CORVALLIS, Ore. – If you have a lemon, make lemonade. In Oregon, if you have excess rainwater, make a rain garden.
The Oregon Rain Garden Guide, produced by Oregon Sea Grant at Oregon State University, is the state’s first stormwater management resource for both novices and expert landscapers. An increasing number of Oregonians are disconnecting downspouts, building rain collection barrels and planting rain gardens to harvest water from their businesses, schools and front yards, according to co-author Robert Emanuel, an Oregon Sea Grant Extension specialist.
Rain gardens are sunken beds that absorb and treat stormwater runoff from rooftops, driveways and other paved surfaces. Runoff does not soak into the ground; instead it flows directly into sewers and surface waterways, such as streams or lakes. Landscaped rain gardens intercept runoff to reduce floods, recharge drinking water – and filter oil, garden chemicals and other pollutants. Rain gardens also provide wildlife habitat.
The need for an uncomplicated, step-by-step guide for stormwater management motivated Emanuel and a team of experts. “We needed a book, something polished, that our workshop participants could take into the field,” said Emanuel.
In the past year, Emanuel and Sea Grant Extension colleague Derek Godwin have helped coordinate about 20 “Stormwater Solutions” workshops around Oregon, from the southern coast to Portland. Builders, developers, civil engineers, city planners and other land development professionals learn from case studies about permits, site design and costs. The techniques and plants described by the guide are showcased in demonstration sites at churches, parks, private homes, businesses and even a day care center.
