Mt. Airy Rain Catchers

Year Two/Three for Mt. Airy Rain Catchers

In 2007, we installed rain gardens and rain barrels throughout Mt. Airy. These are now almost two years old. Last year, we added more and those are coming into their second year. Now we are in the maintenance phase on the rain gardens (homeowners maintain the barrels) and are learning a lot.

The first year of maintenance is a battle with weeds to gain control of the ground. There was also some settling of the ground around some gardens and that needed repair. A few gardens didn't drain well and had to be repaired. Deer are eating our plants and in some spots it's a bigger problem than others, but generally they don't completely kill the plants.

We were pleasantly surprised with the faster-than-expected growth of our native plants from 2007. They looked pretty vulnerable when planted as plugs just a few inches high—in a drought, too, but by July they were big—some were six feet tall (boneset is one that really reaches for the sky). We planted larger plants to start off in 2008, so it will be interesting to see how the two phases compare. As the plants grow—both the top growth and the roots, weeds are less of a problem and the drainage improves.

Now that we have a lot more gardens to maintain, it's harder to get them all done in a short period, especially with rain delays. Spring maintenance that was planned for April/May is being done in May and June.

EPA is continuing to gather data for their study and recently gave a presentation to the Ohio Stormwater Conference on this project. See the Research Results page for other reports prepared so far. Since this is a multi-year research project, the final results won't be ready for a while. Owners should be proud to be a part of this important effort to understand green technologies and improve our streams and rivers. (Updated June 2009)

Welcome to the Mt. Airy Rain Catchers Project. This is your one-stop shop to learn about the project and find information on rain gardens and rain barrels. Here, you can learn about the advantages of catching rain in your yard and catching rain can improve the environment. Questions or concerns? Feel free to contact your local project-leader.

The Mt. Airy Rain Catchers Project

The Rain Catchers project offered home owners the chance to receive an exciting, natural landscape feature that uses less water, fewer chemicals and, most importantly, less time to maintain than the average lawn. The installation was free of charge including three years of maintenance!

Many Mt. Airy residents chose to have one or more rain barrels installed to collect and store rainfall from the roof. During a rainfall, each barrell collected 55 to 75 gallons of rain water for use in the yard and garden.

The benefits of rain catchers extend beyond the yard to the drainage ways and area streams. When you catch the rain water and let it soak into the ground, less of it will run off onto the hillsides and ditches. Less water running off means less soil erosion, reduced flooding, and better water quality downstream.

Mt. Airy Rain Catchers Brochure (PDF file)

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How Can Rainfall Pollute?

Rainfall causes pollution problems in our communities because it runs off paved areas where it collects and transports soil, pet waste, salt, pesticides, fertilizer, oil and grease, litter and other pollutants. This stormwater flows directly into nearby creeks and streams without receiving treatment at sewage plants. Polluted stormwater contaminates our local creeks and streams (for example, Shepherd Creek), which affects recreation, fish and wildlife habitat, and aesthetic value.

Overloaded storm drains also lead to local flooding and flooding-related damage to our properties and communities. We pay the increasing costs of stormwater runoff problems: flood damage (to buildings and also roads), water pollution, lost recreational value, dwindling ground water supplies and harm to native fish and wildlife.

Rain gardens can help prevent these runoff problems by allowing more rainfall to soak into the ground– about 30 percent more rainfall will soak into a rain garden than a conventional lawn. In fact, you can think of rain gardens as “a beautiful solution to pollution.”

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Advantages of Catching Rain in Your Yard

Some of the best things in life are free—rainfall included. Sadly, the average yard does not fully use this free resource, allowing precious summer rain to run down paved driveways and straight into our storm drains.

Everyone uses lots of water in the summertime. And like most resources, water is hardly cheap. Up to 40 percent of a household water bill, especially in the summer, is used for yard and lawn maintenance. Photo of a butterfly. Property containing a rain garden or a rain barrel will use less water and fewer chemicals—meaning you can save on water bills and yard maintenance costs. Local water quality will benefit from a decrease in chemical pollutants and lowered runoff will decrease local flooding. As a bonus, rain gardens are attractive and add aesthetic value to any garden or property.

A beauty to the eye and a boon to the environment, this landscape feature is a fun, innovative way to put rainfall to use in growing beautiful wildflowers and native plants.