Stormwater Retention
If you want to make a difference for conservation, it starts in your own yard. Whether you own a large lot or occupy just a small plot of land, Cass SWCD can point you to a handful of practices that will benefit your property, your neighborhood, and nearby waterways.
Grassroots Conservation
All property is located within a watershed, which
describes an area of land that contains a common set of streams and rivers that all drain into a single larger body of water. The key word to remember with watersheds is “Connection.” Everything is connected to everything else in a watershed. For example, your lawn is connected to the street, which is connected to the storm sewers, which is connected to a stream, which is connected to a lake, etc... Therefore, what you do in your yard has the potential to affect many other places. To protect one, we must protect them all.
Landscaping for Conservation
Rain gardens are one of the most effective conservation enhancements one could add to a yard. A rain garden is simply a landscaped area, planted with wildflowers and other water loving native vegetation that soak up stormwater runoff. Rain gardens are strategically placed to collect excess runoff from hard surfaces like roofs, driveways, and walkways. These hard surfaced areas are called “Impervious surfaces”. The goal of the rain garden is to absorb as much of the water that is running off these impervious surfaces, slowly filtering water back into the ground rather than running off into storm drains and lakes.
Stormwater
When rain falls, in towns or urban areas it either soaks into the ground to become groundwater, or it flows on top of the ground and becomes storm water runoff.
When water soaks into the ground, the soil acts as a “filter,” catching and holding onto most anything that the rain water brought with it. Native plant-life also capture the nutrients that the water brings along, much like a sponge. This is the ideal outcome for storm water.
However, when storm water has no way to enter the ground, it will keep flowing above ground until it meets the nearest river, stream, or lake. Since this water had no opportunity to be filtered by the soil or native plants, it deposits whatever it grabbed along the way into the body of water.
Stormwater Contaminants
Storm water runoff picks up whatever it comes into contact with as it travels to its lowest elevation. Dirt, nutrients, manure, fertilizer, pet waste, trash, pesticides... storm water does not discriminate. The contaminants that it picks up as it flows cause significant damage when it enters our waters.
Our rivers and lakes are becoming inundated with storm water runoff filled with phosphorus and nitrates that cause major changes to the water quality and throw off the lake’s natural balance.
Site Visit Request
Request a site visit with a conservation technician. Find out how your property can make a difference.
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Fill out the request form or call the number below.