think.

Benny and Isabelle felt that they could do their part to reduce thermal pollution when it happens in a localized setting, such as when water temperature of creeks and streams rises due to lack of shading and foliage. Their solution was to plant trees along the banks of the North Branch of the Mill Creek. They felt it was an easy solution to tackle the problem of thermal pollution in local streams.

Benny and Isabelle put their project into action on May 10th, 2014. They had an excellent group of volunteers of both students and community members come out and help. Together they planted about 600 trees in about 3 hours. The areas where they planted were alongside a local stretch of the North Brach of the Mill Creek that was in need of restoration. It was a great time to be social and meet new people while helping out their watershed. Over all, they thought this was a very fun and education experience for them and they were honored to be offered such a wonderful opportunity.

Thermal Pollution

International Rain Barrel Giveaway

image1-2 Rain barrels are designed to collect water, but one distinctive rain barrel designed by students at Daysland School in central Alberta is garnering just as much attention as it is water.

Butterflies, toads, dragonflies and other flora and fauna help depict a healthy watershed on a rain barrel designed by 20 students from grades five to 12 at Daysland School. It also helped the classroom win $1,000 through an international rain barrel giveaway and art contest sponsored by Nutrien’s Caring for our Watersheds (“CFW”) program.

A Raingarden for I-75 Runoff

2013 Arlington Heights, Ohio, USA
Rain Garden Run Off
A group of three students (Julia Love, Janae McClair and Sanoma Capps) who attend Arlington heights Academy submitted a proposal called “A Rain Garden for I-75 Runoff” to Nutrien’s Caring for our Watersheds contest during the first Ohio competition in 2011-2012. They came in first place!

After the final competition, they met with Wes Duran from Marvin’s Organic Gardens in the fall of 2012 to design and plan implementation of their rain garden. Students worked on determining the plant types, plant numbers and design layout. They also worked on the budget and set a date to start planting. Their budget was $2,00 with one half coming from Nutrien’s grant the students won and the other half a matching grant from Groundwork Cincinnati – Mill Creek, a local non-profit group dedicated to the restoration of the Mill Creek. The date they chose to plant the garden was March 21st, 2013.

Before the studetn’s knew it, it was March and time to plant. It didn’t take long to complete the project that they had been anxiously waiting for; to have their proposal become a reality. With the help of their classmates and the support from their community, the rain garden was completed!

This is a perfect example of how one idea can truly make a difference through hard work and determination. Though the work is done and students will graduate and move on, the teachers and community will continue to care for the rain garden. For instance, they will be responsible for watering the rain garden in the summer and make sure the plants are thriving. Any dead plants will be replaced to maintain the design and function of the garden.

We even have a video of our planting!