Michigan’s severe storms highlight urgent need for better water management – What you can do
A native plant garden and rain barrel (Amber Eikenberry/FOX 2)
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Oakland County is encouraging residents to add green infrastructure like rain barrels and native plant gardens to their properties to help keep rainwater out of the sewer system.
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These can help reduce flooding and the amount of contaminants that get into our water.
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Residents who live in the George W. Kuhn Drain Drainage District can get help with adding rain barrels, gardens, and trees through the RainSmart Rebates program.
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Oakland County is encouraging residents to add green infrastructure like rain barrels and native plant gardens to their properties to help keep rainwater out of the sewer system.
-
These can help reduce flooding and the amount of contaminants that get into our water.
-
Residents who live in the George W. Kuhn Drain Drainage District can get help with adding rain barrels, gardens, and trees through the RainSmart Rebates program.
FOX 2: Oakland County, MichiganA program that is just starting off will cover the cost of adding a garden to your house, which will benefit your neighborhood as well as you.
Residents of the George W. Kuhn Drain Drainage District can use the program to establish native trees, rain barrels, and rain gardens in their yards.
The advantages of installing these in your house can extend beyond your backyard, even if you don’t reside in the drainage district.
Flooding woes and contaminated water
In addition to being aesthetically pleasing, rain gardens with native plants also aid in rerouting rainfall away from the sewer system.
Reasons to be concerned:
Previously known as the Twelve Towns Drainage District, the George W. Kuhn Drain Drainage District is a combined sewer system. In a combined system, stormwater and wastewater go to a wastewater treatment plant via the same pipes, referred to as gray infrastructure.
This implies that the system may become overloaded during times of heavy precipitation, such as those Metro Detroit has been experiencing more regularly. The outcome?
August 2020 flooding in Royal Oak
According to Jim Nash, commissioner of water resources for Oakland County, “these larger storms are going to be relentless over the years, and we have to be prepared.” “We have to recognize that these things are going to need to be done and more and more communities are working on this.”
Additionally, there is a higher chance that pollutants will enter the system.
Furthermore, contamination remains a significant problem even in areas with distinct stormwater and wastewater systems, according to Nash. In a different system, precipitation enters lakes and rivers, carrying with it any pollutants it may come into contact with, including asphalt from parking lots.
Green infrastructure can help with it.
How rain barrels and gardens help
Reduction of Flooding:
“The more you keep it (water) from getting into these storms and sewers, the less likely you will have enough get into them that they’ll back up,” Nash stated.
In contrast to the native plants that comprise rain gardens, some of which have roots that reach 20 to 30 feet below the surface, he continued, grass has very shallow roots. When it rains a lot, this makes a big difference.
August 2020 flooding in Royal Oak
“It attempts to follow roots to soak in rain once it strikes the ground. The root structure of a typical grass just fills up after a quarter of an inch of rain. According to Nash, “it (water) kind of sheds off that like it would if it were concrete.” “Many of the native plants that are planted in these rain gardens have roots that can reach a depth of 20 to 30 feet. These plants have considerably deeper roots. Thus, it has the ability to transport water far down, even through the clay that is abundant here.
The outcome? Your yard will not flood as much.
Trees function similarly, with the added advantage that water is captured by their leaves before it can reach the ground.
Water from downspouts can be collected in barrels, while the roots of native plants absorb rainfall that falls on the yard. You can save money and water by using the gathered rainwater to irrigate plants after it has passed.
“This is a longterm answer that’s much more efficient and inexpensive than the old gray infrastructure, and it can be just part of the process that we’re going to have between gray and green to deal with these large storms,” Nash stated.
Benefits of Pollinators:
Do you want your yard to be home to more wildlife? Include native plants.
“A rain garden is perfect for pollinators,” Nash stated. “Bees and butterflies, and birds come and eat the bees and butterflies.”
Neighborhoods gain advantages and beauty as a result.
It’s appealing. It’s ambient. In the neighborhood, it looks good,” Nash remarked. “It’s a reprieve in neighborhoods that often are a house, a little bit of grass, and the rest is impervious.”
RainSmart Rebates program
Residents of Berkley, Beverly Hills, Birmingham, Clawson, Ferndale, Hazel Park, Huntington Woods, Madison Heights, Oak Park, Pleasant Ridge, Royal Oak, Royal Oak Township, Southfield, or Troy are eligible to participate in the RainSmart Rebates program.
Residents who plant native trees, rain gardens, and barrels in their yards can receive grants and refunds through RainSmart refunds.
According to Nash, one of the program’s main goals is to inform people about the value and advantages of having green infrastructure in their homes.
“As we were planning for our long term response to the more extreme storms that are going to come with climate change, we were looking for ways to to help educate the public around this,” he stated.
The first year of the RainSmart Rebates pilot program, which aims to assist Oakland County households in managing stormwater through the installation of rain barrels, rain gardens, and other green stormwater infrastructure, has recently ended.
According to Nash, the program’s inaugural year last year was a huge success.
“We were hoping to get 100 people to sign up when we started this time last year, and we ended up with 500 people signed up,” he stated. “It was a huge response.”
Based on the figures:
According to the county, $60,000 in refunds were given out last year for the installation of green infrastructure, with participants receiving an average of $500 each. Grants totaling $16,000 were also given out.
That money was used as follows:
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Rain barrels installed: 159
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Native trees planted: 98
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Rain gardens installed: 49
The county estimates that these initiatives will handle 605,000 gallons of stormwater per year.
What you are able to do:
RainSmart Rebates for this year go live on March 1.
Participants in the program must pay $25 to the Clinton River Watershed Council for a site assessment. Before homeowners start setting up their gardens and barrels, this evaluation will offer suggestions on how to incorporate green infrastructure into their homes.
You may find out if you qualify for the program as you wait for applications to open.
Next steps:
According to Nash, the county is looking to the Environmental Protection Agency for grant funding in order to expand the program to further towns.
The Source: For this report, FOX 2 spoke with Jim Nash, the commissioner of water resources for Oakland County. Additionally, details from a press release regarding the RainSmart Rebates program were utilized.