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You can help preserve our coastal waters by reducing your own personal nutrient footprint. Here are some of the things you can do to make a difference:

Fertilize Responsibly

• Follow the Fertilizer Ordinance (Use Nitrogen -limited/slow release products)
• Don’t fertilize in the summer (Rainy Season)
• Don’t fertilize within 10 feet of a waterway
• Keep grass cuttings on your lawn and out of storm drains and waterways
• Create compost and use less fertilizer
• Create a chemical-filtering no-mow zone around bodies of water

Keep Storm Drains Clean

Pick Up after your pet

Use less water

• Direct your sprinklers onto the grass, not the sidewalk or street
• Use a rain gauge with your irrigation system
• Don’t irrigate during or after a rain event
• Check the flapper valves in your toilets
• Let your dishwasher do the work
• Don’t run the water when you brush your teeth
• Take shorter showers

Minimize runoff from your yard

• Direct downspouts into the lawn or plant beds
• Use permeable paving for driveways and walkways

Dispose of kitchen waste responsibly

• Keep cooking oils and fats out of your sink drain
• They accumulate and block up your plumbing and the sewer pipes
• Blockages in the sewer can cause spills that end up in our waterways

Dispose of bathroom waste responsibly

• Only put toilet paper into your toilet
• Other items like tissues and wipes can clog up pipes

Use less electricity

• Turn off the lights and TV when you leave the room
• Switch to LED Lighting
• Install rooftop solar panels for water and pool heating

Soften your shoreline

• Consider a living seawall when it’s time for replacement
• Add a mangrove facing for your existing seawall

Practicing these nutrient reducing/water saving measures in your every day life will reduce your nutrient footprint and help preserve our coastal waters.