Hopefully most people are aware of the dangers of pouring oil, pesticides and other products into our storm drains or dumping them into our rivers. Now that leaf raking season is fast approaching, remember storm drains and rivers are no place for leaves either.
In 2013, the Shiawassee Conservation District launched a highly success electronic recycling program in partnership with Comprenew. Recently, the District sat down with Scott Vanerkooy at Comprenew to discuss electronic recycling and see what happens to the items that are dropped off during our collections.
The mound septic system was originally developed in the 1940s in North Dakota. Known as the “NODAK disposal system”, it was designed in response to the state’s harsh climate and variable site conditions. This septic system featured a septic tank that pumped wastewater to an above-ground gravel mound with distribution pipes running its length and width. The concept is still used today in places with especially slow or fast permeable soils, shallow soils over porous rock, or a high-water table.
Your soils are clay, your yard is soggy and your home is in the country, chances you have a mound type of septic field. As a mound septic system owner, one of the first questions you may have is, “What am I going to do with this large hill in my yard?”. It is true that the mound, at three or four feet high and up to 90 feet long, offers unique landscaping challenges. Luckily there are things you can do to both protect the mound and make it visually appealing.
“Houses were shut tight, and cloth wedged around doors and windows, but the dust came in so thinly that it could not be seen in the air, and it settled like pollen on the chairs and tables, on the dishes.” John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath.
The Dust Bowl devastated the southern Great Plains for eight years during the drought-stricken 1930s. Yellowish-brown dust blew making simple acts such as eating and breathing near impossible. Great dust storms rolled far eastward, darkening skies all the way to the Gulf and Atlantic coasts. The areas most severely affected were western Texas, eastern New Mexico, the Oklahoma Panhandle, western Kansas, and eastern Colorado. Drought, the Depression, and poor farming practices created what is considered one of the most serious environmental catastrophes the United States has ever experienced.
When selecting plants for your yard, consider natives first! What better way to create beauty and wildlife habitat, along with contributing to Michigan’s natural heritage, than by planting native wildflowers on your property.
Whether you are planting a small area in your yard or landscaping a workplace, Michigan native plant species are a wise choice. Native species are not only adapted to Michigan’s soils and climate, they are more easily maintained and cost less than traditional landscapes. Once established, native species require little to no maintenance such as irrigation or fertilization, and in the case of a prairie, no weekly mowing! Native plants can enhance the attractiveness of your landscape, help control erosion, and furnish food and cover for wildlife.
What do you do with your leftover and expired food? Would you dump it in a pile in your front yard to feed the wildlife? Most people would not pile food in their yard however; many people seem to think it is ok to drop off their unwanted food in parks. They justify it by saying they are feeding the ducks. In reality, they are doing the ducks more harm than good even if this result is unintentional.
Feeding the wildlife in community parks and other urban areas is a tradition that has remained prevalent for generations of people who frequent these areas. For many, it’s a way to connect with nature, bond with family, or just spend some leisure time. It can seem so hard to resist ducks begging for attention, and it would seem that providing food for them would make them healthy and happy, but it doesn’t.
Nitrogen is essential for all living things. It exists in the environment in many forms, including as nitrate and nitrite. Although nitrogen is abundant naturally in the environment, it is also introduced through sewage and fertilizers. Excessive concentrations of nitrates and nitrites in drinking water can be hazardous to human and animal health, especially for infants and pregnant women. The Shiawassee Conservation District is hosting a free well water screening for nitrates and nitrites from July 17-19, 2018. The screening is open to any Shiawassee County resident who relies on a private well for their drinking water.
Common sources of nitrogen in groundwater include septic systems, fertilizers from lawns, golf courses, crop fields, gardens, and livestock operations. Some nitrate enters water from the atmosphere, which carries nitrogen-containing compounds derived naturally from chemical reactions or from the combustion of fossil fuels, such as coal and gasoline.
How do you enjoy your woods? Are you a bird watcher or a hunter? Do you harvest the berries, mushrooms, or timber that it produces? Maybe you just enjoy the natural beauty of trees. Like your yard and garden, your woods need to be cared for so that they meet your needs and wants. Forests change over time. As trees and plants grow and die, other plants will grow in their place. Wildlife will change too, as their food and habitat changes. You can create and maintain a woodlot that you will enjoy by removing plants that you don’t want, planting ones that you do want, managing insects and disease, and harvesting products.
A backed-up toilet is not a good situation under any circumstance. For homeowners with on-site septic systems, the question becomes, is it my plumbing or could my septic system be failing?
The quickest way for a septic system owner to decide whom to call when drains are slow is to count the fixtures backing up. If more than one fixture is slow or backs up, call a septic system provider. If it is just one fixture, start with a plumber.