What happens to your sewage and trash after it leaves your home? Visit our facilities to find out. The Sanitation Districts offer tours of our facilities to schools at no cost. This is a unique opportunity for you and your students. You will see, learn, and really experience what happens to your sewage or trash. It's fun, interesting, and educational!

To be eligible to visit our facilities under the School Tour Program, you must meet the following qualifications:

1. You must teach 5^th through 12^th grade at a public or private school. College instructors at accredited four-year universities or community colleges are also eligible.
2. Your school must be located in the Sanitation Districts’ service area to visit our materials recovery facility, landfills or wastewater treatment plants. Our service area encompasses most cities and unincorporated areas in Los Angeles County, but excludes most of the City of Los Angeles and a few other locations. For further information, please contact Julie Patino at 562-908-4288, extension 2300, or at juliepatino@lacsd.org.

How To Book Your Tour

1. Schedule a tour by filling out the Tour Request Form and email it to Julie Patino at least three weeks before your potential tour date. Provide us with three potential tour dates – your preferred date and two back-up choices.
2. We ask that you bring one class or approximately 30 students on the tour. For Grades 5 to 8, we also request that you provide one adult chaperone for every 10 students.
3. Book your bus to reach our facilities. If the cost of the bus is an issue, be sure to read our School Bus Reimbursement Program.
4. Prepare your students for their tour using Follow the Flow: A Teacher's Guide or other materials. Also, review the Tour Safety Guidelines with them.
5. Come and enjoy the tour! Please note that we do not have lunch facilities for students at our sites. However, we would be happy to recommend a local park where you can have lunch. Rainy weather will cancel your tour. We will reschedule your tour, if possible. If you have any questions about weather conditions or to verify whether your tour is cancelled, please contact us.

School Bus Reimbursement Program

The Sanitation Districts reimburse qualifying schools up to $750 of bus transportation costs when visiting one of our facilities. Please note that reimbursement funds are limited and are allocated on a first come, first serve basis. A school is eligible for one bus reimbursement per as follows.

1. Schools must be located within in our Sanitation Districts’ Service Area.
2. School bus must be reserved through and paid by your school or school district to arrive at our facility and have the school/school district pay it. If requested, we will provide a letter of responsibility specifying that we will reimburse payment for the bus rental.
3. Once tour is completed, have your school/school district to send us an invoice for the cost of the bus along with a copy of their current W-9 form, to Julie Patino at juliepatino@lacsd.org.
4. LACSD will reimburse the school / school district directly. Please allow up to three weeks (from date of invoice submission) to receive the reimbursement check. Please note we do not pay bus transportation companies directly.

Frequently Asked Questions