Whether you already have a furry critter as a family member or are planning to add one this holiday season, we hope you’ll take a minute to watch Bag It, our inaugural Public Service Announcement (PSA) being formally launched the week of January 3rd, 2022. Bag It focuses on the importance of picking up your pet waste to help keep the Carson River Watershed clean and healthy. The video is available with Spanish captions here.
The Carson River is on the USEPA Clean Water Act’s list of impaired waters in Nevada. The river is impaired due to polluted runoff and pet waste can be a source for this type of pollution, yuck! The Carson River Watershed hosts approximately 16,000 dogs and that calculates to an estimated 12,000 pounds of dog poop daily. Pet waste contains pathogens and bacteria that can seep into our groundwater and pollute our rivers, lakes, and streams. You can help keep our waters clean by bagging and properly disposing of your pet’s waste, whether in your backyard, neighborhood, or out on the trail.
Bag It is the first in a series of Watershed Moments being released as a part of our ‘I Am Carson River Watershed’ campaign. This Watershed Moment series follows two earlier campaign video releases, Water Connects Us All and A Walk Through the Watershed (available in Spanish). CWSD will be releasing a new Watershed Moment each month during 2022. These upcoming PSAs will feature local people discussing actions people can take to improve the health of the watershed, including the importance of using a car wash instead of washing cars at home, absorbing stormwater on your property, curbing chemical use (fertilizers, insecticides, and herbicides), and more.
Your Actions Matter! Check out Page 9 in this newsletter which shows all the icons for our upcoming Watershed Moments. Please consider these your Watershed Resolutions and take our Watershed Pledge to confirm your commitment to adopting these personal actions to improve the health of our watershed and quality of our waters. Moreover, we hope these films inspire you to incorporate these actions into your everyday mindset. Look for the new videos each month and participate with us on social media.
Locals will have the opportunity to win various prizes that align with each month’s PSA. January winners will receive $100 gift cards to pet stores located around the Carson River Watershed. Other upcoming prizes will include free car washes, Carson Hot Springs passes, Nevada State Parks annual passes, and more! Participating community members should look for these promotional prizes and giveaways with each month’s Watershed Moment PSA release.
To be eligible for prizes, participants must:
1) Watch the PSAs on social media, YouTube, or the I Am Carson River Watershed website.
2) Complete the online pledge and/or add a photo or video of their own personal “watershed moment” in the comments section of Carson River Watershed Facebook Page. Participants can comment and tag these “watershed moments” on Instagram using the #mywatershedmoment hashtag. Comments should highlight actions citizens take personally to help maintain a healthy Carson River.
Thank you to Felicia Patterson, Sierra Canine Academy, and Neon Agency for helping create the Bag It PSA. This campaign is coordinated and jointly funded by CWSD and a Clean Water Act Section 319(h) grant administered by Nevada Division of Environmental Protection. To learn more, visit iamcarsonriver.org and follow Carson River Watershed on Facebook, Instagram, and/or YouTube. Questions? Contact Brenda Hunt at brenda@cwsd.org or 775.887.9005.
During Earth Week 2021, CWSD launched the second film in the I Am Carson River Watershed campaign series, “Water Connects Us All”. This public service style announcement motivates Carson River Watershed residents to act in ways that protect the health of our environment and the quality of our drinking water. The film features over 40 community members from around the watershed reminding their neighbors to take a couple simple actions to make a big difference in preventing pollution.
The I Am Carson River Watershed campaign is an outreach and education effort to improve watershed-literacy in the community. A watershed-wide survey conducted by CWSD revealed that many residents are unaware they live in a watershed and that their actions affect the quality of the environment; thus, the campaign was born. The second film highlights individual actions we can all take such as recycling motor oil, using a car wash, maintaining septic systems, and cleaning up pet waste. “Everyone lives in a watershed”, said Brenda Hunt, CWSD Watershed Program Manager, “so these messages can be applied to help protect the quality of your environment wherever you live.” Visit iamcarsonriver.org to watch “Water Connects Us All” and “A Walk Through the Watershed”.
I AM CARSON RIVER WATERSHED and YOU ARE TOO! Go to iamcarsonriver.org or click the image above to watch the video!
The campaign is funded through Clean Water Act 319(h) funds with support from NDEP and CWSD.
The Carson Water Subconservancy District (CWSD) is hosting Carson River Coalition’s “Watershed Wednesdays,” a free virtual forum series spanning the five Wednesdays in March! Each Watershed Wednesday will have a unique theme where speakers share their knowledge, programs, and projects focused on the Carson River Watershed. Weekly themes are Education and Outreach (3/3), Recreation (3/10), Floodplain Protection (3/17), Climate Resilience (3/24), and Floodplain management (3/31). Each virtual session will premiere on the Carson River Watershed YouTube Channel before 8am on their specified days. At 11:30am, CWSD will host a live Zoom Q & A session with the week’s speaker panel. More details on specific speakers and their topics will be provided in the next few weeks. To receive updates, links and to register for Watershed Wednesdays click here.
CWSD is hosting Watershed Wednesdays as a speaker series throughout March, instead of its typical 2-day Spring Carson River Watershed Forum. Speakers will include non-profit organizations, government agencies, private citizens, and landowners providing a comprehensive view of the morning’s topic. Participants can watch presentations on CWSD’s YouTube Channel as they premiere or can enjoy content at their leisure if unable to attend. Each Wednesday at 11:30am everyone is encouraged to sign on for the live Q&A hosted via Zoom to ask questions of our panel of Watershed experts.
Watershed Wednesdays will showcase the immense variety of work being planned and accomplished throughout the Carson River Watershed. “CWSD staff is working with our Carson River Coalition partners to create informative and educational sessions that move participants to act in ways that improve water quality and watershed health,” stated Brenda Hunt, CWSD Watershed Program Manager. Everyone is welcome to join us for Watershed Wednesdays and support our speakers, partners, and the comprehensive efforts being made to improve the Carson River Watershed.
The I AM CARSON RIVER WATERSHED campaign connects our community to the watershed they live in and asks everyone to do a few simple things to help improve the quality of our water.
We live in one of the most spectacular watersheds in the country. From the majestic views at Carson Pass down to the ‘Tatooine-esque’ salt flats of the Carson Sink, our Carson River Watershed is truly one-of-a-kind. Go to IAMCARSONRIVER.ORG to watch the amazing ‘WALK THROUGH THE CARSON RIVER WATERSHED’ film. You’ll join former KTVN news anchor Vanessa Vancour as she walks through 24 spectacular local locations in just over two minutes!
“We’re excited to work with NEON Agency to launch the I AM CARSON RIVER WATERSHED campaign with this incredible film”, said Brenda Hunt, Program Manager of the Carson Water Subconservancy District. “For background, we surveyed our watershed community and found the majority of residents didn’t know they lived in a watershed and didn’t think their actions affected its health. This film celebrates the natural wonder of the Carson River Watershed, and educates and inspires individuals in our community to take action to improve its health and water quality”.
I AM CARSON RIVER WATERSHED and YOU ARE TOO!
The campaign is funded through Clean Water Act 319(h) funds with support from NDEP and CWSD.
By: Debbie Neddenriep, CWSD
Carson Water Subconservancy District (CWSD) is delighted to debut its “Floodplains as a Community Asset” video series. Inspired by similar videos created by Colorado’s Urban Drainage and Control District, our goal is to underscore the critical importance of conserving the Carson River Watershed’s remaining floodplain, with an emphasis on maintaining the undeveloped nature of our watershed’s rivers and streams.
Created with funding from FEMA’s 2015 CTP “Cooperating Technical Partners” program, these videos aim to increase flood awareness, promote the importance of reducing flood hazards, and spur community action to conserve the Carson River Floodplain. The videos support CWSD’s overarching objective of informing watershed residents, policy makers, and developers on the importance of preserving the Carson River Floodplain and will be utilized in flood awareness outreach and education efforts throughout the watershed.
Please Click the links below to view our four videos:
Public Service Announcement (PSA) – Conserving the Carson River Floodplain as a Community Asset (:30)
Agriculture’s a Good Fit for Conserving the Carson River Floodplain as a Community Asset (4:31)
A Case for Developers to Conserve the Carson River Floodplain as a Community Asset (3:13)
Our Officials in Conserving the Carson River Floodplain as a Community Asset (4:19)
The videos provide a strong case for watershed communities to preserve floodplains and support conservation efforts in the Carson River Watershed. They provide vital information to our community planners and local officials, empowering them to make informed land use and ordinances decisions that encourage public safety by keeping our floodplains open and undeveloped. A desired result of this project is increased funding from federal, state and local budgets for floodplain preservation projects such as open space acquisition, conservation easements, and ecosystem service incentives.
The CWSD would like to thank everyone who made these productions possible! Let’s continue to work together to protect the Carson River Floodplain as a Community Asset!
By John Cobourn: I have stated that community water issues can be best understood in the context of the whole watershed. I also stated that on the Carson River in Nevada, the Carson Water Subconservancy District (CWSD) sponsors a community watershed group called the Carson River Coalition (CRC). It views all issues in the watershed…
DetailsCarson River Coalition Main Meeting on October 21, 2015 in the Sierra Room, Carson City Community Center, 851 E. William Street, Carson City, NV. Daniel P. Beard, Former Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation and Author of Deadbeat Dams is the keynote speaker. We hope you can join us! Click here for the meeting agenda. For more information…
DetailsAlpine County is unique in that it encompasses the headwaters of six major watersheds: the American, Carson, Mokelumne, Stanislaus, Truckee and Walker Rivers. The long-term availability of clean water in these rivers is dependent on the health of the headwaters and streams that feed into them. Check out this educational flyer, Drought Relief through Headwaters…
DetailsNevada Floods. Are You Prepared? Flood Awareness Week is November 10-15, 2014 In Nevada, we have both flash floods and river floods even though most of us live in a desert environment. Whether you live near the foot of a mountain canyon, a dry wash, or on the floor of a broad river valley, you…
DetailsAs you may know, in 2007 CWSD created the Andy Aldax Award for Exemplary Service in Conservation and Protection of the Carson River Watershed to honor Andy Aldax, a Carson Water Subconservancy District (CWSD) Board member who served from its inception in 1959 until 2012. Andy has been a life-long resident, farmer, and dairyman in…
DetailsCWSD is requesting proposals to conduct engineering analysis and modeling work for several flood related projects in the Carson River Watershed. Click on the links below to view the requests, selected background information, and FEMA grant contract requirements. 1. RFP: Smelter Creek Analysis in Douglas County Smelter Creek Analysis Background Information 2. RFP: Alpine View…
DetailsCatch the fall colors at the Alpine Aspen Festival – a celebration of the beauty and vital role of aspen groves in providing clean water to millions of Californians and Nevadans. This year’s inaugural festival will include educational hikes, artist workshops, conservation projects, music, and more! The Alpine Watershed Group 501(c) 3 (AWG) is a…
DetailsSign up to volunteer at the 2014 Markleeville Creek Day!
The Alpine Watershed Group’s 15th Annual Markleeville Creek Day will take place on Saturday, August 23rd from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
CWSD has a new website! Or maybe you gathered that, since you are on it right now…In any case, the website overhaul was long overdue.
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