LAUSD: Drought Response Outreach Program

Exploring Low Impact Development Best Management Practices on four L.A. Unified School District Campuses

Background

With the support from the California State Water Resources Control Board, the Drought Response Outreach Program for Schools (DROPS) provided school campuses with the opportunity to implement and demonstrate the multi-benefits of low-impact development (LID) including: reducing stormwater pollution, water conservation, water supply augmentation, energy conservation, and increased awareness of water resources. The DROPS project involved the design and construction of LID Best Management Practices (BMPs) at four Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) schools: Normandie Avenue Elementary School, Northridge Middle School, Victory Boulevard Elementary School, Daniel Webster Middle School. These features included rain gardens, native plants, bioswales, permeable pavers, and cisterns. The DROPS project also supported: water quality monitoring to assess the capture and treatment efficacy of installed BMPs, training LAUSD staff about operation and maintenance needs of installed features, connections between the LID features and STEAM curriculum, and comprehensive outreach efforts to engage and inform faculty, students, and surrounding communities.

Project Role and Partners

Under the management of LAUSD, the Council for Watershed Health (CWH) was responsible for managing education and outreach efforts. Additionally, CWH was responsible for leading monitoring efforts and conducting operations and maintenance trainings. CWH collaborated with partners, the Los Angeles Audubon Society and TreePeople to complete education, outreach, and community engagement tasks.

Thank you to our DROPS project partners!

Project Findings and Metrics

The monitoring approach was to monitor receiving stormwater flows from a bioswale that had already bypassed multiple BMPs. Generally, the LID BMPs met treatment objectives described set forth in the Project Assessment and Evaluation Plan. More specifically, TSS, TN, copper, lead, and zinc (when accounting for flow) were reduced by 40%, with the implementation of the LID BMPS. The removal of metals, total phosphorus, and E. coli was variable and concentrations, at a few schools, increased in post-construction in comparison to pre-construction samples. 

Next Steps 

    Future opportunities include:

    • Holistic long-term performance monitoring of installed BMPs, to include maintenance, water quality and capture, as well as habitat value. 
    • Understand the impact of environmental curriculum and teacher/community engagement on environmental values.
    • Understand the impact of LID-BMPs and curriculum on student performance, focus, play, and thermal comfort in a school yard environment.

Campus Virtual Tours

Resources

Many thanks for our Science and Communications partner for making these storymaps possible!

Thank you to our DROPS project partners!

Many thanks for our Science and Communications partner for making these storymaps possible!