Resource Conservation in Your Backyard

Resource conservation is what Green Teams are all about. Teams all around King County are involved in actions that protect, preserve, or renew natural resources. Your actions also educate, showing others in the community the important work you’re doing and inspiring them to do the same. Now more than ever we all must be wise stewards of our natural resources.

Summer is here and school is out, but you can practice resource conservation year round. Here are some resources for Green Team leaders, teachers, and students to support and increase their conservation practices.

For classroom activities and curricula for the coming school year, teachers can find ideas at Teacher Vision. Lessons are available on climate change, rain forests, composting, water conservation, and many other topics.

Teachers and students alike can find useful resources at Backyard Conservation, a project that is a collaborative effort of several agencies, including the National Audubon Society and the Wildlife Habitat Council. Backyard conservation practices are easy and usually inexpensive. They can increase food and shelter for birds and other wildlife, control soil erosion, reduce sediment in waterways, conserve water and improve water quality, inspire a stewardship ethic, and beautify the landscape. Activities can be done by individuals and families and many can be adapted to school gardens.

These tip sheets are available for download:
• Backyard Pond
• Backyard Wetland
• Composting
• Mulching
• Nutrient Management
• Pest Management
• Terracing
• Tree Planting
• Water Conservation
• Wildlife Habitat

Whether you have live in the country, the suburbs, or the city, you can help protect the environment through backyard conservation.

Photo credits:
Asian pear from Growing Greener in the Pacific Northwest
Backyard butterfly garden from Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife