In Southeastern Wisconsin, our rivers and Lake Michigan are THE REAL WATER PARK...

Did you know?

We live on one of the largest bodies of freshwater in the world. Only 1% of the water in Lake Michigan, and likewise all the Great Lakes, is renewable. The other 99% of the water in the lakes came from the thawing of the mile-high glaciers at the end of the Great Ice Age. In other words, 99% of the water in all the Great Lakes cannot be renewed from rain and snow melt.

It’s up to all of us to protect this 1% for our children and our children’s children. While you may think the small actions you do aren’t important, think again, THEY ARE IMPORTANT! The individual actions of each person all add up. Imagine – if 10 people do just one thing; then 1000 people; then 10,000 then 100,000 – that’s impact.

Working together we can have a positive impact on our rivers and Lake Michigan. If we each do what we can, it will add up, we will make a difference. We can help ensure that the REAL WATER PARK, our rivers and Lake Michigan, will be safe to swim and fish and to enjoy now and in the future.

More good facts to know:

We all live in a watershed. That’s an area of land over which or through water flows on its way to a common body of water.

It’s all connected. Whatever we do on the land, affects the water and then the people that live downstream of us.

The largest source of pollution for our rivers and lakes is nonpoint pollution. Nonpoint pollution comes from diffuse sources.  Rain water and snow melt flows over and through the land picking up all kinds of pollutants along the way such as toxic chemicals, bacteria, soil, oil, and fertilizers and flows from our storm sewers into our rivers and streams untreated.

Runoff is the word that describes water or snow melt that flows over the land carrying many kinds of pollutants that come from different sources but all coming from what we do on the land.

Nonpoint pollution from runoff is a consequence of our actions on the land. We have developed open lands and wetlands that formerly absorbed the rain and snow melt. Our developments with their malls, streets, buildings, sidewalks and parking lots keep the rain from being absorbed into the soil. We call these man-made hard surfaces impervious surfaces.

Green infrastructure is an approach and set of practices that model nature’s processes to address the problem of nonpoint pollution. Green infrastructure practices work to slow, store, sink, and spread stormwater. Green infrastructure practices also include the protection of natural areas, wetland restoration, planting of stormwater trees, and restoration of natural vegetation along riverbanks to protect water quality.

Why this campaign?

In October 2010, we conducted a survey of people living in the Greater Milwaukee Watersheds to find out what they knew about  water issues and their impact on water quality.

Of all the information we gathered, two misunderstandings jumped out at us.

1. Most people mistakenly believe the major sources of water pollution are sewer overflows and industrial wastes when, in fact, 90% of water pollution comes from nonpoint sources, such as urban and rural runoff.

2. And 84% of them feel that their actions do not have an impact on water quality. They also don’t see a role for themselves in helping to protect water resources.

However since 90% of water pollution coming from urban and rural stormwater water runoff, individual actions we do every day in and around our homes and businesses can have a BIG affect on water quality. It all adds up. It either adds or takes away from the health of our waters.

Yet, importantly, the survey also found that the majority of people are willing to learn about what they could do to protect our rivers and Lake Michigan.

We also learned that environmental organizations are also the most trusted source of information concerning the environment. So we rolled up our sleeves and launched the first phase of a campaign.

We want to thank the agencies and foundations listed below for their support of this effort. And we want to thank you for joining us!

 

Acknowledgements

Sweet Water would like to express its appreciation to the following for their support of The Real Water Park campaign:

  • Menomonee River Group of Municipalities
  • WI Department of Natural Resources
  • Wisconsin Coastal Management Program
  • Freshwater Futures
  • Joyce Foundation

 

Sweet Water

Sweet Water is a nonprofit organization created in 2008 as a partnership of local governments, nonprofit organizations, businesses, academia, and individuals working collectively to improve the water resources in the 1,100 square miles of Greater Milwaukee watersheds.

For more information about Sweet Water visit
     www.swwtwater.org