2015 Spring Source - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

7 Spring 2015 The snow is melting and spring rains are here! All that runoff is funneling down streets and alleys into storm sewers that carry it to our lakes, streams and wetlands. Here’s how to protect Minnesota waterways this spring: Keep Your Spring Runoff Clean: • Remove pet waste and trash from streets, sidewalks and driveways and put it into the garbage. • Clean gutters regularly. Put leaves in your compost pile or bag for collection with other yard trimmings. Sweep up road dirt and place it in the garbage. • Direct water from your downspouts away from your house and paved surfaces and onto your lawn. Restore Your Lawn: • Remove debris and yard trimmings. Prepare for gar- bage or yard trimming collection. • Reseed bare spots. If spots are caused by salt, re- seed with a salt-tolerant grass mix. • Lightly mulch newly seeded areas with straw and keep moist for three or four weeks. • Control soil-erosion around your home. When left bare soil washes away easily with rain and carries phosphorus with it. Soil erosion can be prevented by keeping soil covered with vegetation or mulch. • The soil under most metro-area lawns contains ample amounts of phosphorus and in most cases applying additional phosphorus in lawn fertilizer is unnecessary. Find out what your lawn needs by obtaining a soil test through the University of Minnesota Soil Test Lab (612- 625-3101) or another similar lab. Keep Lawn Care Products Out of Runoff: • Use phosphorus-free fertilizer. Minnesota’s Phos- phorus Lawn Fertilizer Law went into effect on Janu- ary 1, 2005. The law states that Minnesotans can- not use fertilizer containing phosphorus for general lawn care. • Always read and follow label directions when using lawn care products and disposing of their contain- ers. • Don’t apply lawn care products to frozen ground— wait until the grass starts growing. • Sweep up and reuse any lawn care products that fall on streets, sidewalks and driveways. For additional tips about how to protect Minnesota’s wa- terways while caring for your yard, visit the Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s Web site at www.mda.state. mn.us and click on the Water and Land section’s Lawn Care and Water Quality pages. Spring Lawn Care Tip Sheet Red Zone Traffic Enforcement to Resume This Spring The City of Lake Elmo, in concert with the Washington County Sher- iff’s Department, will resume its Red Zone Traffic Enforcement Program aimed at curbing speeding in the community and providing a safer driving environment for residents. Red Zone Traffic Enforcement is one part notification, one part education and one part of strict enforcement. The program begins with a notifica- tion to the selected neighborhood that Red Zone Traffic Enforcement will begin on a specific date. The City then places its portable speed board on the selected roadway for one week for education purposes. After that week, Washington County Sheriff Deputies enforce the speed limit with a zero tolerance approach for the next two weeks. Areas sched- uled for Red Zone Enforcement in 2015 include: • Demontreville Trail (Between 50th Street and Highway 36) • Lake Jane Trail North (Between Jamaca and Jane Road) • Lake Elmo Ave (Between 30th Street and 20th Street) • 50th Street (Between lake Elmo Avenue and Highway 5) These streets were chosen based on taxpayer request or complaint. Oth- er streets may be added by taxpayer request. Residents are encouraged to know their neighborhood speed limits and to slow down. For more information contact City Administra- tor Dean Zuleger at 651-747-3905 or email at dzuleger@lakeelmo.org. Red Zone Traffic Enforcement will curb speeding in the Lake Elmo community.