Many people see stormwater as a major nuisance. Rain interrupts our plans, causes wet lawns and in some cases, significant flooding in our communtiies.

But the water that falls from the sky is also the only water available to refill our wells and the groundwater supplies that our communities rely upon. Managing stormwater so that it has an opportunity to infiltrate down through the soil and stone until it joins the local aquifer is critical to ensuring that our water supplies are maintained through periods of drought and so that we have sufficient water supplies to allow economic growth.

Whether you own and manage hundreds of acres or have a tidy but small town lot, you can do a great deal to improve the quality of the water that recharges local groundwater and creek systems.

In the past, stormwater management techniques emphasized removing water quickly from a parcel, rushing large volumes of run-off to local streams. These techniques created high velocity streams of water that quickly eroded stream banks. Fast moving stormwater also picks up and carries lots of pollution from our lawns, farms and roads and generally turning excellent creeks and aquatic habitats into little more that open storm sewers.

The key to proper stormwater management is slowing the rate of run-off and allowing enough time for rainwater to infiltrate into the ground rather than running off into gutters and stormdrains. Local soils help filter many impurities out of the water. As more water infiltrates into the soil, stormwater run-off is slowed and streambank and swale erosion is minimized. So creeks end up much healthier with better habitats and fewer pollutants. 

And its possible to do all these things while creating beautiful scenary as well. 

Rain Gardens: A rain garden is an area designed to allow stormwater to stand a short time while it slowly infiltrates into the ground. These can be constructed to fit into the larger landscape and add beauty to your yard all year long. http://www.stormh2o.com/may-2008/rain-gardens-management.aspx http://www.montgomeryconservation.org/barrel_program.htm

Rain Barrels: Rain barrels are an old idea. Most homesteads, farms and even urban homes once had a rain barrel or cistern to store rainwater for other uses. Rain water is "soft water" and is very easy on plants and even cars. Even if you don't use the rainwater in the barrel for any specific purpose, you can reduce the negative impacts of stormwater by allowing the rain barrel to empty slowly.
http://www.montgomeryconservation.org/barrel_program.htm

Natural Stormbasins: Many communities own stormwater detention basins as part of their open space. Basins are generally maintained throughout the growing season by mowing but homeowner's associations must also ensure that the basin continues to function properly year after year. Between the weekly mowing and regular inspections or retrofits, this can be a large expense for the community. Even worse, the expense of reconstructing a basin and possibly, repairing any properties downstream of a malfunctioning basin, can become extremely expensive and could include engineering and legal costs as well.

Standard basins that are little more than a large depression in the ground are the most expensive to maintain. Sometimes referred to as "bombcrater" basins, these structures do little to protect creeks from erosion, pollutants and water heated by pavement and roofs. "Bombcrater" basins also require weekly mowing from spring through the fall and provide absolutely no value to the landscape in terms of habitat.

The answer is a natural basin. In most cases all that is required is the introduction of native trees, shrubs and wildflowers and the elimination of weekly mowing. The introduction of the plants slows the rainwater and allows it more time to infiltrate into the ground rather than flow through the basin. The plants also help filter out the pollutants from our driveways, roads and parking lots that have negatively impact aquatic habitats.