The California Stormwater Quality Association (CASQA) will present an award to the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Headquarters Environmental Analysis Division for its "Don't Trash California" campaign--a statewide outreach and education effort designed to raise community awareness of the environmental impacts of littering--at the Fourth Annual Storm Water Conference awards luncheon on Sept. 23 at the Oakland Marriott City Center.
Caltrans will receive the Outstanding Statewide Stormwater News, Information, Outreach and Media Award for its "Don't Trash California" campaign, which has earned extensive media coverage and reached out to millions of Californians, specifically in the trash "hot spot" of Los Angeles. The campaign educates the public about the effects of littering and encourages people to take steps to prevent or reduce littering. Through radio, television and print ads, collaborative partnerships and earned media, the campaign has reached drivers along California's highways with "Don't Trash" messages.
Four other CASQA Storm Water Excellence award recipients include:
• Sandra Mathews, receiving the Leadership Award for her outstanding contributions to the storm water management profession.
• The Santa Clara Valley Urban Runoff Pollution Prevention Program will be awarded the Outstanding Storm Water Best Management Practice (BMP) Implementation Award for its Trash BMP Tool Box Structural and Institutional Controls Project, which presents effective trash removal alternatives for municipal staff who manage or maintain drainage systems.
• The Outstanding Storm Water Research Project Award will be presented to the Sustainable Conservation for the Brake Pad Partnership Project, which is a long-term study of the impacts of copper from brake pads on receiving water quality.
• The Outstanding Regional Storm Water News, Information, Outreach and Media Award will be presented to the Santa Clara Valley Urban Runoff Pollution Prevention Program; the cities of Santa Barbara, Watsonville and Salinas, Calif.; the counties of Santa Barbara, Monterey and Santa Cruz, Calif.; and Ecology Action, Santa Cruz, for the Green Gardener Training and Outreach Program. This program brings quality training to landscape professionals about environmentally friendly gardening practices.
The CASQA awards program identifies and recognizes exemplary leadership, outstanding projects, activities and contributors to the field of storm water quality management.
"The design of our communities and the way we live within our communities have a tremendous influence on the quality of urban runoff--runoff that flows into storm drains and then ultimately into receiving waters such as creeks, rivers, lakes and the ocean. Unfortunately, pollutants that become entrained in urban runoff have contributed to the degradation of some receiving waters. The California Stormwater Quality Association is proud to honor these projects and the individual because of their success, innovation, contributions and dedication to the improvement of urban runoff quality and in turn, the quality of receiving waters in California," said Jeff Endicott, CASQA director and awards committee chairman.
CASQA awards are available to both public and private projects and individuals from public agencies and private businesses. Award candidates must be nominated by a CASQA member and are evaluated on demonstrated excellence, ingenuity, creativity, professionalism and documented results. Awards may be made at local, regional and state levels.
Source: News Blaze
