LA Stormwater

10/21/2026

Fall is quietly one of the best-kept secrets in California gardening. While much of the country is winding down for winter, this is actually the ideal time to plant California natives here, since the cooler temps and coming rains give new roots months to establish before next summer's heat arrives. Swapping thirsty ornamentals for natives like California poppy, toyon, or manzanita means less watering, less runoff carrying fertilizer into storm drains, and more support for local pollinators and wildlife.

The California Native Plant Society has planting guides to help you get started, no matter your yard size. Check them out at the link below.
https://www.cnps.org/fallplanting

10/16/2026

Every year at this time, LA Sanitation activates its Wet Weather Plan. Its mission is to keep Angelenos safe, protect property, and ensure that public roadways remain passable. To keep LA's communities safe during storms, specialized field crews work around the clock, maintaining LA’s 40,000 sidewalk catch basins and clearing out the city’s 70 hillside debris basins and deep drainage channels. This helps to reduce flooding during heavy storms. These same field crews will be ready to respond to emergencies citywide when those storms hit.

Safe Clean Water Program-funded stormwater capture infrastructure projects will also be working hard to collect rainwater this rainy season with the goals of improving regional water quality and increasing local water supply. Rain Ready infrastructure is a smart investment that protects families, property, and water supply.

Learn more about the City teams and systems protecting your neighborhood and how to prepare for heavy weather: https://sanitation.lacity.gov/programs/wet-weather-preparedness

10/13/2026

Save the date - national parks are free later this month!

Theodore Roosevelt's birthday lands on October 27th, and that means fee-free entry nationwide. Learn more on the National Park Services website: https://nps.gov/planyourvisit/passes.htm

10/13/2026

Are you worried about wet weather? Given we have a so-called 'super' El Niño incoming, it's not an unreasonable feeling. We definitely reccomend attending the LA Emergecy Management Department's webinar on El Niño and wet weather preparedness!
📅 Wednesday, October 14th
⏰ 6pm - 7pm
📍 Online (Zoom)
🔗 Click the link below or scan the QR code in the image to sign up.
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_RLXqpyJARR2VZZtJUvvTiA #/registration

Responding to foul weather is city-wide effort. Lets do our part for both ourselves and our community by getting informed!

10/08/2026

🐾 We asked, and you delivered! Our latest blog post is here, featuring a collection of acrostic poems submitted by our community, all built around the phrase "DOG DAYS" and inspired by our readers' beloved canine companions. From goofy to heartfelt, these poems are a joy to read.

Check out the full collection of our favorite submissions at the link below.
https://lastormwaterblog.org/blog/2026/10/tails-from-our-readers/

It’s Adopt a Shelter Dog Month, and we’ve got a treat for you: acrostic poems from our paws-itively amazing e-blast subscribers!

10/06/2026

California just made history. This past May, the state generated more than half of its electricity from solar power for the entire month, believed to be a global first for a large-scale power system. It's the first time a large-scale power system is known to have surpassed 50% solar for an entire month, and it's part of a bigger trend: solar has now outpaced natural gas in California's power mix for the first five months of 2026.

Every gigawatt of clean power reduces reliance on fossil fuels, and every efficient choice we make, big or small, keeps that momentum going.

10/01/2026

The National Wildlife Federation's Certified Wildlife Habitat program recognizes yards, balconies, and gardens that provide food, water, cover, and space for local wildlife to raise their young. A Certified Wildlife Habitat will have plenty of native plants that support local birds, butterflies, and pollinators.

In Honor of World Habitat Day, we encourage you to consider making your yard into a wildlife habitat. Learn more about standards, requirements, and the application process below.
https://certifiedwildlifehabitat.nwf.org/

09/29/2026

🌧️ After LA's dry summer (apart from late Summer's Tropical Storm Marie), oil, trash, and debris build up on our streets. When the first rain hits, it all gets swept into storm drains and out to our waterways at once - that's called first flush, and it's some of the dirtiest water of the year. With a strong El Niño possibly headed our way, this year's first flush could be a big one. Remember to clean up any spills, reduce your pesticide use, and pick up after your pets to prevent harmful chemicals from flowing into our waterways.

Did you know? The official start to the rainy season is October. So even though it rained in many parts of LA during Tropical Storm Marie, that actually didn't count as our First Flush.

09/25/2026

It's a bird, it's a plane, it's Super-... El Nino? You've probably already heard, but LA is likely in for a very wet winter due what experts are nicknaming Super El Nino - a particularly dramatic version of a global weather phenomena that pushes storms in our direction. To get you fully up to speed, we've added a useful article to the link in our bio. Give it a read!

09/22/2026

Yet another eco-friendly holiday coming your way. (September sure does have a lot of these!) Today is World Car-Free Day, a part of the global movement to reduce car use and its impacts on our environment.

Today, tommorrow, or whenever you can - try catching the train, grabing a bus, or biking to your destination. You might just form a new healthy habbit.