Mira Loma HS Wins Grant for Watershed Projects

More than $6,000 in grants are going to San Juan Unified schools to educate students about the importance of local creeks and rivers, inspiring them to find solutions for storm water pollution.

The annual awards are sponsored by the Sacramento County Stormwater Quality Program.

will receive a grant for $2,500. Mira Loma’s project will target the preservation and restoration of Arcade Creek, a 16-mile creek that stretches from Orangevale to the North Natomas Canal, by seeking solutions to storm water pollution.

Raising community awareness of the creek’s health is a big part of the project, with planned presentations to elementary and middle school students and the community at large. High school students also will develop curricula regarding the creek’s condition centered on how it is impacted by pollution and ways it can be restored.

One way is that students will plant native plant species along the creek.

"First, (the grant) validates the commitment and effort of our students and staff," said Mira Loma principal Rich Nichols. "Second, the funds will be used to further the three main focuses of the Creek Project: collection of scientific data to determine the overall health of the creek, spreading the word to the community through educational outreach and restoring and preserving the health of the creek through unified student efforts."

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Carmichael Patch editor Victor Calderon contributed to this report.