Becoming a Mississippi River Water Quality Action Hero
P
oet.
Biologist. Organizer. Advocate. Water quality steward. Blogger.
Beginner. Meet Cole Williams, Mississippi River neighbor and fan.
For Williams, a move to the river's edge in Newport just south of South St. Paul several years ago both shocked and awakened the river-lover within. Since then, her 150 feet of riverfront has been her water quality teacher.
The sheer amount of plastic that landed in her front yard after her first winter inspired her to ask "What is the water system?" Once she learned that all of the city's storm drains go directly into the river, she was inspired to take on this ?big world problem.? She began painting storm drains, avoiding single-use plastics, becoming a drop-off site for hard plastics, dedicating part of her lawn to pervious surfaces, while continuing to collect leaves, grass-clippings and dog waste.