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Protecting area waterways starts in your own yard

Spring is just around the corner. (More snow forecast as we write this.)

Really. It is. Trust us. (Did the groundhog see his shadow or not?)

Spring always arrives, even if it sometimes takes a long route “around the corner.” But before we revel in the newfound warmth and breathe in the blossoms, there’s a nasty chore to be done: cleaning up the post-winter crud in the yard.

As you do so this year, remember that tidying up your yard now — if done properly — can also help keep local waterways clean. And as two of the Met Council’s environmental experts note, it’s not too early for Jane and Joe Homeowner to start thinking about other things they can do right in their own yard — from lawn care to landscaping to stormwater handling — that will benefit the surrounding environment.

“Whatever washes off your yard, driveway, sidewalk and street and into a storm sewer will go directly to lakes and rivers,” said Karen Jensen, a planner and water resource expert in the Council’s Environmental Services Division. “It’s very important that people keep things such as grass clippings, pet waste, fertilizer, and tree leaves and seeds out of the runoff from their home. All these things contain phosphorus, which turns lakes and rivers green with algae and reduces the water quality. If everyone does just their own small part, the collective results really can help improve water quality.”

Just how does phosphorus hamper water quality? Phosphorus is a naturally occurring plant nutrient. But when too much gets into our lakes and rivers, it stimulates the growth of algae. This reduces water clarity, crowds out other water plants, and reduces oxygen available for fish. The result? Unattractive, foul-smelling water that is bad for fish, wildlife, and humans.

“Along with reducing the amount of phosphorus in your yard runoff, it’s also important to reduce the volume of the runoff to further protect lakes and rivers,” said Greg Pates, a planner and landscape expert in the Council’s Community Development Division. “There are a number of things people can do to deal with the water flowing off their roofs and paved surfaces, so that more of it infiltrates into the soil and less goes to the storm sewer.”

Jensen and Pates offer some tips for homeowners:

Spring cleaning for your yard

• Clean up pet waste and trash.
• Sweep up sand to reuse next winter.
• Rake up leaves and twigs and put in your compost pile or bag them for disposal with your other yard trimmings.
• Keep storm drains clear, and don’t rake debris from the lawn to the street.
• Direct water from your downspouts away from the house and paved surfaces, and onto the lawn.
• Don’t apply lawn care products to frozen ground — wait until the grass starts growing.

Maintaining your lawn — and water quality, too

• If you fertilize your lawn, use zero-phosphorus fertilizer. That’s been required by state law since 2004 in the Twin Cities area and since 2005 throughout the rest of Minnesota. Exceptions are permitted for golf courses, sod farms, homeowners establishing new lawns, and where a soil test shows a need for phosphorus. Most lawns in the Twin Cities are naturally high in phosphorus and stay healthy without adding more. And remember, nitrogen, not phosphorus, is what greens up grass.
• Sweep up and reuse any lawn care products that fall on streets, sidewalks and driveways.
• Always read and follow label directions when using lawn care products and disposing of their containers. Use compost and manure appropriately, too, as they also contain phosphorus.
• Keep leaves, seeds and grass clippings from washing off hard surfaces and into storm drains. Compost them in your yard, bag for collection, or take to a community compost site.
• Keep soil from washing down storm drains, as it also contains phosphorus. Reseed or mulch bare spots on your lawn, and avoid placing garden beds next to driveways or street curbs where soil can easily escape.

Managing stormwater — beginning at home

For many years, managing the volume of stormwater in a community meant getting it off streets and parking lots, and into stormwater pipes and some distant waterway. The current trend is to deal with stormwater as much as possible right where it is generated to protect those downstream waters. Some of the same measures used in large residential and business developments can be scaled down for individual homes, too.

A rain garden — a small depression in a yard that is often landscaped with wild flowers, grasses and other native vegetation — can soak up a few inches of rain from roofs, driveways and sidewalks and slowly filter it into the ground.

Rain barrels can collect water from roof gutters and downspouts, and some come with hose attachments for low-pressure watering in the yard and gardens. “More and more counties and watershed districts are encouraging homeowners to use rain barrels because they collect roof runoff and store it for later use in lawn and garden watering, thus preventing stormwater runoff and reducing the amount of ground water used for lawn care,” Jensen said. Rain barrels were once only available through neighborhood organizations and watershed districts, but they are becoming more common at larger lawn and garden stores.

Permeable surfaces - if you’re thinking of replacing or adding a traditional paved driveway or concrete sidewalk or patio, there are options that can drastically reduce water runoff. A variety of paving brick or stone designs have wider spaces filled with coarser gravel to soak up water. Even traditional asphalt is changing. Varieties of “pervious” asphalt have larger pores in the finished material that also allow water to soak in.

Plants also can reduce water runoff. “As good as they look, traditional bluegrass lawns and their shallow roots are notoriously bad for infiltrating water,” Jensen said. Deeper-rooted grasses such as fescue open up the soil and let more water in. Some native grasses and flowers have roots up to 24 feet deep, breaking up layers of compacted soil and allowing more water to infiltrate.

“Many people want to mow less and fertilize less, so native plants are great for replacing some or all of the turf in a yard,” Pates said. “They are more adaptive to our climate, require far less maintenance, manage runoff water better, and help ‘build’ the soil better than turf. And they tend to have berries and seeds that attract butterflies and other wildlife that are good for the environment.

“Planting trees is also one of the best things people can do to handle rainfall in their yard,” Pates said. “Mature trees bring you the benefit of shade, but they also capture a lot of water. It collects on the surface of leaves and branches, where it can evaporate, and what does make it to the ground is mostly taken up through the root system.”

Many local organizations, watershed groups and government agencies provide additional information and planning assistance to help get you started. And some of those that charge a fee for stormwater generated on your property may offer a credit if you infiltrate more runoff and reduce what reaches the storm drain.

So when spring hits — plus or minus its official start on March 21 — help protect the environment, starting on your own little patch of green.