UCity Workshop ~ Get a Rain Barrel for Your Home
Guest Post by Theodore Smith
What is a Rain Barrel?
A rain barrel is a barrel that can be used to capture excess rainwater from a business or home.
The rain barrels are connected to one’s gutter system, by means of a downspout extender, putting the rainwater into the barrel. A typical rain barrel connects to a building’s downspout, has a spigot for the controlled release of the water, and a outflow hose to release excess water when the barrel becomes too full.
The barrels that the River des Peres Watershed Coalition (RdPWC) uses are made of plastic and can hold up to 55 gallons at full capacity.
Why Capture Rain Water in a Rain Barrel?
By using rain barrels to capture water, it reduces the amount of water that goes into Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District’s sewer system.
If more than 20% of a watershed is covered in impervious surfaces then the watershed is at high risk of becoming degraded from non-point sources of pollution.
Impervious surfaces are surface materials that do not allow water to seep into the ground, examples are concrete and asphalt, that make up roads, driveways, and parking lots. Non-point pollution are pollution sources that can not be identified to a specific place, so it can be mixture of items from old furniture, plastic bags, motor oil, and other discarded items for everyday life.
Since University City is an urbanized area, the River des Peres is considered a degraded river.
Much of MSD sewer infrastructure is a combined sewer system, which means that the sewer lines carry both sanitary waste and rainwater; in these systems there are wall overflow structures to prevent unsanitary water to emptying into our area lakes, creeks, and rivers.
The water in a combined sewer system is sent to a waste water treatment facility and released after treatment. During dry weather periods this system works relatively fine, as the flow of water is decreased and there is little risk of overflow into water.
During storms and heavy rainfall these combined sewer systems can be overwhelmed by excess rainwater and in turn breach the wall overflow structures can end up overflowing into the River des Peres.
During these events the River Des Peres can be contaminated by harmful bacteria, which can make it unsafe for recreation. This is the reason for the posted signs along the River des Peres in Ruth Park Woods, Mona Terrace and Heman Park. Rain barrels are one of many important green infrastructure tools that can be used to improve the water quality if the River des Peres Watershed (a good portion of which is within University City).
Get Your Own Rain Barrel:
By building rain barrels and establishing them en masse within the watershed, we hope to reduce the amount of rain water going into the sewer system, reducing the amount of combined sewer overflows (CSO’s) into the River des Peres.
Releasing the rainwater captured by the barrel during dry periods, for gardening or other household needs. The spring, summer, and fall months are the best times for implementing rain barrels. During the winter months when the weather is below 32 degrees Fahrenheit it is best to empty and disconnect the rain barrel from your home or business. This is done to prevent damage to the rain barrels in the winter months from freeze and thaw cycles. If possible it is best to keep the rain barrel out of direct sunlight to limit the damage of UV radiation on the plastic.
The River des Peres Watershed Coalition is hosting a rain barrel-building workshop at The Green Center located at 8025 Blackberry Avenue on Sunday January 25, 2010 from 2pm – 4pm.
The RdPWC and The city of University City are working together on installing rain barrels for University City residents for the 319 Water Quality Project to protect the River des Peres.
Participants will receive:
- A free consultation on how to filtrate and/or manage storm water on their property
- Installation of a storm water management practice on their property
Participants will be required to provide feedback on their project.
For more details on using about rain barrels, contact Theodore M. Smith (td3x@aol.com or 314-640-2429). For information about the workshop, contact the Public Works Department (314-505-8567 or email lhicks@ucitymo.org).
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