During their May 18 meeting, Forsyth County Board of Commissioners recognized three local students, Apryl Milam of the Department of Recycling & Solid Waste and Keep Forsyth County Beautiful (KFCB) for their efforts to help promote water quality and conservation.

Storm Drain Art Contest Winners

Three local students were recognized for being the recent winners of the second annual Storm Drain Art Contest, including Akshata Joshi (South Forsyth Middle School), Abby Hudson (Piney Grove Middle School) and Vidhi Mehta (South Forsyth High School). The contest, sponsored by the Forsyth County Department of Water & Sewer and KFCB, called for current Forsyth County Schools students to submit original artwork that beautifies the community, educates about water quality and clearly enhances the theme “Only Rain Goes Down the Drain.”

The three contest winners received $100 in compensation for their work, certificates of recognition and have painted their designs on designated storm drains at their schools, highlighting the importance of watershed health and keeping the waterways of Forsyth County clean. To learn more about this year’s Storm Drain Art Contest, visit KFCB’s website here.

L to R: Commissioner Kerry Hill, Storm Drain Art Contest winners Akshata Joshi, Abby Hudson and Vidhi Mehta, Commissioner Laura Semanson and Chairman Alfred John.

Apryl Milam Recognized with Adopt-A-Stream Award

Recycling and Solid Waste employee, Apryl Milam, was recognized with an Innovation in Adopt-A-Stream award for developing a resource that furthers the mission of Adopt-A-Stream. Apryl created and implemented changes on the Chattahoochee, a multi-state, student-led, community science project that investigates and documents pollutants on the Chattahoochee River. Last fall students in four counties and two states spent their morning conducting water quality testing at various locations along the entire length of the Chattahoochee River – from Helen, Ga., to Apalachicola, Fla. To learn more about the Adopt-A-Stream program, visit KFCB’s website here.

Apryl Milam displays her Innovation in Adopt-A-Stream award with Commissioner Kerry Hill (left), Commissioner Laura Semanson and Chairman Alfred John

KFCB Recognized with Adopt-A-Stream Watershed Award

Keep Forsyth County Beautiful (KFCB) was recognized for recently being awarded a 2022 Adopt-A-Stream Watershed Award from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division, which recognizes government agencies that have exceeded standards in implementing the five goals of the Adopt-A-Stream program.

In 2022 KFCB’s water quality educational programs reached 5,171 students and 531 adults. KFCB Adopt-A-Stream trainers certified 19 students and 39 adults in Adopt-A-Stream volunteer workshops. They also launched two monofilament recycling and recovery collection sites on Lake Lanier. KFCB hosted two clean-up sites for Lake Lanier Association’s annual Shore Sweep clean-up event. Also, 528 volunteers collected 12.1 tons of trash from the shores of the lake and the Chattahoochee River. To learn more about the Adopt-A-Stream program, visit KFCB’s website here.

L to R: KFCB Board Member Don Bailey, Forsyth County Manager of Environmental Programs Tammy Wright and Recycling & Solid Waste Department employee Apryl Milam stand with Commissioner Kerry Hill, Commissioner Laura Semanson and Chairman Alfred John