Noon Rotary Club joins city in ‘Adopt a Drain’ program
Loren Olson and Caleb Whalen, both members of the Owatonna Noon Rotary Club, were at First Thursday in Central Park earlier this month explaining the club’s promotion of the Adopt-a-Drain program and passing out five-gallon buckets to help clean of the debris around the drains. Staff photo by Karen M. Jorgensen
Owatonna’s Noon Rotary Club has joined with the city of Owatonna and communities throughout the country in supporting and promoting the “Adopt a Drain” program to help the environment and keep local water ways clean.
The club kicked off its support earlier this month with a display at the city’s last first Thursday event where they were giving out five-gallon plastic buckets residents can use to collect the debris that might wash into the storm drains in their neighborhoods.
Storm drains send rainwater, and everything on the street, straight into rivers and streams. While they collect runoff and trap debris, anything that washes through including oil, litter and leaves, flows untreated into the streams and rivers. By adopting a drain in their neighborhood, a person can help prevent flooding, reduce pollution and keep local waterways clean.
Locally, the purpose is to keep the Straight River and local streams clean, said Caleb Whalen, a member of the club. The club decided to promote the program as fall approaches because that is a prime time for leaves and other debris to pile up at the drains. Contaminants that find their way into the storm drains, he said, go directly into the Straight River.
Signing up for the program, he said, is a way for citizens to get involved in this environmental issue.
The program simply involves finding the storm drains in one’s neighborhood and taking action to keep them free of debris.
It is as simple as using a rake or broom to keep items away from the drains and pick up any refuse that might go into the drains and dispose of it, he said. To help residents get started, he said, the Noon Rotary Club was at Central Park giving out the buckets to contain the debris and providing information to sign up for the program.
There is additional information on the project and how to sign up on the city’s website.
According to the city, there is no specific requirement for how often a drain needs to be cleared. About twice a month is a common time frame but they should be checked before and after big rainstorms, during leaf collection season and when snow begins to melt.
All that is needed is a rake, broom, dustpan and bucket or yard waste bag. Some sorting of debris is necessary as cans, bottles, appropriate plastic can be recycled and material like leaves and grass clippings can be composted. Other debris should go in the garbage.
The city says to become involved in the program go to mn.adopt-a-drain.org and follow the instructions to find a drain in your neighborhood to adopt.