Curb Pollution!
Keep Storm Drains Clear!

The smallest every day actions can help protect the health of the North Platte River and prevent localized flooding from clogged drains.   

• Sweep dirt, leaves, and grass clippings onto your lawn.  Grass clippings and leaves in the gutter can be carried to the river where they will rob oxygen from the water as they decompose.  They also can clog storm drains leading to flooding.  Collecting leaves and grass clipping out of the gutter is the best prevention method.
• Don’t use the street for storage of dirt or mulch.  It’s tempting to just leave landscaping materials on the street, however, dirt and mulch can wash into the storm drain and lead to clogged drains.
• Put your butt in the can.  It can take 10 years for 1 cigarette butt to degrade-- so they just pile up.  They can be carried into the storm drain by water runoff and eventually make it to the river where wildlife can mistake the butts for food.
• Bag your trash and pick up litter.  Bagging your trash prevents litter when your trash container is emptied or knocked over.  Wind, rain and snowmelt can carry litter into the storm drain where it can plug the drain and lead to flooding.  
• Use fertilizers, weed killers, and pesticides according to directions.  When it comes to lawn chemicals, less truly is more.  Make sure you follow the directions on the label.  Any excess amount you apply gets washed away by rain down the storm drain and into our river.
• Fix leaks on your vehicle.  Oil and other vehicle fluids get washed by rain and snowmelt down the storm drain and into the river.
  
  Stormwater Contacts
  City of Casper: (307)235-7535
  Town of Evansville: (307) 234-6530
  Town of Mills: (307) 234-6679
  
  

Don’t Get Swept up in the Hype:
How Street Sweeping Works

To help prevent localized flooding and pollution in waterways municipalities often clean streets with mechanized brooms commonly referred to as street sweepers. 

Sweepers remove potential drain cloggers, such as sediment and litter, from the street.  Since stormwater is never treated, these items can also pollute local waterways such as the North Platte River.

While sweeping efforts do help, they are not meant to replace regular property owner maintenance.  The large brushes of the sweeper often leave smaller debris such as candy wrappers, grass clippings, and cigarette butts behind.  Street sweeping is also not frequently done in residential neighborhoods, in fact most residential streets are not swept every year.