One elementary school just got greener – and that doesn’t mean it got a new paint job.

Going “green” is learning to be more aware of how our actions and decisions contribute to environmental impacts, and then and taking action to make choices to help protect the environment and sustain its natural resources for current and future generations.

Lafayette Elementary, located in the Outer Richmond neighborhood, is now the first-ever recipient of the SFPUC’s Green Infrastructure Grant Program.

The $489,142 grant will help fund stormwater management features by covering the design and construction costs of approximately 2,000 square feet of stormwater dry creek bed and 300 square feet of rain gardens, as well as removal of more than 700 square feet of impervious surface to improve the schoolyard’s performance during wet weather. The project will also include installation of educational signage illustrating the function of green infrastructure and its impact on San Francisco’s urban watersheds and sewer system.

Green infrastructure projects play a critical role in helping the SFPUC reach out long-term sustainability goals. This project will not only improve the school’s stormwater collection system, it will also educate the next generation of residents on the importance of conservation and sustainability.

The program is part of the Agency’s  Sewer System Improvement Program, a multibillion project that will improve, upgrade and replace the City’s 100-year-old underground sewer system. The grant is open to both public and private properties in San Francisco for projects that manage a minimum impervious area of .5 acres.