Stormwater Tips
NEVER pour or sweep ANYTHING down a storm drain! This includes: pet waste, motor oil, kitchen grease, paint, litter, leaves, and sand. Don’t block storm drains with refuse or debris.
Car care tips for clean stormwater
- Maintain your car to prevent fluid leaks.
- Recycle motor oil, antifreeze, tires, and batteries.
- Use a commercial car wash that treats and/or recycles the wash water.
- If you wash your car at home, wash it on the lawn so that the water can seep into the soil, and use low-phosphate detergents in small amounts.
Common pollutants from cars: gas, oil, antifreeze, metals, and detergents.
Lawn care and garden tips for clean stormwater
- Use fertilizer, pesticides, and herbicides sparingly.
- Try using organic lawn care methods.
- Mow 2 to 3 inches high to encourage dense growth and deter weeds.
- Mulch lawn clippings and leaves.
- Do not over-water your lawn.
- Reduce lawn size in favor of rock gardens or natural vegetation.
- Cover soil piles with tarps and replant bare areas to stop erosion.
Common pollutants from lawns: fertilizer, pesticides, and herbicides.
More ways that YOU can help
- Pick up after your pet and dispose of droppings in the toilet or trash.
- Aim your roof downspouts away from paved surfaces or into a rain barrel.
- Dispose of household chemicals at the Franklin Recycling Center.
- Recycle your used motor oil and antifreeze.
- Support community efforts to keep stormwater clean.
- Coordinate a neighborhood storm drain stenciling/marking day.
- Create a stream team to help care for your neighborhood stream.
Our community performs many activities that are critical to keeping stormwater clean. Street sweepers pick up sand and winter debris so that these pollutants won’t be washed into storm drains. Most storm drains have catch basins to trap heavy particles that must be cleaned out regularly by our municipal crews to keep the drains clear.