Did you know that the part of our watershed in Philadelphia has roughly 12,000 storm drains that flow into the Tacony Creek, many of which are still unmarked? Our Montgomery County communities have storm drains too — these drains flow into the Tookany!
With the help of dedicated community members, we have been working hard to reduce this number. Storm drain markers remind people that our storm drains are not trash cans! These drains are designed to carry water away in the form of rain or snow melt, and to keep our waterways clean by ensuring that trash stays out of our waterways. This year, we had the opportunity to work with two very enthusiastic groups through our Storm Drain Marking program.
In September, we worked with Mariana Bracetti Charter School. Over 120 fourth-grade students and teachers participated in a storm drain marking and clean-up event in Tacony Creek Park. The students had been learning about watersheds in class and were very excited to see how to protect their own watershed. Students marked 39 storm drains around the Tacony Creek Park gateway at Bingham & East Ashdale Streets, and collected 26 bags of trash!
In October, members of the Michael Page agency visited Tacony Creek Park to volunteer and give back to the community. Volunteers marked storm drains and cleaned up in the park. The group marked 30 storm drains along Ruscomb Street between Boudinot and Bingham Streets.
Interested in marking storm drains in 2023? It’s easy to get started — all of the training information — on video — is available here: How to Install a Storm Drain Marker and here: How to Use the Philadelphia Water Department Storm Drain Marking App.
We are delighted to partner on this program with lead agencies: Philadelphia Water Department and Partnership for the Delaware Estuary.
Marking storm drains is a fun, educational community service project! If you’d like to mark storm drains in Philadelphia, contact Malcolm@ttfwatershed.org. In Montgomery County, contact Ryan@ttfwatershed.org.
Marking storm drains is a vital task for educating community members about runoff and minimizing the pollutants that end up in our streams and rivers. We’re very thankful to our volunteers for all the work they’ve done marking storm drains in our watershed and we’re excited to accomplish more in 2023, with your help!
