Monthly Events: Be an Eco-Champion this October!

The heat wave is behind us. That means one less excuse for not getting out into the sunshine for a day of eco volunteering. Below are a few great opportunities to build community and help make our city a bit more green.

>On Thursday, October 7th, come out to Park Work Day in Beverly Hills where Tree People and volunteers will be getting rid of unwanted, invasive plants as well as working to reduce slopes from erosion at an area park.

>Saturday, October 9th will also prove to be a great day for volunteering. There are a number of community cleanups and restoration events taking place around the area, from Santa Monica Bay Keeper, Friends of Ballona Wetlands, City of Los Angeles, to name just three.

>CicLAvia will be going strong on Sunday, October 10th. Haven't heard of CicLAvia? Well, come out on Sunday to find out! (Hint: Streets are opened all, and so are our public spaces from Boyle Heights to Downtown, MacArthur Park to East Hollywood!)

>On Wednesday, October 13th the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers Watershed Council's will be hosting a Wildland Weed Strategic Approaches Field Course, where you will get the skinny on all the good ways to get rid of bad weeds.

>Have plans for Saturday, October 16th? Well now you do! Heal the Bay will be in Venice ensuring that the beach is known for its great sand and not trash. Come out to pitch a hand.

>On Sunday, October 17th, the American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association will be in Santa Monica holding a seminar on all things rainwater.

>Tree People will be at it again on Sunday, October 23rd in West LA for a little planting. Volunteers needed, the more the merrier (and the more trees that will be put into the ground).

>The last 3 days of October will prove to be awesome with the Eco Maya Festival where ecological education, culture and health will be the focus. The event will take place at Los Angeles City College.

Do you plan on attending any of the upcoming cleanups or events? Which cleanups or events will you be checking out this month? Also, be sure to check out a complete list of October’s upcoming events.

*Photo courtesy of the California Coastal Commission

Countdown to California Coastal Cleanup Day!

On Saturday September 25, 2010 the 26th Annual Coastal Cleanup Day will be held across California. Last year’s turn out for the largest marine environment event in the country was enormous here in the Golden State. Over 80,600 great volunteers collected over 1.3 million pounds of trash and recyclables.

This year promises to be just as successful!

California Coastal Cleanup Day is made possible by the California Coastal Commission's Adopt-A-Beach program. From 9 a.m. to Noon this coming Saturday, volunteers will be congregating at over 50 locations in LA County alone. And it’s not too late to join in the cause to pick up unwanted litter before it makes its way into our waterways!

Heal the Bay along with the Los Angeles County Department of Beaches and Harbors are the LA County coordinators for the cleanup events. Check out Heal the Bay’s webpage to find a location near you and help make 2010 as successful as 2009.

The ocean will thank you!

Monthly Events: Kick-start Fall with a Little Community Building!

What better way to welcome the change in seasons than with a volunteer or community event this month? If you didn’t have a chance to lend a hand for the environment this past summer, it’s not too late to jump right in to help green L.A. this fall. And if you did volunteer, we’re sure you are all rested up and ready to go again! Here’s a taste of what’s in store for September!

>On Saturday, September 4th, come on out to Santa Monica where Surfrider will be hosting a beach clean up. Some fun in the sun is always great, just be sure to bring that sunscreen!

>Saturday, September 11th is packed full of green goodness. Two tree care projects spearheaded by TreePeople will be taking place in Altadena and El Monte. There will also be a fabulously fun Environmentalist rendezvous including a picnic and film in Pasadena.

>It’s not exactly a volunteer event, but that’s okay, it’s still great for the community. On Sunday, September 12th LA Streets Blog will be closing down streets in L.A. for a cool street fair. Bring bikes, skateboards or just your walking shoes. No cars allowed!

>Do you like the famous Santa Monica Pier? How about pets? Well, there will be a great pet festival hosted by Best Friends on Sunday, September 19th, at the Santa Monica Pier. The event is being held to help raise awareness for homeless pets in our area.

>On September 19th, there will also be a cool street tree care event in Mid City organized by TreePeople, that is sure to be a hit! You won't want to miss it.

>On Tuesday, September 21 the cities that make up the Ballona Creek watershed are holding a workshop with the City of L.A. at Hyperion Water Treatment to educate the public about cool stuff like water pollution and sustainable, green approaches to water quality improvements. You should come on out!

>Saturday, September 25 will be a fun one. It is Coastal Clean Up Day! Do you know what that means? Well, we’ll tell you. Heal the Bay will be coordinating over 50 cleanup locations throughout L.A. County! Yep, that’s a lot and there is sure to be one near you.

>Check out all of September’s events that aid stormwater by visiting our calendar at http://www.calendarwiz.com/calendars/calendar.php.

And if you have any upcoming events, please send them on over to us and we will be happy to include them in our community calendar.

*Photo courtesy of Heal the Bay

Kids Ocean Day Through the Eyes of a Teacher

Hi there, I’m Natalie Guerboian, Special Education teacher here at Newcastle Elementary school, which participated in Kids Ocean Day 2010. It was a first time experience for me and my students, as I am a first year teacher. It was something special to see thousands of students coming together to help keep our oceans clean.

A few of my students were amazed to see the amount of trash left behind and washed up on the beach. They really enjoyed picking up the trash and having an impact on cleaning up a small part of our coastline. The experience of cleaning the beach taught them why it is important to recycle and throw away trash. I enjoyed watching their debates and reasoning as to why one item should or should not be recycled.

As one of my students said, “Ms. Guerboian, why is it so hard for people to just throw their trash in the trash cans?” It is so true. There is trash and recycling bins conveniently available for us, therefore there is no excuse for not properly dispensing trash.



I would like to see beach clean-ups take place more often, but that doesn’t mean we should only clean on “clean-up” days. My students and I witnessed how simple it is to clean up a beach. All you need is a garbage bag! We shouldn’t have to wait to be told to clean up; we should just do it ourselves.



When kids participate in these hands-on events, I feel it gives them a firsthand experience and a positive influence. In addition, they have a sense of accomplishment where they can say, “Hey, I’ve just saved a dolphin’s life by recycling that coke can”. My students and the rest of the millions of children out there are our future. They need to be aware about the effects of marine debris on animals. They need to utilize the three R’s (reduce, reuse, recycle) in their everyday life.

This planet is our home and it is our responsibility to maintain its beauty and care for it on a daily basis.

Natalie Guerboian is a first-year special education teacher at Newcastle Elementary School. Her classroom was one of the hundreds of such that participated in Kids Ocean Day, bringing the total number of students who attended the annual clean-up event at close to 4,000. Below you can see a video of Natalie talking about her and her students' experience.

Monthly Events: Sunshine and Volunteering: A Recipe for a Great July

Summer is in full swing here in Southern California. This month is packed full of great events and volunteer opportunities, so pick a weekend to check out a local eco event or donate a few hours of your time to a good green cause!

>On Saturday, July 10th there are a number of events to choose from. Check out the Eco Fest in Venice, the Lotus Festival in Echo Park or hop on over to Topanga Canyon for a creek side tree planting. You might want to check out the Green Expo, hosted by The Metropolitan Water District, where 40 environmental exhibits will be ready for the browsing. You could also put on your boots and help Santa Monica Baykeeper restore Stone Canyon Creek near UCLA.

>If Saturday is too busy, come out on Sunday, July 11th where Surfrider is putting on an event in Los Angeles in conjunction with Green Garden Group in a hands-on workshop about landscaping and water use.

>Want to share your gardening expertise? Help maintain trees that were planted by TreePeople and volunteers two years ago in San Pedro on Tuesday, July 13th.

>Saturday, July 17th is another busy day for nature lovers. Prune some fruit trees in Sylmar or chip in for some hearty mountain restoration in Calabasas. Or come out to Venice and join Heal the Bay in saying no to trash by picking up litter to ensure that sand is the only thing gracing the beach.

>If you are a fan of clean streets and are looking to volunteer a couple of hours, you may want to mark off Sunday, July 18th on your calendar and head to Highland Park to weed, mulch and trim street trees in the area.

>If your weekends are too full come out on Thursday, July 22nd, where TreePeople will be at it again in Coldwater Canyon Park in the late morning for a cool park project.

>Help the City reach the goal of the one million trees planted inPalms on July 24th. Friends of Ballona Wetlands will also be tackling a restoration project in Playa Del Ray.

>Or how about checking out a Farm Work Day in Los Angeles on Monday July 26th, to help maintain the Normandie Ave Elementary School’s and John Muir Middle School’s learning gardens?

>Lastly, if you can’t squeeze out any time earlier in the month, your last chance comes on July 31st, where you help TreePeople take care of some new trees in Studio City.

Check out all of the month’s events that aid stormwater by visiting our calendar at http://www.calendarwiz.com/calendars/calendar.php

And if you have any upcoming events (volunteer or otherwise), please send them on over to us and we’d be happy to include them in our community calendar!

*Photo courtesy of beach.freedomblogging.com

Why Ocean Day Matters

The LA Stormwater Program attended the 17th Annual Kids Ocean Day with thousands of local students to help reduce and prevent coastal pollution in Los Angeles. Listen to a few City staffers, kids and a teacher talk about the importance of the event and why the City was so excited to take part in the day’s clean up event at Dockweiler Beach.

5,000 Los Angeles Kids Cleanup Dockweiler State Beach, Form Human Mosaic Calling to "Sustain Life"

PLAYA DEL REY, CA—Confirming their commitment to protecting marine life, 5,000 area students and their teachers participated at the Adopt-A-Beach Cleanup and formed an aerial artwork in celebration of Kids Ocean Day. The event was hosted by the Malibu Foundation for Environmental Education, the California Coastal Commission, the City of Los Angeles, Keep Los Angeles Beautiful, and Whole Foods Market.

The day’s activities began with a program kick-off involving dignitaries, including: Michael Klubock of the Malibu Foundation for Environmental Education; Sara Wan of the California Coastal Commission; Cynthia M. Ruiz of the City of Los Angeles Board of Public Works and Keep Los Angeles Beautiful; City of Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation Director Enrique Zaldivar; Whole Foods Market marketing supervisor Lena Pereira; and actress and environmentalist Wendie Malick (Just Shoot Me!, Fraiser, Baywatch). Students picked up trash at the beach, and capped the day by forming a human mosaic that depicted the ocean and spelled “Sustain Life.” The message highlighted the connection between the health of oceans and human life, and also reflected the United Nations’ Millenium Development Goal to ensure environmental sustainability.

"The vitality of Los Angeles and the rest of our planet depends on the health of the ocean for the oxygen we breathe, the food that we eat, and a livable climate," said Cynthia M. Ruiz, president of the Board of Public Works and chairman of Keep Los Angeles Beautiful. "Los Angeles kids understand the environmental and moral responsibility of caring for the ocean to which we are all connected, no matter how far inland we are. Let us follow their example and be active stewards of the ocean and the environment by starting in our own neighborhoods."

Kids Ocean Day is celebrated at six other locations along the California coast, extending from Humboldt County to San Diego. The event honors World Ocean Day that will be celebrated globally on June 8.

Monthly Events: This MAY Be the Time to Volunteer for a Greener LA

Spring is officially in full swing and May is the month you should consider volunteering to green our great city and improve water quality conditions. For more info on the following events, including time and location, please visit the embedded links or check out our calendar.

>Every Thursday during the month of May TreePeople will be hosting a Park Work Day in Beverly Hills, so if the weekend is too busy, you may want to devote a lovely Thursday afternoon to help out the community. All outings are from 10am to 12pm.

>On Saturday May 8th you can join in the Great LA River Clean-up, where volunteers with Friends of the Los Angeles River pick up litter and help to revive out city’s main artery to the ocean. After your day in the sun L.A. Eco-Village will host a cool documentary on a kayak trip down the LA River.

>TreePeople is back at it on Sunday, May 9th in Calabasas. Volunteers will help the group plant oak trees and native bunch grasses to restore habitat along Las Virgenes and Malibu Creeks.

>If the beginning of the month is already booked, why not consider heading out to Topanga Canyon on Saturday the 15th to help TreePeople restore the watershed by planting native trees.

>Saturday May 22nd and Sunday May 23rd are also set to be a fun-filled days. Join Music 4 Relief, TreePeople's Ryan Allen, and the Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks at a local park for some much-needed reforestation. It’s all part of Million Trees LA. So help plant a few trees and be a part of history.

>Lastly, on May 29th, head out to Sylmar to water newly planted trees with TreePeople. Last October over 50 trees were planted and they are in need of some care so that they survive the upcoming dry months.

*Photo courtesy of thedailygreen.com.

April Events- Earth Day Celebrations, Garden Tours and More!

April 22 marks the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day, so there is no better time than now to volunteer for the environment (and your community)! For more info on the following events, including time and location, please visit the embedded links or check out our calendar.

>Join us on Saturday, April 3rd for two great events. First, we'll be kicking off a native garden workday and beach clean up in San Pedro. Then it is off to Silver Lake in the afternoon where we'll attack the plastic bag problem with Heal the Bay. Be there or be square, your choice.

>If weekends aren't good for you, check out a Watershed Workshop on Tuesday, April 6th in Pasadena, where you will be able to learn and talk watershed issues in the afternoon. Then it is off to Beverly Hills on Thursday, April 8th for a fun park clean-up, sponsored by TreePeople.

>Since Earth Day falls this month, the weekends in April are packed full of volunteering opportunities. On April 10th there is a Mountain Restoration project in Topanga and then on Sunday the 11th we will be out in Malibu for a restoration project, both with TreePeople. And if native gardening and plants are your thing, check out the Theodore Payne Foundation's awesome self-guided garden tours on the 10th and 11th.

>On Saturday the 17th, come on out to Calabasas in the morning for a restoration project. The afternoon on this day also has a great event in Santa Monica in celebration of Earth Day with Heal the Bay, so come on by!

>Sunday of that same weekend is also busy. April 18th has a grand total of four events that you can participate in. TreePeople will be at it again in Malibu and Calabasas. The group will also be holding a native plants event in Beverly Hills and Heal the Bay will be in Santa Monica for a fun Earth Day celebration.

>Surfrider swims into action on April 24th with a clean-up outing in Baldwin Hills. The group won't be talking about how to catch waves, they'll be teaching you about the groovy vibes of native plants instead. TreePeople will be in Coldwater Canyon as well all day, planting some tree vegetation.

>If you are busy on Saturday the 24th, Sunday the 25th might be a better option. There is a green gardening tour in Mar Vista on the calendar that has close to 80 gardens participating with sights such as native gardens, rainwater harvesting, vegetable gardens, onsite landscape designers and more!

>Lastly, on Thursday, April 29th, TreePeople will be hosting a park work day in Beverly Hills, the last of the month. Bring your sunscreen and work boots!

Get Your Volunteer on for Clean Water!

Upcoming Events for March 2010:

For more info on these events, including time and location, please visit the embedded links or check out our calender.

>Come join the clean-up of Cienga Elementary School on Saturday, March 6. The event is sponsored by Keep America Beautiful Great American Cleanup, the nation's largest community improvement program. The event is part of the group’s annual clean-up from March 1 through May 31, involving an estimated 3 million volunteers and attendees.

>The Surfrider Foundation and Cabrillo Marine Aquarium are also putting their weight behind two events on Saturday, March 6. Surfrider volunteers will be tackling beach garbage in Venice and folks that volunteer for Cabrillo can weed and learn about native plants at their awesome native garden. There is also a cool TreePeople restoration event on Sunday, March 7 in Agora Hills.

>Later, during the second week of March, TreePeople will be hosting a Park Work Day in Beverly Hills on March 11 (if you can’t make it on the 11, chip in on the 18 or 25) and on Saturday the 13 they’ll be putting their muscle behind a mountain restoration gig in the glorious Topanga and Coldwater Canyons. And if you are up for double duty that weekend, join TreePeople for a project in Calabasas.

>Don’t think you can run a marathon? That’s okay, that doesn’t mean you can’t help out during the LA Marathon’s big day, which will happen on March 21. To be a volunteer attend a meeting on March 19 or 20 to bring your eco-skills to the mix.

>TreePeople will be at it again on March 20 in South L.A. to help an Eagle Scout add some green to the community. Heal the Bay will also be at it on the coast, doing a clean-up with volunteers at Dockweiler Beach.

>The Mayor (and the City) is calling on you to chip in on March 20 as well for a Day of Service. The LA Schools Day of Service is a day for Angelenos throughout the City to unite and share a day filled with service projects throughout local schools that will address school and community issues, as well as highlight the school's and community's assets. So learn a bit more about how you can get your hands dirty to make our city a little bit cleaner.

>March 21 (as noted) is marathon day in the sunny city we call Los Angeles. So if you attended one of those meetings, this will be your chance to put yourself to the test. Runners (and the environment) will thank you.

>Also on Sunday March 21, Heal the Bay will be embarking on work in Malibu Creek State Park as well as Santa Monica Mountains. So if marathons aren’t your thing, head to the hills!

>Brentwood residents will have a chance to plant trees with TreePeople on Saturday, March 27. The event will be part of an effort to plant 1 million trees in L.A. That means they need a lot of good folks on board to help out (hint, hint)!

The Ripples Behind and the Waves Ahead - A Message from the Stormwater Program Manager

It’s hard to believe that I’ll commemorate a decade with the Stormwater Program in 2010. It’s even harder to consider that Los Angeles’ Stormwater Program celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. Time sure does fly!

The City’s Program has grown significantly in the past 20 years. In 1990, the original staff of the then-named Stormwater Group was comprised of just two people working to meet early stormwater regulations that were the result of the 1987 amendment to the 1972 Clean Water Act. Since those early days, the division has matured to more than 80 dedicated staff members implementing a comprehensive watershed protection program that includes education, engineering, enforcement, research and development, monitoring, and conducting scientific studies. And, in the process, the program has become one of the national leaders in stormwater management garnering the respect of agencies throughout the country with award winning projects and programs.

Of course, like all programs, we’ve also had our share of challenges, and we are currently facing some daunting issues that will test us for years to come. As our program enters its third decade, we face obstacles that range from multiple and increasingly stricter federal regulations to recent budget deficits that force us to do more and more with fewer resources.

These obstacles, however, are also opportunities for the program to grow and mature. Stricter water quality goals also mean greater impact on the work we do, which in turn speeds up the process to achieving these objectives. This of course, does not come without hard work, but I believe our staff and community partners are up to the challenge.

As we enter this new decade, I’m encouraged by a paradigm shift that I’m seeing and the opportunities afforded by this change. More and more in this era of drought, people are realizing that rainwater is a resource that can be used or infiltrated back into decreasing groundwater supplies, instead of a liability that needs to be diverted and removed as quickly as possible. The overwhelming residential support we’ve enjoyed with our pilot Rainwater Harvesting Program and the recent collaborative work we’ve done with the community to craft a workable yet flexible Low Impact Development (LID) ordinance demonstrates the desire on the part of City residents to do their part in conserving this most precious resource.

In this issue of the LA Stormwater newsletter (sign up here), we’ll take a glance back at the last 20 years and provide a look ahead at the future of the City’s program. You’ll enjoy interviews with a few of the Stormwater Survivors, those dedicated staff members who have been with the City’s Program through most of its history. We’ll also feature an article by guest-writer Mark Gold, President of Heal the Bay, who will provide an environmnetalist's viewpoint. Lastly, we’ll issue a challenge to you – the community – to make a few simple rainwater resolutions as we enter a new decade.

Even after 20 years, the solution to clean water remains the same. It calls for a team effort, with the City and community working together to bring about the change we all want – cleaner creeks, rivers, lakes and beaches for our families and children.

To all, a healthy and prosperous 2010!

Best Regards,





Shahram Kharaghani, Stormwater Program Manager

Click here to view all of the articles in Issue 9 of the LA Stormwater newsletter.

2010 Resolution - Time to Walk The Talk

By: Joyce Amaro
Stormwater Public Education Manager

With a week of rain forecasted, last Sunday afternoon seemed like the perfect time for me to put my New Year resolution of doing “personal community clean-ups” into action. With my dog Dodger at my side and armed with a plastic bag and a pair of gardening gloves, Dodger and I walked a short half mile loop in the Alhambra neighborhood where I live as the drizzle began to fall. Dodger sniffed the trees and I picked up about a pound of trash in the streets’ gutters.

Now I’ve been working in the area of watershed protection for close to 20 years (February marks my 18th year with the City of Los Angeles’ Stormwater Public Education Program Division), and I know the realities and challenges of keeping our local creeks, rivers and beaches clean. I’ve seen the pictures of trash-strewn beaches and am aware of the amount of trash that finds its way into our regional waterways. But even my years of experience didn’t prepare me for the amount of cigarette butts I found in my own relatively clean middle-class neighborhood. I found plenty of flyers that had blown off of cars, several plastic candy and gum wrappers, a plastic bag here and there. This was to be expected. What I didn’t expect were the 83 cigarette butts I picked up on my half mile walk. That’s right – 83 within a half mile! I was surprised and became almost obsessive in picking them up towards the end of our walk.

I came home on Sunday having had my eyes re-opened as to how a neighborhood can appear clean, but still generate a significant number of cigarette butts that can wreak havoc on our ocean. I also returned home re-committed to continue doing personal community clean-ups at least once a week in my neighborhood. While its difficult for me to participate in larger organized community clean-ups, I can still do my part in keeping our ocean clean by doing my own personal community clean-up every week. It’s a great way to get some exercise and do my part in reducing the amount of trash flowing to our ocean.

I’ve talked the talk for almost two decades here in LA. Now it’s time to walk the talk as well!

*Photo courtesy of Long Beach's Signal Tribune

Reminder: LID Ordinance Hearing on January 15, 2010

Dear Clean Water Supporter,

We are excited to kick off 2010 with a proposed Low Impact Development (LID) Ordinance that will be heard by the City of Los Angeles, Board of Public Works on Friday, January 15, 2010.

The Board of Public Works will consider this LID Ordinance at 9:30 a.m. on January 15, 2010; City of Los Angeles, City Hall, 200 North Spring Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012, Room 350. Click here to view the meeting agenda.

The proposed Low Impact Development Ordinance and related documents are available online at the City of Los Angeles Stormwater Program web site.

Thank you to everyone for your excellent feedback and input regarding the proposed LID Ordinance. We greatly appreciate the time and effort everyone has put into creating this ordinance.

For ongoing updates about the LID Ordinance, please continue to visit our blog and join our Stormwater Facebook page. And, of course, you can always send us your comments and concerns at lastormwater@lacity.org.

Best Regards,





Shahram Kharaghani

L.A. Stormwater Program Manager

Volunteering Can Earn a Free Ticket to the Happiest Place on Earth

Usually when one decides to donate their time to volunteer for a good cause they do not expect anything more than a sense of satisfaction in return for the work they’ve accomplished.

However, that is about to change with the help of Disney.

The equation is simple: Do a day of volunteer work and you will receive 1 free day of rides and entertainment at Disneyland Resort or Walt Disney World Resort for absolutely free!

All you have to do is visit this page and search for volunteer opportunities in your area. Many of the programs available in Los Angeles will directly help reduce stormwater pollution and improve our beaches.

Then, once you’ve completed your volunteer event, Disney will reward your day of service.

It’s hard to imagine a better way to celebrate a volunteer outing than a day at a Disney resort.

So volunteer and enjoy the ride!

*Photo courtesy of Disneyland.