PHOTO BY JENIFER NAAS - WSU Clark County Extension

Watershed Stewards
Volume 5 iSSue 3
of Clark County
A NewSletter for CommuNity VoluNteerS
Summer 2009
insidE this Edition:
From thE coordinator ....................... 2
partnEr program highlights .................. 3
WatErshEd stEWards
in thE commUnity . . . . . . . . . . . 4
rain BarrEls .............................. 6
Photo by
Jenifer naas
WatErshEd stEWards
........................ 7
Upcoming EvEnts and volUntEEr opportUnitiEs ..... 8

From thE coordinator
By Jenifer Naas, Program Coordinator
It’s been a great spring. Our booth at the Home and
Garden Ideas Fair was a knock-out. I want to thank
Sonya Norton, Kim Morris, and Tracy Sand for all
their work on the booth. We look forward to a great
Clark County fair display.
Ben and Leslea’s home in Felida. The garden
walls are constructed with recycled concrete.
Congratulations to Watershed Steward Jac Arnal.
Jac received a Sammy Award on June 11th for his
work restoring Tenny Creek and his volunteer work
with so many environmental agencies in Clark
County. For the past three years, Jac spearheaded a
restoration project on Tenny Creek adjacent to his
home, removing nearly an acre of blackberry and
planting dozens of trees in the riparian area. Most
impressively, Jac planned this project and gained
the education needed to complete it by taking the
Watershed Stewards classes, becoming a certified
herbicide applicator, and talking to various experts to
determine the best way to restore the area.
Watershed Steward Ben Dennis
On another front, check out Ben and Leslea Dennis’
garden project. They used an amazing number of
recycled concrete pieces salvaged from patios and
driveways all over Clark County to terrace their
garden, a great example of recycling and creating a
native landscape to save water.
This summer, we will focus on building and staffing
our display for the Clark County Fair. I hope both
new and experienced Watershed Stewards will help
staff it. We have more than 50 slots to fill. The fair
provides a great venue for outreach and education and
a fun time for volunteers to get to know one another.
Watershed Steward Jac Arnal with
his Sammy Award
Cover Photo: The rain barrel display at the 2009
Home and Garden Ideas Fair designed by Watershed
Steward Kim Morris and Watershed Steward Jeff
Duval.
2

partnEr program highlights
Canines for Clean Water
Clark County Clean Water Program
by Elena Cronin, Clean Water Community Outreach
(Elena.Cronin@clark.wa.gov)
Are you owned by a dog Did you know that there are over 103,000 dogs in
Clark County Would it surprise you to learn that the amount of poo produced
by all of these dogs each year is approximately the weight of fifteen Boeing-
747’s (over 6,000 tons!)
Chances are, even if you did happen to know these odd facts, you may never have realized
the connection between all this waste and Clark County’s waterways. When it rains, runoff
dissolves any poop that’s left on the ground, even in your own yard, and carries it to the
nearest stream or storm drain. Along with it goes the bacteria and parasites it may contain,
like giardia, E. coli, and hookworm. These pathogens can make us sick, as well as other
pets and wildlife. They can degrade aquatic habitat and recreational areas in other ways
as well.
So what’s the solution It’s very simple. 1. Scoop the poop. 2. Bag it. 3. Toss it in the
trash! If we can reduce the amount of poo left lying on the ground, we can reduce the
amount washed into our rivers and streams. Canines for Clean Water was created to
teach dog owners about the importance of picking up after their canine pals to help
protect water quality in Clark County. Launched in November 2008 by the Clark County Clean
Water Program, Canines for Clean Water reaches out to dog owners across the county through community events,
various media outlets, and partnerships with related organizations, such as local humane societies.
We invite dog owners to support our campaign by signing the Canines for Clean Water pledge. The pledge states
the dog owner will pick up after their dog, keep their dog leashed in wetlands and sensitive areas, and tell other
dog owners in their community about this important message. When owners pledge, they receive a dog bandanna
with the Canines for Clean Water logo on it to say thanks and to help make the program more visible. If they
send us a photograph of their dog wearing the bandanna, we’ll put it on our web site and send them a handy
poop scoop. Each month, five lucky winners are chosen as Featured Canines and these owners
receive a bone-shaped bag holder to clip onto their dog’s leash. The pledge can be taken either
in person, at an event, or on our web site: www.CleanWaterDogs.com. As of June 2009, we
have 349 pledges representing 445 dogs (producing 27 tons of poo each year)!
Canines for Clean Water would not be able to reach as many dog owners as we do without
the help of our volunteers. Kim Morris, a longtime Watershed Steward, has been a devoted
and invaluable volunteer (those are her dogs to the right!). Our other current volunteers
are Tonnie Cummings and Sheila Pendleton-Orme, both from the Department of
Ecology and both enthusiastic and knowledgeable assets to the campaign.
If you would like to volunteer with Canines for Clean Water, please contact Elena
Cronin at Elena.Cronin@clark.wa.gov. For more information, please visit www.
CleanWaterDogs.com.
3

WatErshEd stEWards
in thE commUnity
By Leslea Dennis, Newsletter Editor
There are times when the passionate and creative
energy of a few volunteers who take on a project and
produce spectacular results. The Watershed Stewards
display for the recent Home & Garden Ideas Fair is a
on such example.
Help us congratulate Stewards Tracy Sand, Kim
Morris, and Sonya Norton. They met with Jen
Naas just weeks before the event and came up with
an industrious plan to scrap the existing display
materials and start from scratch to design and build
Many other show exhibitors
stopped by to express their
appreciation of the exhibit
and to acknowledge how
many visitors it attracted.
About the volunteers
Tracy Sand, a spring
2008 Watershed Stewards
graduate became involved
as she broke away from
corporate life in retail.
She feels the program
satisfies her calling to teach
environmental awareness.
Tracy lead the design of
the exhibit and created the
Watershed floor map. She
taught “Salmon In The
Classroom” at her former
job and assists wherever she
can to expand Watershed
Stewards’ involvement.
Watershed Steward Judy Bufford sho
two community members how to find
watershed on the watershed floor ma
Watershed Stewards Gaylynn Brien and Becca
Brien at the Home and Garden Ideas Fair
display
a display that involves the public in an informative
and interactive way and attract kids and their parents
while keeping the display affordable and easy to pack
and store for future events.
These Stewards created a character, a life sized
“Steward McDrop”, aka Stewie. Using Sonya’s
seamstress skills, Stewie was born. Still not done, a
talking rain barrel joined in along with a floor map
for kids to step on and identify the watershed they
live in.
Watershed Steward Tracy Sand
4

Kim graduated from Watershed Steward
training in September, 2007 and says
from her volunteer efforts she has
received “much more than I can repay,
networking and working with forward
thinkers.” Kim, formerly employed in
tourism, spent time in the South Pacific
where people widely use rain barrels.
She hefted the power tools to make
Tracy’s trees (“I love power tools!”).
Kim has a long history of rescuing and
caring for animals, recently becoming
an ambassador with “Canine’s for
Clean Water”
Sonya designed and sewed the costume for Steward
McDrop. Her skill is highly visible in Stewie’s finery
as he welcomes all to the exhibit. She is active in
her neighborhood and with various groups in Clark
County.
Gaylynn, an April 2009 Watershed
Steward graduate
whose daughter
audited training,
presented a
unique look
at who and
why Watershed
Stewards attracts
people. Gaylynn
saw a Watershed
fford shows
w to find their
floor map
Watershed Steward Kim
Morris
Stewards flyer at Clark
College and knew she
had found something
important for herself
and 15 year old Becca, a
Prairie High 9th grader. Daughter Becca is focused
and eager to be involved in exploring environmental
issues and is interested in college study to become
an environmental scientist. To foster this interest and
learn more herself, Gaylynn and Becca signed up to
take the class series.
Watershed Steward Tracy Sand as Steward
McDrop
Becca audited the Watershed Stewards training
with her mother, allowing mother and daughter an
opportunity to learn together and become involved
in “ a more balanced life”, according to Gaylynn.
Working together at the Fair, Becca attracted kids
who wanted to learn from a peer. She enjoyed
sharing knowledge she gained and feels she can
make a difference by involving her peers who have
no preconceived opinions about the environment.
Gaylynn and Becca will volunteer again to staff the
Clark County Fair booth in August.
5

ain BarrEls
By Amanda Smeller, Watershed Steward
It always starts with one, the number of rain barrels
Patty and David Page started with almost three years
ago. But with all the stormwater collection potential,
it’s difficult not to want more.
vegetable gardens on the property. In addition, Jayne
uses frost-free hoses and self-regulating troughs to
provide water to Jayme’s many alpacas and sheep.
This reduces the amount of wasted water and keeps
the pipes from freezing and bursting in winter.
Jayme plans to add at least twenty more rain barrels
around her accessory buildings to water the gardens
spread throughout the property.
The amount of rainfall in the Pacific Northwest
provides a great opportunity for stormwater
collection. An average 2,000 square foot home
produces 12,400 gallons of runoff from its roof for
each inch of rain that falls.
Rain barrels catch water from Watershed
Steward Jayme Studer’s pole barn.
David (Steward class of 2006) and Patty (Steward
class of 2005), now have five 55 gallon rain barrels
around their home collecting roof runoff and
dispersing the water using soaker hoses in their yard
and regular hoses for watering potted plants.
“The point is to keep the water on your own
property,” says David Page. “Don’t let it go down the
drain.”
The next rain barrel class will be in October. Be
sure to register early, as classes fill fast. For more
information about the watershed stewards or to find
out more about upcoming workshops, visit
http://clark.wsu.edu/volunteer/ws/workshops.html.
Even so, the “rain barrels can’t get it all the
stormwater runoff”, say the Pages. This makes a rain
garden another great option in addition to the rain
barrels. The Pages are creating a rain garden in their
yard to help capture rain water not collected in the
barrels.
David teaches many of the rain barrel classes
offered through the WSU Clark County Extension
office. He has noted a sharp increase in attendance
at these workshops since he started teaching them.
Participants pay just $35 for materials and take home
a complete rain barrel made in class.
Over at Watershed Steward Jayme Studer’s Camas
alpaca ranch, seven rain barrels (350 gallons of
stormwater) currently provide water to the fruit and
Watershed Steward David Page’s rain barrel.
6

WatErshEd stEWards
By Leslea Dennis, Newsletter Editor
Meeting Carlos and Lilia Ortega during a brief
break in the weather on a very rainy Saturday, was
very appropriate. As recent graduates of Watershed
Stewards, they exemplify how extraordinary people
find their way to the program and bring with them a
wealth of experience, vision, and action.
I asked Lilia how she became involved in Watershed
Stewards. She saw a notice on the Clark County
employees electronic newsletter board for Watershed
Stewards’ Rain Barrel
workshops. This excited
her and her sister. They
could see the potential
value of rain barrels in
their native Philippines
since it “rains there all
the time”.
The sisters and Lilia’s
husband Carlos signed
up. The Ortega’s are
committed to giving
back to where they
came from. They have
invested tireless years in accomplishing Lilia’s
commitment, born of her father’s vision, to get
sustainable, clean drinking water for his village,
Ingan. This water would help keep 900 village
families healthy and sustain household garden crops
for food. While the project was still in its infancy,
Lilia’s father passed away. Lilia, undeterred, felt
called to bring her father’s dream to fruition.
Watershed Stewards Lilia and Carlos Ortega
The Ortega family approached fellow parishioners at
the Filipino Ministry of the First United Methodist
Church, the Vancouver Philippine community, and
others with a proposal to become actively involved
in providing safe, adequate water for the people of
Ingan. Their efforts attracted people with experience
and willingness to help get the word out. Through
a series of fundraising events in Vancouver and
Portland over three years, they raised funds. Despite
the many bureaucratic hurdles in the Philippines,
Lilia, undaunted, overcame all of them.
She said her late father’s spirit was always with her
as she marshaled her energy. Along with Carlos’
support, she kept moving forward. In the Philippines,
work finally began. Lilia knew the location of natural
springs with sources high in the mountains, but they
could only be approached through dense jungle. Local
residents, using machetes, hacked their way through
the jungle to create a path up the mountain where road
building equipment could
not go.
They carried water pipe on
their backs. When dams
and reservoirs were finished
in 2006, water flowed in
the village. Lilia works
hard at the next necessary
step. The water pipes are
above ground, some held in
place in the crook of trees,
while others have been
compromised by natural
disasters. Although the
water keeps flowing thanks
to the vigilance and repairs made by villagers, the
pipes need to be upgraded and placed underground to
make them secure for the future.
Lilia’s needs to raise enough money for the upgrade
and to pay for the services of a supervising engineer,
skilled workers, the use of heavy equipment, and
the construction of holding reservoirs. She plans
to return to Ingan in April 2010, ready to complete
the job. She also intends to honor her late father by
formally naming the project for him: “The Felix
Matunog Liquid Springwater Development Project.”
To learn more about the project, contact Lilia and
Carlos Ortega at 360-750-9072
7

Upcoming EvEnts and volUntEEr opportUnitiEs
It’s summer and we need volunteer for outreach! We
will have a great set-up this year at the Clark County
Fair and we need your help. There are at least 50 four
and five-hour shifts to fill for our booth this year. The
Clark County Fair starts Friday, August 7th and runs
through Sunday August 16th. Volunteers will receive
free admission and parking for the fair.
Volunteers can now sign-up on Google Documents
using an excel spreadsheet filled out online. Check my
weekly e-mail for the link and instructions.
Check out our fall classes and workshops:
Watershed Stewards Volunteer training: Wednesday
evenings, September 9th-November 11th
Rain Barrel Construction: Thursday, September 24th
6:30-8:30 p.m., CASEE
Rain Barrel Construction: Monday, November 2nd,
6:30-8:30 p.m., CASEE
Green Cleaning: Thursday, December 10th, 6:30-8:30,
Three Creeks Library
NOTES FROM THE “INFORMATION
COLLECTOR”
When reading one of Jenifer’s e-mail notices
announcing volunteer opportunities, I saw the one
for me - become involved in Watershed Stewards
quarterly newsletter. I saw it as a way to get back to
what I love: researching, interviewing, and writing
articles about people who commit to make their
community a better place to live by being involved,
honoring nature, and helping nature thrive.
This is my second newsletter edition. I have learned
Watershed Stewards are passionate people committed
to making a difference. I have heard this from
everyone I have spoken with. I am not an editor, not
a reporter. I am a “information collector” and the
recipient of great gifts given me by those I have met.
Although I guess I have to use the term “interviewed”,
that is not what I have taken away from these
meetings. The gifts I receive are seeing and feeling the
true passion of my neighbors and new acquaintances.
I look forward to the fall issue,
Leslea Steffel-Dennis
Watershed Stewards Program
Jenifer Naas
Program Coordinator
360-397-6060 x 7703
Jenifer.Naas@Clark.wa.gov
http://clark.wsu.edu/volunteer/ws/
WSU Extension Programs and policies are consistent with federal
and state laws and regulations on nondiscrimination regarding
race, sex, religion, age, color, creed, national or ethnic origin,
physical mental or sensory disability, marital status, sexual
orientation, status as a Vietnam-era or disabled veteran. Evidence of
noncompliance may be reported through your local Extension office.
The Watershed Stewards Program is
jointly funded and sponsored by WSU
Clark County Extension and the Clark
County Clean Water Program and is
paid for through Clark County Clean
Water Fees.
Clean Water Program
www.clark.wa.gov/water-resources
http://clark.wsu.edu