Rain to River Project comes to St. Clairsville

TEAMWORK IN THE SERVICE OF EDUCATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT

On Friday, June 15, 2018, the City of St. Clairsville was the site of a Rain to River Project.  Mayor Terry Pugh offered his appreciation to the Belmont County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) for bringing this educational programming to the City.

Coordinated by Liza Butler, the Administrator / Wildlife and Forestry Specialist of the local office of the Soil and Water Conservation District, students used stencils to paint a message near certain City storm drains.  Students added the “NO DUMPING DRAINS TO RIVER” message to a total of 78 storm drains on Marietta, Main, Sugar, North Market, High, Spring and Park Streets, and Woodrow, Newell and Ruggles Avenues.  The students participating were in the Belmont SWCD 2018 Conservation Field Days Program.

City Director of Safety and Public Services James Zucal, an avid outdoorsman with 34 years of professional experience in water quality, stated “the stenciled message is meant to bring awareness to residents and visitors of the importance of protecting our water resources.”  Zucal added that it is illegal to dump items such as trash, grass clippings, grease, pesticides, motor oil, antifreeze, paint, plastics, soap and chemicals into City storm drains.

The Rain to River Project is part of the Appalachian Ohio Clean Watershed Initiative, a partnership between Ohio University’s Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs along with Rural Action.  The project is financed through a grant from the State of Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. EPA, under the provisions of Section 319(h) of the federal Clean Water Act.

Additional information on storm water from reputable sources can be found on the City’s web site (https://stclairsville.com/city-government/departments/street-department/).

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