Porter County residents who live in the Lake Michigan watershed are eligible for a free or reduced price rain barrel when they attend one of three water quality workshops, sponsored by Porter County Recycling & Waste Reduction. Quantities are limited.
The goal of the workshops is to help attendees understand how their lifestyles impact local waterways and learn ways to help reduce this impact. Residents will learn about nonpoint source pollution, maintaining healthy lawns for water quality, rain barrels, native plants, rain gardens, and more!
Workshops are scheduled for 6 p.m. on these dates and at these locations: Tuesday, March 14, Woodland Park Oakwood Hall, 2100 Willowcreek Rd., Portage; Tuesday, March 21, Immanuel Lutheran School gymnasium, 1700 Monticello Park Dr, Valparaiso; Wednesday, March 22, Westchester Public Library, 200 W Indiana Ave., Chesterton.
“Water quality is everyone’s responsibility,” said Therese Haller, executive director of Porter County Recycling. “There is a limited quantity of fresh water on this planet, and we all need to know how we can protect it.”
A map of the Lake Michigan watershed is available on the Porter County Recycling website, www.PorterCountyRecycling.org, so anyone interested in attending the workshops can verify eligibility.
Attendees may bring their children, ages 4-12, for a fun educational activity during the workshop. The activity will be led by School Educator Ms. Allison, who brings environmental education to all Porter County schools on behalf of Porter County Recycling.
Barrels will be supplied by Upcycle Products, Inc. The barrels were once used to ship pickles and olives overseas. The company repurposed them into rain barrels.
Funding for this program was provided in part by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Lake Michigan Coastal Program.