I was on a call with a friend the other day. She just happened to mention how she has been spraying newly developing weeds growing in the cracks of her walkway with the widely popular vinegar, dish detergent and salt recipe. Wonderful that she was getting a jump start on the young weeds, since the best time to manage them is when they are newly sprouted. However, unfortunately, this internet recipe that has been trending does more harm than good.

Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate the sincere intentions to reduce pesticides, but this recipe is a huge concern and very much misunderstood.  Here’s the deal:

1. Dish detergents are not true soaps. The only true soap on the market is castile soap, under the brand name of Dr Bronner’s and the Whole Foods 365 brand. I’m sure there are a few more, but not always easy to find. Unlike true soap, dish detergents contain many harmful additives, such as:
   • Methylisothiazolinone: is highly corrosive and found to be toxic when ingested or inhaled, it also causes skin irritation/allergies/damage, and causes acute aquatic toxicity
   • 1,4-Dioxane: is listed as a likely human carcinogen, and a groundwater contaminant
   • Ethanolamine: is listed as harmful if swallowed, including respiratory effects, general systemic/organ effects, chronic aquatic toxicity, nervous system effects, skin irritation/allergies/damage.
   • Triclosan: is listed as causing developmental/endocrine/reproductive effects, cancer, immune system effects, circulatory system effects, nervous system effects, skin irritation/allergies/damage, digestive system effects, and having acute aquatic toxicity

And that’s not all, many have words like ‘natural’ on the label but have added scent and coloring that are chemicals showing health concerns. So, when we use these types of dish detergents as an additive in our D.I.Y. weed killer or aphid spray, we are doing more harm than good, contaminating our soils, our plants, and even ourselves.

3. Salt is bad news for your garden! Salt in the soil absorbs water, reducing the plants ability to take up water, increasing root dehydration. You might think this is exactly what those weeds need! However, keep in mind that if you ever want to plant in that soil, you may see your plants struggle, even die because of this salt build up. Let’s look back at our history books, remember how the Romans, and other invading armies, would burn a village down, then salt their fields to prevent them from growing crops again? Avoid adding salt to your soil if you want to grow lovely plants (this includes using synthetic fertilizers, which are very high in salts. Feed your plants organic fertilizers for optimum health).
4. Vinegar, here’s the deal: Household vinegar is diluted to about 5% acetic acid vs horticultural vinegar which is around 20% acetic acid, which is pretty strong. Understand that 11% acetic acid can burn skin and cause eye damage, while concentrations of 20% or higher can cause blindness and are corrosive to metals. This is no joke! Something else to understand is when vinegar is used as a weed killer/herbicide, it is working as a ‘top kill herbicide’, killing the top ‘leafy’ portion of the plant tissue. This is why when using many of the eco-herbicides that are sold on the market, is it is best apply when the weeds have just sprouted so that the root will not be able to recover and sprout new growth.

So, what is the best way to kill weeds? Hand pulling weeds, using weeding tools, and sheet mulching (layers of overlapping carboard with 3” of mulch on top) can’t be beat for best ways to manage weeds. However, if you are still wanting to use a D.I.Y. method then I’ll share a little trick, you can kill many weeds with boiling water! That’s right, boiling water! So, boil up a kettle of water, grab your oven mitt, use caution to not burn yourself and douse those weeds. Just like the D.I.Y. recipe, you will most likely need to repeat this as needed, but without the cost or the potential harm.

You can find helpful tips for controlling weeds in your garden at http://ourwaterourworld.org/Portals/0/Weeds_2-6-20_web.pdf.

Our Water, Our World helps residents manage their home and garden pests in a way that helps protect our watershed. The program provides information about Integrated Pest Management (IPM) to consumers in nurseries and hardware stores. Visit www.rrwatershed.org/project/our-water-our-world  for more information.

This article was authored by Suzanne Bontempo, Our Water Our World, on behalf of RRWA. RRWA is an association of local public agencies in the Russian River Watershed that have come together to coordinate regional programs for clean water, habitat restoration, and watershed enhancement.

 

Fertilizer is food for plants which need a variety of nutrients to grow and thrive. While we humans get our nutrients from different foods we eat, plants get most of their nutrients from the soil. Sometimes soils don’t have the nutrients necessary for plants to grow and thrive, so we apply chemical fertilizers and animal manure to our gardens and lawns to provide plants with the nitrogen and phosphorus they need. Fertilizer is typically added to the soil to help establish seeds or young plants and may be added to the soil throughout the life of the plant to help keep it healthy. But over-fertilizing can negatively affect aquatic ecosystems.

When nitrogen and phosphorus are not fully utilized by the growing plants, the excess nutrients are washed into our waterways during rain events resulting in nutrient pollution and causing excessive algae growth. Nutrient-rich runoff causes algae to grow faster than waterway ecosystems can handle, which can lead to Harmful Algae Blooms (HABs), such as the blue-green algae we see at Spring Lake Reservoir in Santa Rosa, in the Russian River, and in Salmon Creek Lagoon in Bodega Bay. Severe algal growth blocks light that is needed for native aquatic plants to grow. When the algae and aquatic plants die, they decay, which uses up oxygen in the water. Excessive oxygen depletion can lead to illness and death in fish and other aquatic animals. Some algal blooms are also harmful to humans because they produce elevated toxins and bacterial growth that can make people sick if they encounter polluted water or consume tainted fish or shellfish. Any type of fertilizer can cause algae blooms, whether it’s organic or inorganic, manure or bone meal, applied on a lawn, an agricultural field or a golf course, too much of it is harmful to our waterways.

This quick guide provides a visual comparison of appearance and color and odor that can be helpful in distinguishing non-toxic green algae and aquatic plants from potentially toxic cyanobacteria blooms or harmful algal blooms (HABs). https://mywaterquality.ca.gov/habs/what/visualguide_fs.pdf

Visit Sonoma County Environmental Health Website for more information:

• https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/Health/Environmental-Health/Water-Quality/News/Blue-Green-Algae-Caution-Signs-Posted-June-28-2020/
• https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/Health/Environmental-Health/Water-Quality/Blue-Green-Algae/

How to Be Fertilizer Savvy

What might not be obvious, is that the soil may already have enough nutrients for plants to be strong and healthy. New lawns or areas with very poor soils might lack nutrients, but most established lawns need very little fertilizer. If you do need to fertilize your lawn and/or garden, there are easy actions you can take to minimize the impacts on our waterways:

• Make sure to only use the type and amount of fertilizer your lawn and plants need. A soil test can help. Visit http://www.rrwatershed.org/resource-library/ for a list of local soil and compost testing laboratories.
• Take the time to properly apply lawn fertilizer. Be sure the spreader being used is designed for lawn fertilizer application and that it is calibrated for the type of fertilizer being used.
• Avoid applying fertilizer between late autumn and late winter. Lawns and other plants are unable to use nutrients once they go dormant for the season.
• Ask questions if a lawn care company applies fertilizer to your lawn. Most universities recommend 3 to 4 fertilizer applications during the growing season, while some lawn care companies will make 6 to 7 applications during the growing season.
• Of course, there is another option: Don’t fertilize at all. You can have a healthy lawn by opting not to fertilize. By leaving lawn clippings on the lawn to decompose, valuable nutrients are returned to the soil. Mowing at a taller height (3-3.5 inches) can also reduce pest problems, such as weeds, insects, and diseases.
• Encourage year-round ground cover. Plant perennial species to minimize bare ground in your yard during winter and spring when soil (and the nutrients it contains) is most susceptible to erosion and loss into waterways.
• Never overwater. Overwatering a yard is a common practice among homeowners and landscaping services and can lead to fertilizer being washed away more easily.

What Else Can We Do?

Residential areas can be a significant source of excess nutrient pollution. In addition to yards and gardens, our appliances and even pets contribute to nutrient pollution. Roadside storm drains lead directly to local streams and rivers, so anything that flows into them makes it to local waterways without treatment.

• Dispose of pet waste properly by putting it in the trash can. Pet waste contributes nitrogen, phosphorus, parasites and bacteria to water bodies when it is not disposed of properly. For more information, visit rrwatershed.org/we-need-you-to-pick-up-the-poo .
• If you have unwanted fertilizers, dispose of them through your local Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Programs offered by Zero Waste Sonoma and MendoRecycle.
• Choose phosphate-free detergents, soaps, and household cleaners. Many laundry, dish and car washing soaps contain phosphates, which are carried from our homes into the water system through our drains.
• Select the proper load size for your washing machine, and only run your dish washer when you have a full load. It’s important to use the appropriate amount of detergent; more is not better.
• If you have a septic system, inspect it annually and maintain it as recommended.
• If you see wastewater surfacing from a septic or sewer system, repair or report it to the appropriate authorities as soon as possible.
• Visit Russian River Watershed Association’s Russian River Friendly Landscape Program Guidelines at rrwatershed.org/project/rrflg.
• Visit Our Water Our World for other important information and helpful tips on how to keep our creeks and river clean at http://ourwaterourworld.com/Quick-Links/Caring-For-Our-Creeks

This article was authored by Vanessa Apodaca, of (West Yost Associates), on behalf of RRWA. RRWA is an association of local public agencies in the Russian River Watershed that have come together to coordinate regional programs for clean water, habitat restoration, and watershed enhancement.

 

It goes without saying that plants are some of the most beautiful and important organisms we have on our planet. As a child I was always interested in the world of plants. A world seemingly so familiar yet so estranged from common understanding. As kids we run barefoot and play on the soft grass, take refuge under the shade a tree provides amidst a hot California day, and take a deep breath of the fresh air the leaves so selflessly gift to us. All while the plants remain sessile, unassuming, and ask nothing of us. In grade school we are taught of the “important” things that plants provide in terms of food and materials to build our world. It was not until continuing my education in college that I began to fully grasp the ecosystem services plants truly offer to us. As we built our world through the power of plants, engineered our cities, pushed our civilization to the likes of which this world has never seen before, we find every alteration requires a new remediation. And as we look to science to provide the next breakthrough it is often plants, unassuming, and quietly taking matters into their own hands.

We built our cities and found ways to channel water, divert creeks, and move storm water out as fast as we can to provide a suitable place to develop upon. Rightly so, we do not want our homes and our businesses flooding year in and year out. And yet, with this approach we have willingly surrendered so many services nature often provides us. Cities developed an underground storm drain system, a network of pipes beneath our streets and homes solely dedicated to diverting storm water, as a way to compensate for the impervious concrete surfaces we cast upon the land. Without the natural uptake of rain through pervious soils storm water quickly runs into our gutters, into our storm drains, and into our creeks. Unsurprisingly, this increases the possibility of pollutants being conveyed from our City streets and into our waterways. Pathogens, for instance, have become a pollutant of concern in which our paved and engineered world has perpetuated from a water quality perspective. The Regional Water Quality Control Board has identified particular concerns associated with our urban developed world such as dog waste accumulation along pedestrian trails or back yard drains, accidental spills, potentially leaking septic tanks, illegal dumping in storm drains or waterways, and illicit discharges into street gutters. These sources can introduce pollutants of concern which may accumulate on impervious surfaces during dry weather months. During our first rains, rather than decompose and cycle into the soils, pathogens can flow into our storm drain system and directly into our creeks without any treatment. It is here, our wonderful riparian plants quietly grow and act as the last line of defense.

Riparian species such as sedges, rushes, cattails and so many others have the amazing ability to uptake organic and inorganic pollutants. As storm water contaminated with pathogens passes through riparian species, the porous membrane called xylem tissue uptakes water from its roots to its shoots, acting as a filtration system which studies have shown can effectively filter bacteria such as E. Coli and Enterococcus up to 90%. As a function of species composition, species density, and water surface contact time, pathogen intake from riparian species can efficiently and cost effectively decrease pollutants in our waterways. Some species are more effective than others, and studies are constantly underway to find ways in best applying riparian species to constructed wetlands and waterways for the goal of pathogen intake. Here in Sonoma County we have basket sedge (Carex barbarae), nutsedge (Cyperus erogrostis), grey rush (Juncus patens), broadleaf cattails (Typha latifolia), smartweed (Polypogon hydropiperoides) just to name a few.

As the rains fall, our gutters flow, and our creek begin to rise, I implore you to think about our silent saviors growing at the toe of the bank.

• Find a local creek trail and observe what is growing in the channel.
• Educate yourself and others on the importance of our native riparian vegetation.
• Join a volunteer group and help with a restoration project along a creek.
• Go yourself and plant a native species along a creek bank. Work with your City or Town representatives to ensure plant species and creek bank location is appropriate.
• Get your kids involved, or your neighbors, or your friends.
• Take a look at the Streets to Creeks website (streetstocreeks.org) to learn about other ways you yourself can take steps in your daily life to reduce pollutants in storm water runoff.
• Perhaps look at installing a Low Impact Development (LID) feature in your home landscaping to capture runoff and naturally filter pollutants before they ever enter the City storm drain system.

Next time you find yourself along a creek, take a look at the plants along the water’s edge and send thanks to them for quietly doing their humble little job.

This article was authored by Aaron Nunez, Environmental Specialist, City of Santa Rosa, on behalf of RRWA. RRWA is an association of local public agencies in the Russian River Watershed that have come together to coordinate regional programs for clean water, habitat restoration, and watershed enhancement.

Have you ever awoken to a noisy sound on your street early in the morning and wondered what it was? If it was not your friendly Solid Waste truck collecting your garbage, it was probably your City’s Street Sweeper. Have you ever wondered why so many resources are spent to keep your streets clean, how they operate and why do they have to operate so early in the morning? Well if you have, here are a few answers.

A street sweeper’s main purpose is to prevent unwanted debris from entering the storm drain system and ultimately entering our streams, creeks and finally the Russian River. The street sweeper collects thousands, yes thousands of tons of loose material from our streets and gutters every year. This includes items that should be placed in a trash can, enormous amounts of leaves, rocks and dirt, nails and screws, oil from vehicles, tiny particles from brake pads, debris from auto accidents and lastly a lot of worn out asphalt. Without a street sweeper, this unwanted material will find its way into the storm drain system once the rainy season arrives which ultimately ends up in the receiving stream, creek and the Russian River. A tremendous amount of debris is kept out of our waterways by street sweepers.

A street sweeper essentially operates like a giant vacuum cleaner. Engines power the brooms which rotate while pulling debris from the gutter and street for easy removal by the vacuum unit. Another engine powers the giant vacuum which pulls all of the loose debris from its travel way. As the sweeping and vacuuming process takes place, water is applied to minimize the amount of dust created by the machine.

Street sweepers start their day early so they can maximize the amount of debris that can be collected. At this time of day, a majority of businesses are not open and the parking spaces for the patrons are unoccupied. This allows the street sweeper to clean the entire width of the street and not just the lanes where vehicles travel.

As a citizen and good neighbor, it is important for all of us to do our part to make the Street Sweeper’s job as easy as possible. You can help by moving your vehicle from the street before street sweeping day. Your local Department of Public Works or waste hauler can provide the schedule for street sweeping in your neighborhood. Also, please do not place leaves, lawn cuttings or other debris into the gutter or onto the street. Too much debris, especially when leaves drop in the fall, can plug the giant vacuum. This requires the operator to stop and spend an excessive amount of time in order to unplug the sweeper.

In most areas within the Russian River Watershed, ordinances prohibit depositing debris on the sidewalk, in the gutter, or on the street. Please use your green bin for all leaves and yard waste. You can also contact your local Solid Waste Hauler to see if they have certain weeks in the fall for leaves to be picked up. Most of the Leaf Collection events allow for a certain number of additional cans or bags of leaves to be left at your curb for collection. If you observe broken glass or other debris on the street, please notify your Public Works Department. If you are driving, use caution when passing a street sweeper on its route, and be prepared for them to make U-Turns in order to maximize their efficiency.

Always try remembering the street sweeper and its operator are our friends, even early in the morning. When you see your local Street Sweeper, feel free to wave and thank them for doing their part to keep our streets clean in order to prevent unwanted debris from entering our creeks, streams, and ultimately the Russian River.

This article was authored by Jarod Thiele, Management Analyst for the City of Ukiah Department of Public Works and Department of Water Resources, on behalf of RRWA. RRWA is an association of local public agencies in the Russian River Watershed that have come together to coordinate regional programs for clean water, habitat restoration, and watershed enhancement.

Help keep our waterways clean with responsible car washing practices

Summer months usually bring us outdoors: gathering with friends, bar-b-ques, 4^th of July fireworks, swimming, hiking, boating, concerts in the park, and summer camps. Really, an endless list of summer activities to enjoy in the sunshine and warmer weather. This year is different as we navigate summer with social distancing restrictions. Cancellation of community gatherings and sheltering in place orders are leaving people to stay home more than usual, especially for summer. We are having to rethink how we spend our time, adjusting to staying home and finding ways to keep busy.

In addition to the increase in recreational activities during the summer, summer is also a popular time for residents to pull out the hose and bucket of soapy water to wash their cars. After months of rainy weather, as soon as the weather turns warmer, most people like to shine up their cars and clean off the winter dirt. And this summer, with people staying home, car washing at home is a more popular option. Not just for getting the car clean, but a way to keep busy and pass the time.

Did you know that washing your car at home can be harmful to the environment? If proper care is not taken, soapy wash water, oil, grease and grime can end up in our local rivers, creeks, and streams, impacting water quality and habitat. Storm drains connect directly to rivers, creeks, and streams. Any liquids, pollutants, trash or other substances that enter into the storm drain system flow directly to surface waters. There is no treatment, so pollutants that are put down the storm drain will end up in surface waters. Residential car washing is often a source of pollution, especially during the summer months.

What can you do to prevent car wash water pollution from entering the storm drain, but still have a clean car? Luckily, there are lots of options! The best option is to take your car to a commercial car washing operation. These facilities are designed to prevent wash water from entering the storm drain system, including disposing of spent water to the sanitary sewer system. These facilities also often have a closed loop system where wash water is reused.

If you are unable to take your car to a commercial operation, there are still measures you can take at home to minimize the harmful effects on the environment:

• Wash your car on your lawn or over gravel so that the wash water can be absorbed into the ground instead of flowing into the gutter.
• If you wash on the pavement, divert wash water to a nearby landscaping area, such as your lawn, using a rolled-up towel or the length of the hose.
• Use a minimum amount of water and soap.
• Use a spray nozzle with an automatic shut off nozzle.
• Wring sponges and wash rags into buckets, not onto the pavement.
• After you are done washing, sop up sudsy puddles with towels.
• Empty buckets into sinks or toilets so the dirty wash water goes to the sanitary sewer system.

Washing your car in a safe and responsible manner can help protect the environment. Please do your part in keeping our water clean!

This article was authored by Colleen Hunt, on behalf of the City of Sebastopol for the Russian River Watershed Association(RRWA). RRWA (www.rrwatershed.org) is an association of local public agencies in the Russian River Watershed that have come together to coordinate regional programs for clean water, habitat restoration, and watershed enhancement.