Eco-signs for drains
More than 200 drains in Tawa and Churton Park now carry awareness messages on what is being flushed into streams and ultimately Porirua Harbour, thanks to Wellington City Council, Rotarians and Tawa school students.
The educational campaign ‘‘Only rain down the drain’’, is costing the council $ 2000. Small signs are placed near drains, reminding people that chemicals, such as paint, washed into the stormwater system can pollute Porirua Stream and Harbour.
Cr Ngaire Best, leader of the council’s three waters and waste portfolio, and a trustee of Porirua Harbour and Catchment Community Trust, joined Rotarians, Tawa students and regional councillor Jenny Brash in gluing the signs on street kerbs on February 23.
‘‘If anyone washes their car on the road or a driveway – or pours paint or any other chemicals into a roadside drain – then it will cause tremendous damage to the environment downstream,’’ Cr Best said.
‘‘It’s the same with everything from doggie doo to cigarette butts – if you leave it on footpaths then it’s going to get into waterways and you’ll end up swimming in the resulting contamination.’’
The labels were part of the Porirua Harbour Strategy, which aims to restore the health of the harbour.
Cr Best said there were about 1200 street drains in the Porirua Stream catchment, 800 of which were in Tawa.
It is intended to install more labels in the catchment and on more of the 12,000 drains in Wellington.