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What You Can Do

Protecting our water starts with me and you.

Lawn Strip

Healthy Lawn, Healthy Lake

A healthy lawn can improve water quality by filtering, purifying and reducing stormwater runoff

Gentle Stream

Our Home, Our Stormwater

Your stormwater may become someone’s drinking water, or possibly your own. Reducing the quantity and improving the quality of stormwater runoff can begin at your home.

Fall Foliage

Managing Leaves

What should you do with all of those leaves in the fall? Here are some tips to manage them.

gardening tools

Plant a Rain Garden

Rain gardens are designed to allow stormwater running off hard surfaces to infiltrate into the soil. There are many benefits and a few patterns to observe in their construction.

Washing the Car

Wash Your Car Safely

Washing grime off the car may be causing harm to local waterways. Water that runs off your car may contain detergents, residue from exhaust fumes, gasoline, metals from rust and brakes, oils, tar, salts and soil.

Wet Dog

Pick-Up Pet Waste

A single gram of dog feces contains an average of 23 million fecal coliform bacteria, including E-coli.

Wet grass

Lawn Fertilizer, Look for the 0

Successful lawn fertilization requires that you assess the lawn's nutritional requirements, understand fertilizers, know how much to apply, and use proper application techniques.

Dump

Managing Household Waste

Minimize and manage your household waste to protect our waterways. Hazardous waste needs to be disposed of safely and properly. For upcoming events in Ontario County, go to: ontariocountyrecycles.org/150/Events

Swimming Pool

How to Empty Your Pool/Spa

As beneficial as chlorine can be in controlled situations, its release into the environment is damaging. Even small concentrations of chlorine can harm aquatic life.

Brown Insect

Pesticide Safety

Using pesticides safely and properly is essential to protect public safety and organisms.

Domestic Waste Bin

Composting

Turn your fruit, vegetable and yard waste into a dark, crumbly, sweet-smelling soil gold for your gardens.

Restaurant

Food Service Facts

Learn more about the key role restaurants play in keeping our water clean.

Aerial view of house roofs in suburban n

Living Near a Stormwater Pond

Stormwater ponds, while providing stormwater management and protection of water quality downstream, also create vistas and recreational opportunities.

Dirt Construction Site

Moving Dirt? 

Moving dirt or building something? Click here to learn more about stormwater construction permit regulations.

Bridge over a River

Illicit Discharge Detection & Elimination (IDDE)

An illicit discharge can contaminate our drinking water, endanger public health, and pollute our surface water, groundwater and soils.

Polluted Stream

Stormwater Pollution Prevention

As stormwater flows over the land it can become contaminated by debris, chemicals, dirt and other pollutants.

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