A Green inspiration

Re “Dorothy Green, 1929-2008,” Oct. 14

Dorothy Green was an inspiration for all of us in the environmental movement. I was fortunate to have her as a mentor and a supporter when I ran for the L.A. City Council in 2001.

She has left an indelible mark on Southern California. Her efforts on behalf of the preservation of our watershed and beaches are significant.

Los Angeles and the environs is a better place because of Dorothy Green.

Francine Oschin

Encino

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In 1996, Dorothy initiated discussions that resulted in the formation of the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers Watershed Council. Her genius was in bringing together different players in the water world to talk about solving our problems.

She was one of the few activists who could engage all of the players; the Watershed Council was founded to facilitate these discussions and collaborative activities. Dorothy served as president of the board of directors from 1996 through 2002 and continued on the board’s executive committee as president emeritus until her passing.

Dorothy saw the need to capture storm water for recharge to augment drinking water supplies, and conceived a research project to study this thesis, which the Watershed Council has led since 2000. The study results have shown that we can safely recharge storm water into our underground drinking water supplies, providing the scientific basis for moving ahead on building so-called Green Streets.

Changing the way we manage storm water by allowing it to percolate into the ground returns multiple benefits -- reduced flooding, increased water supplies and improved water quality -- at a lower cost. This too was Dorothy’s vision, which she taught to me and so many others, and is another part of her legacy.

Nancy L.C. Steele

Los Angeles

The writer is executive director of the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers Watershed Council.