FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. — Fort Leonard Wood has a legal obligation to protect the waterways within installation boundaries and does this through a stormwater management program called a municipal separate storm sewer system, or MS4.
The program is responsible for reducing debris and pollutants, as polluted stormwater runoff is commonly transported through municipal storm sewer systems, and is often discharged, untreated, into local water bodies.
Sources of pollutants, such as lawn clippings, may seem harmless, but can cause contaminated water or even affect wildlife across the region.
It takes everyone’s support to ensure pollutants and other forms of waste are disposed of properly.
In addition to conscientious resident and government-run recycling efforts — Fort Leonard Wood has a robust recycling program, with three drop-off locations — experts also regularly collect material from illegal dumping sites, which recovers recyclable materials while also helping to reduce the risk of soil and water contamination.
Other supportive efforts come from initiatives, such as the America Recycles Day event here earlier this month, which collected more than a ton of what’s called e-waste. These types of events provide a teaching moment for participating residents to understand they can be part of the process to protect our waterways.
Fort Leonard Wood residents with questions about how they can be better stewards for the environment are encouraged to contact the installation’s Recycling Center at 573.596.3880, or visit DPW’s recycling page on the Fort Leonard Wood website.
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