Do Your Part ~ Prevent Runoff

Irvine Ranch Water District is committed to protecting the environment. One element of this focus is treating urban runoff. In 1997, the District implemented a treatment program, partnering with nature by creating wetlands that use organisms, plants and soil to naturally remove bacteria, nitrogen and phosphorus from water.

 “Building on our tradition of using water efficiently, IRWD is committed to protecting water resources,” said Fiona Sanchez, Natural Treatment System Program Manager. “Our innovative NTS program has set a new standard for taking environmental stewardship to the next level.”

The wetlands at the San Joaquin Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary in Irvine use this natural treatment process to handle urban runoff from San Diego Creek. Plants and soils in the manmade ponds take about seven to 10 days to remove nitrates and other pollutants and deliver cleaner water back into the creek before it makes its way through Upper Newport Bay to the ocean.

This cost-effective and environmentally sound way of treating urban runoff is well respected by water treatment experts and other water districts, and has grown into the IRWD Natural Treatment System program.

Over watering your lawn or a broken sprinkler on your property contributes to ocean pollution.This excess water that carries pollutants into storm drains, and then to the ocean is called urban runoff, and is an environmental problem for any communities. You can help by being mindful of your water use so this wasted water doesn’t flow to the curb and take trash, fertilizers, pet waste and other pollutants into storm drains and into San Diego Creek, eventually ending up in ecologically sensitive Upper Newport Bay and the ocean. Making simple changes, like using “smart” timers to water your lawn, adjusting your watering schedule, installing high quality sprinkler heads or planting water smart landscapes can really make a big difference.

For more than ten years, the San Joaquin Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary continues to demonstrate that nature can successfully clean urban runoff. IRWD has used this smart concept to create the Natural Treatment System (NTS), which is a series of smaller wetlands that are being constructed throughout the San Diego Creek Watershed in Orange County. IRWD is working with local partners to develop wetlands so that runoff will travel through one or more basins for incremental cleaning before reaching the San Joaquin Marsh for final polishing.

The NTS works much like the San Joaquin Marsh, only using smaller man-made wetlands placed strategically throughout the watershed. Low-flow natural and urban runoff, as well as smaller storm flows, will be diverted into man-made wetlands. These naturally treat and remove pollutants, helping to prevent them from reaching the Upper Newport Bay.

Now that you know what urban runoff is, you can make good use of these helpful resources:

Visit IRWD’s “Community Programs” web pages for event, education and workshop information. Download a map and explore the IRWD San Joaquin Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary.
Learn more about the Sea & Sage Audubon Society.
Become the neighborhood expert on urban runoff.

IRWD is committed to preventing urban runoff. Our numerous community programs, including landscape workshops, resident tours, community education events and programs for children demonstrate IRWD’s desire to educate customers on the need to improve landscape irrigation efficiency.

For more information, please visit our website.

Contact: Shannon Reed, Public Affairs Manager
reeds@irwd.com, (949) 453-5500

YouTube videos highlight native plants for maximum water savings

In an effort to educate customers on the benefits of a California Friendly landscape, the Irvine Ranch Water District debuted its California Friendly Plant video series on its exclusive YouTube Channel. May featured the purple blossom shrub, Pride of Madeira, and June highlights Island Alumroot, a two foot perennial with small pink-toned flowers. 

“During the recent series of Resident Tours, we polled our customers and learned that they regularly use YouTube,” said Nick Mrvos, Landscape Conservation Specialist. “Our goal is to educate our customers in ways that are convenient and meaningful to them.  Showing beautiful, low water use plants in videos can help make learning fun.”

California Friendly plants, or California natives, are an essential component of water conservation. Watering landscape accounts for nearly 50% of total water usage by an average household. By reducing turf and planting California natives, residents can decrease water usage and lawn maintenance chores.

For more information on the benefits of California Friendly plants, residents can view IRWD’s “The Importance of California Friendly Plants” video or visit our website.

Students Demonstrate Water Conservation Knowledge Through Art

Twelve students from the Irvine Ranch Water District service area were honored in a poster/slogan contest sponsored by Municipal Water District of Orange County May 25. The IRWD winners broke a record for the number honored, surpassing last year’s number of seven winners. One of the students was a grand prize winner for her grade level.

“We are proud that four of our students’ posters were chosen and eight of them won for their slogans,” said Shannon Reed, IRWD Public Affairs Manager. “ When children show they understand the importance of conserving water, it demonstrates the effectiveness of the water conservation education program.”

 IRWD participates in the MWDOC contest every year and in a poster contest sponsored by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. IRWD service area students receive recognition annually.

Winners in the poster category were:

• Isabel Lee, fifth grade, Santiago Hills Elementary School
• Iris Lee, second grade, Canyon View Elementary School, Grand Prize winner of two annual passes to Disneyland
• Miso Ko, fourth grade, Bonita Canyon Elementary School

Students and their winning slogans were:

• Jenny Kaplan, fifth grade, Santiago Hills Elementary School, “Save drops one by one, save it up and you’ll save a ton.”
• Matthew Squires, fifth grade, Santiago Hills Elementary School, “Save the water by the drop, we don’t want the world to stop.”
• James Traynham, fifth grade, Santiago Hills Elementary School, “You know it’s right, to keep that faucet tight.”
• Claire O’Connor, fifth grade, Santiago Hills Elementary School, “Hurry, Hurry, fix that leak, wasting water makes our planet weak.”
• Mary Gibson, fifth grade, Santiago Hills Elementary School, “Once you save a drop, you won’t want to stop.”
• Alexis Daneshi, fifth grade, Santiago Hills Elementary School, “Water, water, we almost lost it, so fix up that leaky faucet.”
• Samantha Chen, Santiago Hills Elementary School, “Let me give you a tip, let’s save drip by drip!”
• Tori Shute, fifth grade, Santiago Hills Elementary School, “Save water day by day to help every one in every way.

For more about IRWD education programs, please visit our website.

Irvine Ranch Water District Partners with Discovery Science Center for Hands-On Science Programs

On May 18, 70 sixth grade students from Stonecreek School climbed out of the school bus that pulled up to the Irvine Ranch Water District San Joaquin Marsh. They were enjoying a water quality field trip to the Marsh – the culmination of the four-week, hands-on water education workshop for middle school students.

“Ecology is a big part of the curriculum at this grade level,” said Irvine Unified School District science specialist Patty Schmidt. “These presentations are great – it helps the students become more aware of their surroundings.”

IRWD partners with the Discovery Science Center to bring water science education to students in kindergarten through eighth grade throughout the IRWD service area. Programs include assembly style water education presentations to students in kindergarten through sixth grade and a four-week water quality program for middle school students.

The morning of the Stonecreek presentation, Discovery Science Center teachers Zana Bryant and Maria Torres were ready for the students’ arrival. Water testing kits and goggles were placed at each table in the Discovery Room of the Learning Center.

Students took their places and Michele Drzymkowski of the IRWD Water Quality Department provided a laboratory demonstration highlighting how wastewater is converted into recycled water for use in the community. She was quick to point out that this is water that has gone down the drain and will not be used for drinking. The students were most excited when Drzymkowski allowed them a peek through the microscope at the organisms that help clean up wastewater. A drop of the “activated sludge” containing the microbes was placed on a slide, and then the image projected and enlarged on a screen for all to see. Many “Ooohs” and “Ahhhs” were heard when an organism such as a multi-celled rotifer or stalk ciliate came into view.

Students then watched a virtual tour video of the Michelson Water Recycling Plant, outlining the steps in turning wastewater into recycled water.

Following the lab presentation and video, students took a tour of the marsh and participated in chemical water quality tests of water from the San Diego Creek both before it is treated in the marsh ponds and after.

The Stonecreek field trip of 70 students was an average-sized group. On other days, the Discovery Science Center instructors might have an entire school taking a field trip – as in the case recently of Sierra Vista Middle School when 560 students visited the marsh over three days.

“It’s nice to have the students come out to this setting,” said eighth grade science teacher J.P. Mathot. “The lab demonstration and the walking tour of the marsh is a different experience for them.”

IRWD began its partnership with the Discovery Science Center in 2008. Each year, the program has grown to include many more schools, with a record 10,000 students served during the 2010-11 school year.

For more information about IRWD educational opportunities, the San Joaquin Marsh and the Natural Treatment System, please visit our website.