Adreonna Rainey“As a Merchandising, Apparel and Textiles major, I’m always thinking about sustainability in fashion, ways to reuse and reduce,” said Kya Washington, a senior student at the University of Kentucky. “But sustainability goes beyond clothing. How we treat our environment daily matters just as much. It’s easy to think one person doesn’t make a difference, but when you think about thousands of students doing small things every day, it adds up fast.”
As construction continues at the University of Kentucky, responsibility for environmental stewardship does not fall on just one group. While stormwater compliance at the University of Kentucky is managed through the Environmental Quality Management (EQM) unit with shared responsibility across multiple campus departments, students are also part of the university’s sustainability model, whether they realize it or not.
This blog is the final installment in an investigative series about how the university manages water quality amidst growth and construction. Part 1 explored the importance of stormwater management and insight into the historical development of water regulations. Part 2 examined how the University of Kentucky manages stormwater with respect to the Clean Water Act and the MS4 permit historically and currently.
As a student, you may feel that your role is small, but student behavior can directly influence how effective these stormwater systems are. Most stormwater pollution does not come from a single major source all at once; it comes from small, everyday actions that build up over time.
“Students play an essential role in managing stormwater, and we want to encourage them to participate in actions that reduce pollution from entering local waters,” said Nathan Weber, UK’s Water Quality Compliance Specialist. “While no one may be performing maintenance or washing their personal car on campus, small oil leaks from hundreds of cars, for example, can eventually make it to the storm sewer system, which is untreated before entering the local stream.”
Improper disposal of food waste, leaving pet waste uncollected, dumping drinks on the ground, or allowing vehicles to leak fluids without attention can all contribute to runoff pollution. Even small actions, when multiplied across thousands of students, can significantly affect water quality, as these items can be picked up by rainwater and carried into stormwater drains and best management practices (BMPs), such as the rain garden, on campus. When this happens, it can clog the infrastructure, reducing how efficient these systems are at delivering clean, quality stormwater to our local streams.
How can YOU help manage stormwater?
As students, we are in a unique position because we are always walking, biking, or busing from place to place around campus at all hours of the day. We can notice problems before they become serious.
Construction sites, in particular, are high-risk areas for stormwater pollution. Exposed soil, loose materials, and heavy equipment increase the chance of contaminants entering runoff. If the best management practices used to contain pollutants at these sites are damaged, or if sediment is leaving a site, it can quickly impact nearby drainage systems, ultimately impacting campus and potentially the whole city.
If you have a concern, contact the Environmental Quality Management Department. Storm drains across campus are marked with medallions that read “No Dumping, Drains to Stream” and include EQM’s phone number (859-323-6280) along with a QR code to quickly report issues. The reporting form takes less than a minute and asks when, where, and what you observed, along with an optional photo. Reporting helps stop pollution before it enters local waterways. If something does not look right, reporting concerns to campus facilities or environmental management teams can make a difference. Early detection helps prevent small issues from becoming larger environmental problems.
Students can help by simply paying attention. When walking on campus, ask yourself the following questions:
- Does this area contain excessive water, mud, or sediment?
- Are storm drains blocked by debris or trash?
- Do BMP structures look damaged or overwhelmed after rainfall?
We Have a Shared Responsibility to Protect Our Waterways!
Stormwater management at a large university is regulated and largely handled behind the scenes, but the student role is so important! As students, we can actively support and contribute to this larger system working to protect local waterways through our everyday actions, whether it is picking up trash and disposing of waste, avoiding activities that introduce pollutants into stormwater runoff, or reporting concerns around storm drains and construction sites.
“Remember that whatever makes it to the ground ends up in the water supply,” said Weber. “Many service-led opportunities exist to volunteer at events applying storm drain medallions, picking up litter, planting trees, or stream clean-ups that all make a difference.”
At a growing campus like the University of Kentucky, sustainability is not just built through infrastructure. It is reinforced through community behavior.
Contact the Water Quality Section at stormwater@uky.edu to learn more about ways to contribute or if you have an idea of your own. For more information on stormwater initiatives, visit Environmental Quality Management’s website.
