What does it mean to make your home green for stormwater? Green stormwater practices around your home use plants, soils, and other elements to manage water quality and mimic the natural water cycle. Green stormwater practices retain, detain, filter, harvest, and infiltrate stormwater runoff to create healthier urban environments.

Incorporating green infrastructure provides many benefits such as improving water quality by removing pollutants, habitat preservation for native plants and animals, decreasing urbanization stream impacts, and overall enhancement of neighborhood aesthetics. The following is a list of management practices that landowners can incorporate on their own property to help control and keep stormwater clean. (Sources: Penn State Extension, United States Environmental Protection Agency)

• Downspout Disconnect/Redirect - If your downspouts are directed onto a paved or concrete surface or are directly connected to the storm drain system, look for opportunities to redirect them to lawn and garden areas if community ordinances allow. Just be sure that all downspouts are directed away from foundations to avoid basement flooding.
• Rain Barrels - Rain barrels capture and hold water until it can be used or slowly released into planted areas. For rain barrels to be effective at controlling stormwater, it is important to have a plan for using the water before installing one.
• Planting A Stream Buffer - Planting water loving trees, shrubs and/or other native plants is a great way to reduce stormwater runoff. If you have a stream on your property, planting along the stream will help prevent the stream from eroding away your property. The more plants the better! At the very least don't mow your lawn directly up to the edge of the streambank.
• Meadows Plantings or Turf Alternatives - If trees aren't an option on your property, adding other types of plants is a good substitute. Any areas where lawn can be replaced with native ornamental grasses, flowers, and/or shrubs will have a positive impact on controlling stormwater on your property. Whether large or small, these purposefully planted areas will increase the ability of the land to absorb water. Meadow/turf alternative areas can be a great way to reduce the amount of time you spend mowing the grass and can be placed in the areas that are the most difficult to mow.
• Pervious Pavers - Pervious pavers can look very similar to a traditional brick or stone patio, sidewalk, or driveway. The difference is that they are installed with a thick stone base that provides space for water to be stored until it soaks into the ground. They are great for converting hard surfaces that usually make a lot of stormwater runoff, into a surface that absorbs, manages, and reduces that runoff. If you're interested in this, you should probably contact a professional landscaper.
• Rain Gardens - One of the best options for managing stormwater on your property is to install a rain garden. A rain garden is a depressed area in the landscape that collects rainwater from a roof, driveway or street and allows it to soak into the ground. Planted with grasses and flowering perennials, rain gardens can be a cost effective and beautiful way to reduce runoff from your property. Rain gardens can also help filter out pollutants in runoff and provide food and shelter for butterflies, songbirds and other wildlife.

Many of these projects you can tackle on your own. To learn how to build a rain garden on your own property, Warren County SWCD will be hosting the Master Rain Gardener program which is a 6 day course that takes place over 7 weeks. During the course, students are guided through the rain garden design and installation process by experienced regional professionals. The course costs $50. Warren County residents are free by calling 513-695-1337 before registering and students are eligible for 50% discount by calling 513-772-7645. If you have complicated stormwater issues on your property, consider getting help from an engineer, Soil and Water District professional, OSU Extension professional, and/or landscape professional. Also, be sure to check local ordinances to ensure that different management practices are allowed in your area.

For more information regarding green infrastructure for the home, Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District programs and/or technical assistance on water or soil questions, visit http://warrenswcd.com or call, 513-695-1337. 

In the last few years we have experienced record rainfall events. While rainfall (otherwise known as stormwater) is a natural occurrence, unfortunately our environment is not always in a “natural” state. In other words, we have developed areas such as roads, sidewalks, roof tops, parking lots and other impervious surfaces where stormwater does not have a chance to soak down into our soil. This stormwater becomes runoff and picks up pollutants from our lawns and streets (examples - vehicle emissions, oil residue, grass clippings, pesticides, leaves, and pet waste) and enters our lakes and streams by way of storm drains thus causing water pollution and impairments within our local bodies of water.

Stormwater runoff is the number one threat to our water quality according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. How can we help? Below are some simple management ideas that could be implemented within the landscape to help store and clean some of this stormwater thus lessening the amount of water entering our stormwater sewer systems. 

Utilizing Rain Barrels
Rain barrels connect to downspouts to collect rain water. The collected water can then be used to water gardens, and be used as grey water for washing outdoor items.  Water collected from rain barrels is not for human consumption, however.  Some of the other benefits of rain barrels include:

• Safely and efficiently reducing water use and water bills.
• Protecting our local water ways by reducing the amount of rain that enters drains during major storms.
• Potentially improving plant health because stormwater does not contain chlorine as municipal water sources do.
• Using less water in our yard conserving limited freshwater resources in the future.

Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District will be offering a free online webinar on Tuesday, June 23 @ 2pm.   Register for this event at https://www.warrenswcd.com/rain-barrel-webinar.html

Creating a Rain Garden
Rain gardens are a unique feature that can be added to the landscape and is disguised as a flower garden. They have many benefits that include: providing wildlife habitat, providing nectar and pollen sources for pollinators, transforming rainfall runoff into a resource rather than a nuisance, and improving storm water quality as it is infiltrated and redistributed through soils.

Rain gardens are purposefully located to maximize the amount of stormwater runoff that flows into the garden rather than off the property. It is important to note that it is not just a garden bed. Garden size, depth, slope, soil amendments and drainage all need to be considered before putting a shovel into the ground.
Plants that thrive in your landscape and in southwest Ohio should be considered. Native plants are good choices because they tend to offer more benefits to pollinators and have better survivability in native soils.

To help prepare your rain garden’s site, check out the following resources:

• Central Ohio Rain Gardens - http://www.centralohioraingardens.org/
• Blue Thumb Planting for Clean Water - https://bluethumb.org/raingardens/
• Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District - https://www.warrenswcd.com/rain-gardens.html

For more detailed information on building a rain garden, Warren County Soil and Water Conservation District will be offering a free online webinar on Tuesday, July 28 @ 12pm. Register for this event at https://www.warrenswcd.com/operation-rain-garden.html
Before putting any of these water management strategies into place, please check local ordinances to make sure you understand what is allowable. For more questions regarding rain barrels and rain gardens, contact us!  513-695-1337.

Calling all artists! The 6th annual Rain Barrel Art Project has begun and we are looking for individuals or groups to submit ideas of art they would like to paint on a rain barrel. The entry period is open until January 22. Click here to submit your idea.

2018 Project Timeline 
Nov. 15 (of 2017) to Jan. 22 - Entry Period (Click here to submit artwork)
Jan. 23 to Jan. 29 - Selection Period
Feb 10 - Artist Workshop @ The Cincinnati Zoo
Feb. 10 to Mar. 29 - Painting Period
Mar. 29 to Mar 31 - Rain Barrel Dropoff @ The Cincinnati Zoo
​Apr. 1 - Apr. 19 - Rain Barrels Displayed @ The Cincinnati Zoo
Apr. 9 to 19 - Rain Barrel Art Online Auction 
April 19 - Party for the Planet, Auction Finale, and Artist Reception 

How do I participate?
1. Go to the entry form and submit your idea for approval.
2. If your design is approved, attend the artist workshop on February 10.
3. Pick up your rain barrel at the end of the workshop. 
4. Return your rain barrel by Mar. 31 and visit it at the Cincinnati Zoo.

What happens after I return the barrel?
1. Barrels are displayed throughout the Zoo between April 1 and April 19.
2. Barrels will be auctioned online between April 9 and April 19.  
3. The money raised from the auction will be used for environmental education at SaveLocalWaters.org and at the Zoo.

Rain barrels continue to grow in popularity across the country. However, one of its biggest drawbacks is their dull appearance. Some people are less likely to use them given the lack of aesthetic value they offer to residential and commercial landscaping, even though they conserve water and save money. We believe that producing beautiful artistic rain barrels that have unique painted details will make them more desirable and naturally  promote their use. 

The Rain Barrel Art Project is designed to educate people on environmental issues like storm water runoff, watersheds and water conservation. To learn more about this project and other stormwater education campaigns visit SaveLocalWaters.org