Last week was Public Works Week, and the American Public Works Association’s 2025 theme was “People, Purpose, Presence.” These “cornerstone ideals” explain the value and relevance of many public works programs, including programs which benefit our environment.

On Tuesday, May 20, dozens of county workers led interactive activities and made presentations at booths in the courtyard adjacent to the circular driveway at the Ventura County Government Center. Previous years’ events were in a parking lot; this year’s relocation was due to solar panel construction. Led by 80 Public Works Agency tour guides, almost 1,000 students from local schools and approximately 300 other visitors engaged with public works representatives at dozens of booths and displays, many of which were focused on the environment.

The county’s Integrated Waste Management Division, where I work, set up a booth focusing on organic gardening. We taught about using compost and mulch, and we demonstrated a vermiculture box, using worms to make compost from food scraps. We know few people will practice vermiculture at home, instead preferring to use their curbside organics collection cart for food scraps, but the demonstration helped explain the soil cycle and the value of compost. This supported the activity that followed, as we distributed pots with seeds and organic soil, including compost.

Compost in soil retains water, improves plant health and reduces erosion, but Cortney Rasura, who coordinated this booth, also had another public policy purpose in mind when conceptualizing the activities. The division is educating people about compost and mulch, partly to increase demand for these products. Meeting mandates for climate change emission reduction diverts over 200,000 tons of organic waste away from Ventura County landfills each year, and these food scraps and yard clippings are being made into compost and mulch, so increasing the use of these beneficial materials is important to balance supply and demand so programs will remain cost effective.

The agency’s Watershed Protection District led several activities focused on the environment. Staff showed how they maintain equipment used to monitor rainfall, stream flow and lake levels. Using their Rock ’n’ Roll Sediment Transport Game, staff explained how dams prevent sediment movement from the mountains to the ocean, leading to beach erosion.

Using another game, Watershed Protection staff taught how pollinators help plants. Students created and colored their own butterfly, adding completed works to an overwintering tree. Finally, staff demonstrated pervious concrete. The material is similar to conventional concrete, except it has void spaces and lets stormwater through for subsurface infiltration when it rains. This avoids runoff pollution of the ocean and helps store more water underground for future use.

The agency’s Water and Sanitation Department, which provides drinking water and treats wastewater, demonstrated water quality testing. Engineering Services demonstrated flood prevention techniques, and Central Services’ Human Resources Division provided career information.

Kids flocked to the Roads and Transportation Department’s large vehicles. As heavy equipment operator Gene Cabral made his Gradall’s massive articulating arm delicately lift a traffic cone, he explained, “I use the Gradall to pick up things like illegally dumped mattresses and construction debris from roadside ditches, loading it into a dump truck.” After storms, when people abandon broken boats, Cabral puts the equipment into wrecking mode, smashing boats into pieces he loads into dump trucks.

The Ventura County Sheriff’s and Ventura County Fire departments also provided exhibits and activities.

Local cities also held Public Works Week events last week. The city of Oxnard’s event, on Wednesday, May 21, included booths with interactive activities, teaching about services provided by the city. It included large trucks used for garbage, sewage, tree trimming and roads. The city of Ventura’s event, on May 22, also featured trucks, with an invitation to “Touch a Truck.”

At the city of Thousand Oaks’ two-day event, Monday, May 19 and Tuesday, May 20, at the city’s Municipal Service Center, children and adults toured the facility, learning how the city maintains infrastructure. This included demonstrations of tree maintenance, graffiti removal, street repair, recycling, bicycle safety, water operations and wastewater collection.

More information can be found at the county’s website, publicworks.venturacounty.gov, and at the website for the city of Ventura, www.cityofventura.ca.gov/PublicWorks.

David Goldstein, Environmental Resource Analyst with the Ventura County Public Works Agency, may be reached at 805-658-4312 or david.goldstein@ventura.org.