On Tuesday, March 9 Brooklyn Centre Naturalists and Friends of Big Creek will join forces to bring the NEO community a mini-symposium called “Putting the 'U' in Urban Watershed Stewardship”. Usually, when we talk about urban watershed issues, we look at the big picture, but at this symposium, FOBC and BCN have decided to explore how an individual can impact our Greater Cleveland watershed in a positive way by action and deed.

The topics discussed will include storm water management, creating healthy backyard and public environments for wildlife through the use of native plants and organic gardening practices, and an understanding of how water quality can be improved through individual action.

Brooklyn Centre Naturalists received one of 58 grants awarded by Reimagining Greater Cleveland: Vacant Land Reuse Project.This project is a collaboration between the City of Cleveland Community Development Department and Neighborhood Progress, Inc. with technical assistance from The Ohio State Extension Service and ParkWorks.

The projects this year are the first ones granted, and therefore, are the pilot program for the Vacant Land Use portion of Cleveland’s returning vacant land to more productive use. BCN submitted a proposal for two parcels of land in Brooklyn Centre—one will be “a native garden in an urban space” and the other will be “a forest trail in the city”. If the Reimagining Cleveland project interests you, you will want attend the symposium to see Joe Mestnik, a partner of Firefly Architecture unveil the plans for the two vacant lots and discuss the advantages of using native plants in private and public landscapes. If you have considered certifying your backyard as a habitat, but are not sure what that entails, Terry Duncan, National Wildlife Habitat steward’s talk about how easy it is to become a habitat will help you over the hump.

And, as we all know storm water runoff is a major issue in our region. Lisa Duncan, a naturalist for the City of Fairlawn, will discuss her passion for Rain Gardens-Big and small- and will show us unique ways to deal with wet areas in our landscapes. John Rakauskas’s presentation, a local architect’s view on storm water mitigation, will help us incorporate “trickle down” methods of storm water control. John will look at some permeable paving practices that, along with rain gardens and other measures, can help slow down and reduce the volume, and improve the quality of the storm water entering our streams

Small acts can impact our environment in big ways. Anyone who attends this mini-symposium will walk away with several good ideas that can be put to use. Each individual will be able to choose actions that will help improve the water quality in our region. Each person attending will gain knowledge that can be used to help improve our lives. There will be time to ask questions and share best practices.

The Symposium will be held at the Reinberger Education Center at the Metroparks Zoo on Tuesday, March 9 from 6 pm to 8:30 pm. Please register at bcnaturalists@gmail.com or call 216-351-0254. Deadline for reservations is March 3.