LA Stormwater

We have a hot weekend ahead. ☀️Read on for a few key strategies to beat the heat and stay cool. 💦

Cool Strategies to Beat the Heat Keep your cool when it gets hot - these energy saving strategies will ensure you can weather heat waves without any waste.

Thinking of visiting a state park this summer, but low on funds? Good news! 🎉🙌🏼California has a program that lets you check out state park passes from your local library - and it has recently had its funding refreshed by the state! 👏🏼🏞️

California's popular program that lets library users check out free state park passes has been saved Entry fees to state parks and state beaches are often cited as a major barrier that keeps lower-income Californians from visiting.

Thinking of visiting a state park this summer, but low on funds? Good news! 🎉🙌🏼 California has a program that lets you check out state park passes from your local library - and it has recently had its funding refreshed by the state! 👏🏼🏞️

Link in our bio.

Water conservation must become a way of life for us Californians…💦

California now has mandatory water conservation in urban areas: How will the new rules affect your supplier? The measures are substantially weaker than a previous proposal after an onslaught of criticism. But they will still save enough water through 2050 to supply the state’s entire population for a year, at a cost of $4.7 billion.

The thunder woke us up this morning! ⛈️ Did you hear it?

Yes, a thunderstorm passed over LA this morning — but what caused it? A rare mashup of elements in the atmosphere caused this morning's thunderstorm.

Microplastics in our bottled water really shouldn't come as a surprise - still, it's just one more reason not to drink bottled water! 🙅🏽‍♀️ Always opt for filling up a reusable bottle at the tap! Learn more about the lawsuits going on over microplastics in bottled water. 👇🏼

Bottled water is full of microplastics. Is it still 'natural'? Recent lawsuits say Arrowhead, Evian, Poland Spring, and other bottled water brands are deceiving customers.

Summer’s here ☀️ and the days are right about at their longest – it’d be a shame to not take advantage of all this extra sunlight by getting out and going somewhere interesting.

Thankfully, Los Angeles is bursting with outdoor adventures for the perfect “staycation” for families, couples, and solo explorers alike. 🥾

Staycation Spots in LA Bummed you aren’t going on a roadtrip or flight to an exotic location? Here’s a list of amazing nature spots for your ‘stay’cation right here in LA!

It’s a team effort, LA! Cap off this Clean Beaches Week with a renewed commitment to keeping our creeks, rivers, lakes and beaches trash free!

Stewardship By The Sea It’s clean beaches week - whether you’re planning to volunteer or passively observe, here’s some tips for how you can help LA’s beaches stay clean year-round.

Happy Independence Day, LA! Stay safe and enjoy the holiday! 🇺🇸🎆

Ready to celebrate Clean Beaches Week (July 1 -7) with a visit to LA’s gorgeous shoreline? Be sure to download Heal the Bay’s Beach Report Card app before you head out!

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Beach Report Card | Heal the Bay Heal the Bays Beach Report Card is the only comprehensive analysis of coastline water quality on the West Coast. Each week, over 700 beaches are graded A to F based on bacteria analysis. The Beach Report Card is based on the routine monitoring of beaches conducted by local health agencies and discha...

Books use paper, but e-readers use electricity and electronic components!📖🔌 Which is greener? Well…it’s complicated. https://bit.ly/3L1kAgA

The 4th of July is full of festivities, family gatherings, and, of course, fireworks. These bright, sparkly displays may dazzle the eye, but their environmental impact is far from delightful. As we gear up for this year’s Independence Day, we’d like to take a moment to explore both the impacts of fireworks and discover some simple and easy ways that you can offset these impacts by celebrating more sustainably. 🇺🇸

Celebrate a Greener 4th of July Find out the best places to celebrate Independence Day in the City of LA while minimizing your environmental impact!

Nothing gets us in the mood for a celebration like a SoCal summer. 😎The bright sunshine and balmy weather sets the perfect backdrop for an excellent party – from a backyard barbeque to a full-on block-spanning blowout. But before you get the party started, here are some quick eco-tips to keep in mind when planning your summer celebration! 🎉 🌎

Party Smart Summer means celebration! Here are a few ways that you can make your backyard barbecue or block party clean, green, and FUN!

Welcome to the Summer Solstice - the single longest day of the year. 🌞 We recommend you enjoy the long daylight hours while they last - days are only going to get shorter from now until the Winter Solstice in December.

El Niño is finally on its way out - we bet you're tired of hearing about it by now. Still, here's one last parting shot from one of our favorite global weather phenomena.🌎 Read all about what scientists have learned from El Niño and what La Niña will mean moving into next year.

El Niño is on the way out after a record-breaking year of heat El Niño helped drive global average temperatures to new records over the last year. Forecasters say it's waning, but that 2024 may still be one for the record books.

Explore a showstopping, colorful ecosystem that thrives without sprinklers, amendments, fertilizers, gardeners and gas-powered lawn equipment.

They cut their water bill by 90% and still have a 'showstopping' L.A. garden A Los Angeles couple tore out 1,150 square feet of thirsty lawn, replacing it with a showstopping mix of low-water California native plants.

It's easy to say 'We're all connected by nature", but Vannessa B's poignant really makes us FEEL the connection.😌

This poem was one of the top entries for a contest in our spring e-newsletter.

With summer approaching, it’s time to check your yard and get rid of even the smallest amount of standing water to keep these nasty mosquitoes away! 🦟🚫

It’s Jacaranda season once again in LA and we are here for these lavender lovelies! 💜

The Story Behind LA's Beautiful, Ephemeral Jacaranda Blooms These trees, like most things, are not native to Los Angeles.

Recently, General Sherman, California's most famous giant sequoia, got a checkup. 🩺 Climbers were looking for indications of a bark beetle infestation. While these beetles pose a threat, sequoias have a way to protect themselves by “pitch”ing bugs out! 🌲

A Deadly Threat To General Sherman And California's Other Beloved Giant Sequoias Beetles can kill a tree that's been around for a millennia in less than a year. Scientists aren't sure why they've gotten so lethal.

After heavy storms, we always love seeing the rainbows. And after a stormy season like we just had, we think it's an especially appropriate time to start seeing them all around - wishing you all a happy Pride Month! 🏳️‍🌈

Kim L's is an ode to the humble succulent - mixing brilliant imagery, personification, and a classical rhyming scheme to make us feel as in love with their wonderful plants as they are! 💕

This poem was one of the top entries for a garden poem contest in our spring e-newsletter.

A new cascading 0.15-acre water feature, including pedestrian paths, seating areas, a boardwalk, shade trees, and interpretive signage is part of MacArthur Lake’s new Safe Clean Water Program-funded design.

Check out the new water feature planned for MacArthur Park A draft environmental impact report offers a closer look at plans to add new infrastructure and a decorative water feature to the southwest corner of MacArthur Park.

So-called 'recyclable' Amazon delivery packaging isn't actually as recyclable as advertised. ⛔♻️ Try keeping this in mind when deciding whether to order off Amazon or head to a local Los Angeles store! 🛒

Amazon says its plastic packaging can be recycled. An investigation finds it usually isn't. Trackers placed in 93 bundles of Amazon packaging marked for "store drop-off" recycling showed many of them were buried or burned.

The theme of the May 23, 2024 Kids Ocean Day at Dockweiler Beach was “Making Ripples”, demonstrating how just one person can inspire others to keep our California coastline clean. 🌊🦀🐚

San Fernando Valley girl is named Kids Ocean Day youth ambassador of 2024 Ella Basel, a fifth-grader in San Fernando Valley, says being ambassador means ‘getting people to support the ocean.’

Just how clean is your crystal-clear water? 💦 Listen to this interview to learn about the presence of 'forever chemicals' in our water supply and what the Environmental Protection Agency is doing to help!

What to know about the new EPA rule limiting 'forever chemicals' in tap water : Short Wave Wednesday the Environmental Protection Agency announced new drinking water standards to limit people's exposure to some PFAS chemicals. For decades, PFAS have been used to waterproof and stain-proof a variety of consumer products. These "forever chemicals" in a host of products — everything from r...

Evolution is a slow process that takes 1,000s of years - but with our oceans heating up so fast, vulnerable life like coral reefs hardly have that time. Find out how scientists are helping our precious reefs beat the heat created by climate change.

Coral reefs can't keep up with climate change. So scientists are speeding up evolution Climate change is heating oceans faster than the world's coral reefs can handle. So scientists are breeding corals that can withstand hotter temperatures – but only to a point.

The Santa Monica Pier was built in 1909 to run sewage into the ocean and then developed into an amusement park concept in 1916 during the heyday of pleasure piers, which populated coastal towns nationwide. Today, it's one of the few that remain. 🎡🌊

Storms, Politics, And Activism: The History Of The Santa Monica Pier The Santa Monica Pier started off as a sewage line over a century ago and has since transformed into an amusement park, event center, and tourist destination.

ICYMI: A moment of silence for the 170 million+ Californian trees that died battling drought and extreme heat in the last decade. 😔 However, all is not lost. With two landmark rainy seasons and a fully restored snowpack, our trees are ready to make a comeback. 🌲🌳

Millions Of California Trees Were Lost To Drought. Will Two Wet Winters Help Repair Our Forests? The drought years were very, very hard on our trees. Conditions have improved a lot.

May 18th is National River Clean-Up Day, which just so happens to happily coincide with Friends of the LA River's May habitat restoration day. Do more than just observe this holiday by helping maintain critical habitat near the LA River! 💦🦆🌱

folar.org | Habitat Restoration Day We build capacity for communities, students, and future leaders to advocate for nature, climate, and equity on the Los Angeles River.