We are competing in the First Lego League, which is focused on oceans this year. We don’t realize it, but the oceans give us many resources. We gain oxygen from phyto plankton, oil from oil spouts, and even ice cream from seaweed extract. But since all of the pollution of the lakes and rivers, the oceans are becoming a dangerous place for wildlife, and is disrupting the resources we get from it. Think about this the next time you’re eating sushi. The fish comes from the ocean, and the oceans are quite polluted, so you might as well be eating some waste, sediment, and other things I personally don’t think that you would want in your mouth, and into your body. 

We are “acting locally, thinking globally”, which really helps, since we have a major polluted creek in our backyards-literally! In 1969,the Mill Creek was one of the most polluted creeks in America. What happens is when the sewage pipes overflow in certain weather conditions, the sewer pipes flow into the Mill Creek. Eventually, The Mill Creek flows into the Ohio River, which goes into the Mississippi river, that goes into the Gulf of Mexico.

What we are doing:

•   We are planting a rain garden at our school.

• We are making a website to inform people.

• In the spring, we will put stickers on sewage drains to promote waterway health.

What you can do:

• Conserve water in serious weather conditions

• Instead of taking a twenty minute shower, which takes about thirty-five to forty gallons of water, take a five minute shower which takes ten to fifteen gallons of water.

• Do not pour chemicals into your kitchen sink or toilet.

• You can make a rain garden. For more information on rain gardens, refer to rain garden page.

• You can have a container at the bottom of your drainpipe to catch water to water plants. You can have a barrel, or any other type of container.