Let the City of Seattle help you Install a Rain Garden or Cistern to clean and slow storm water

From the City of Seattle's website:

"If you live in a targeted combined sewer overflow (CSO) basin, you may be eligible for rebates to hire a trained RainWise contractor to install a rain garden or cistern. Click here to see if you qualify.

When the land that is present day Seattle was a forest, falling rain was slowed by needles and leaves, and slowly soaked into spongy soils held together by the roots of trees and understory plants.

Now, rain that falls on our roofs, roads, driveways and compacted soils collects quickly, then runs off down ditches and pipes. During big rain storms this “storm water” can back up and flood homes, cause sewer overflows, and erode hillsides and stream banks. It also carries dirt, oil and metals from cars, lawn chemicals, cleaners and pet waste into Seattle’s salmon- spawning streams and swimming beaches.

We can all slow the flow and help to clean the rain runoff from our homes by taking simple steps that make our home landscapes act more like a forest. For example, you can redirect stormwater from your roof to flow into a rain garden or a compost enhanced landscape instead of a local street or sewer."