By Cyndi Ross | Restoration Manager
In the 2024 growing season, Friends of the Rouge, in partnership with community leaders and volunteers, created 13 new rain gardens that work to improve water quality and provide beautiful space for wildlife to thrive and people to enjoy. Six (6) larger scale rain gardens were installed with the following entities:
Rain gardens at these public facing sites allow for a large number of students and residents to learn about the value these special gardens provide to their community. They also do a great job with preventing a large amount of rainwater from flowing into the sewer system – and in these communities – that means less water in overburdened pipes, where wastewater from homes and businesses mixes with rainwater from streets and parking lots as it travels to the wastewater treatment plant. During times of heavy rain there’s more water than the pipes can carry and the slurry of polluted water is released into the Rouge and Detroit Rivers and backs up into residential basements. This is harmful for the health and wellbeing of thousands of households. Rain gardens are a low-cost, nature-based solution that helps to alleviate these backups by keeping rainwater out of the system.
Seven (7) residential rain gardens were created at homes in Dearborn, Detroit, Redford and River Rouge following successful completion of the five-part Rain Gardens to the Rescue training course where they learned all about rain gardens, native plants, garden design and maintenance. During the course, held in June and August 2024, homeowners worked to design their own gardens with advice from experts. They also recruited neighbors, friends and family to help with their garden installations (Aug. – Oct.), which helps to inspire others to create rain gardens of their own.
These amazing gardens would not be possible without funding provided by generous donors, like you. Your contributions, along with grant funding, supports healthy rivers and healthy communities.
With increasingly frequent, heavy rainstorms, your support is more critical than ever to help our communities stay healthy by managing stormwater. Thank you for your continued support of Rain Gardens to the Rescue!
Links:
By Jaclyn Heikkila-Stafiej | Restoration Coordinator
By Jaclyn Heikkila | Restoration Coordinator
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