Young environmentalists and artists in Concord have the opportunity to showcase their creativity while promoting an important environmental message. The City of Concord is bringing back its stormwater art contest for students in grades K-12 to raise awareness about stormwater pollution and its impact on local waterways, according to the city's announcement.
Many residents may not realize that stormwater flows unfiltered into rivers and streams, carrying with it a slew of pollutants picked up from urban surfaces—everything from pet waste to oils and sediments can enter the stormwater system, and that pollution is a threat to the health of the local ecosystem and the City of Concord is seeking original artwork from students that can illustrate the importance of keeping pollutants out of the drain; the contest emphasizes the message "only rain down the drain," according to details provided in the City of Concord's announcement.
Those interested in participating should submit their entries by February 16, 2025, and the city has outlined that the artwork should not focus on drinking water but rather on preventing pollutants from contaminating stormwater, entries will be evaluated by a panel of judges and winners from multiple school levels stand a chance to receive awards, with a grand prize winner potentially seeing their art made a permanent fixture on a city storm drain.
The contest winners will be publicly acknowledged on World Water Day, March 22, 2025, and all submitted works will be exhibited at the ClearWater Arts Center and Studios, fostering community engagement and drawing attention to young voices calling for environmental responsibility, as detailed in the initial announcement by the City of Concord.
