Adopt-A-Stream: Each year an average of 1,200 Adopt-A- Stream volunteers remove nine tons of trash in streams throughout Charlotte and Mecklenburg County! While this may seem like a lot, we still need more help! There's approximately 3,000 miles of streams throughout Mecklenburg County and there's always a lot of trash that ends up in streams after a storm.
The Big Spring Clean: From the early 1990s until 2015, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Storm Water Services (CMSWS) hosted an annual one-day clean up event called Big Sweep. It was part of clean up events coordinated across NC by the nonprofit NC Big Sweep that dissolved in 2015. In 2016, CMSWS renamed the event The Big Spring Clean and has moved the event to take place in the spring.
Storm drain marking: Help protect streams and lakes by educating the community about their connection to streams and lakes! Volunteers with the Storm Drain Marking Program glue decals onto storm drains that say, "This Drain Is Only for Rain. Do Not Dump – Drains to Creek". Help us reach our goal - mark every storm drain in Charlotte and Mecklenburg County!
Tree planting/maintenance: Streams need trees alongside their banks to reduce erosion, filter pollutants, absorb flood waters, reduce water temperatures, and provide habitat for aquatic wildlife like fish and turtles. Even if a stream was free of pollution, it needs a healthy buffer of trees to support life. Help us replant stream buffers with trees!
Volunteer monitoring: Help us monitor the health of a local stream near your home! There are approximately 3,000 miles of streams and 100,000 storm drains in Mecklenburg County. We have an extensive surface water quality monitoring program, but we need your help monitoring this vast network of streams and storm drains. Participating in the Volunteer Monitoring Program is also a great way to teach kids about the local environment.