Local clean water program recognized
Blaine — The Blue Thumb–Planting for Clean Water program, which was started by the Rice Creek Watershed District (RCWD), will receive the Governor's Award – Minnesota Government Reaching Environmental Achievements Together (MN GREAT!) on Wednesday, Feb. 27, at the Minnesota Air, Water and Waste Environmental Conference.
The Blue Thumb program is an online outreach program with A-to-Z information to help residents plan and plant native gardens, raingardens and shorelines with native plants. The Web site bluethumb.org features planting blueprints, a plant selector tool, local retailers and landscapers, grant information, how-to guides and more.
The 17th annual award honors superior environmental achievement by Minnesota's businesses, nonprofits, government and institutions. The Pollution Control Agency seeks organizations that focus on preserving our environment through innovative practices that prevent pollution and waste, improve resource efficiency and lead to sustainability.
The Blue Thumb program was started by the RCWD as an outreach program to help residents do their part to protect water and to help cities meet strategic water quality improvement goals and federal Clean Water Act mandates. "Residents are realizing that native landscaping is a great way to positively impact the environment while creating a beautifully landscaped yard. Now people are looking for the resources and information to accomplish these projects on their own," said Dawn Pape, RCWD Environmental Education coordinator. "The Blue Thumb program makes it easy for residents to do the right thing."
In eight months, the program grew from a one-person show into a dynamic coalition of 27 Blue Thumb partner organizations working together to raise awareness about polluted stormwater runoff and encourage homeowners to protect water through targeted plantings. The Blue Thumb partners range from local governmental units to non-profit and community organizations to nursery and landscape professionals. A partnership like Blue Thumb minimizes duplication of efforts and increases the strength of outreach to residents by bringing everyone together under one umbrella with an attractive name and professionally designed logo. Partners may use the Blue Thumb logo on print pieces and purchase promotional materials such as bookmarks, brochures, banners, etc.
Modern American society has literally paved the way to polluted waters since streets connect to lakes and rivers through storm sewer pipes. Stormwater runoff is listed by the Environmental Protection Agency as the No. 1 cause of water pollution. Mimicking nature, raingardens let water soak into the ground — capturing and filtering polluted runoff and recharging groundwater.
The nature of stormwater runoff is that it is "non-point source pollution" meaning it comes from a little erosion here and a few grass clippings there. That is why what residents do in their individual yards makes a huge difference in collective water quality — especially since most land in the state is privately owned.
Why are plants so effective in maintaining water quality?
The "magic" is largely due to the root systems. Plant roots, especially native plants that tend to have longer roots, act as filters by absorbing polluted runoff and excess nutrients. These long roots also decrease erosion and soil compaction as well as find their own water.
Regular lawn grass is basically on life-support because it needs constant watering in order to stay green through a hot and dry summer. Native plants do not require watering after establishment, which only takes a growing season or two.
Blue Thumb plantings create gorgeous landscapes while decreasing all of the top water quality concerns, providing habitat to fish and wildlife, reducing the use of chemicals needed and reducing air pollution from mowing while boosting our local economy.
There are currently 10 local partner nurseries that sell native plants and 74 landscapers who are eager to install these landscaping features.
The first Blue Thumb partner meeting was in January 2007. In just a few months the partnership created a new Blue Thumb Web site and a metrowide clearinghouse for grant and workshop information.
Since April, nearly 8,000 people have visited the site and more than 70 percent of those visitors were new. More than half of the visitors have used the online plant selector tool that aids gardeners in selecting plants appropriate for particular soil, light and moisture conditions.
Since the inception of the program, there has been a significant increased interest in native plantings, raingardens and lakeshore buffers.
The RCWD alone has seen Blue Thumb-inspired cost-share projects increased by 367 percent in the past year with the completion of 22 projects in 2007.
Capitol Region Watershed District has experienced a 120 percent increase in the number of clean water planting projects since joining forces with the Blue Thumb partners.
"More and more people are calling me to ask about raingardens and other Blue Thumb planting projects," said Angie Hong, a water resource educator in Washington County. "You could almost say that native landscaping has become trendy."
The Blue Thumb partnership combines resources and helps partners present a unified public education message that saves both water resources and taxpayer dollars.
Blue Thumb is specific to water-quality friendly gardening activities, but the model can be easily transferred to other regions. In Minnesota, the program continues to grow, and shows potential to reach to other parts of the Midwest — no need for other government entities to reinvent the wheel.
The Governor's Award–MnGREAT is sponsored by the state's Interagency Pollution Prevention Advisory Team (IPPAT), which meets quarterly to share information and offer case studies on pollution prevention, waste reduction and resource conservation within state departments and agencies.
Get Connected
For more information, contact Dawn Pape, RCWD Environmental Education Coordinator, at 763-398-3070 or dpape@ricecreek.org.
Posted: January 29, 2008