By making some simple changes to your everyday activities, you can reduce the flow of runoff. But if you're willing to commit a bit more time and money, you can take an even bigger dent out of the runoff problem. Here are three advanced suggestions. Install A Water Storage Cistern Cisterns collect rainwater from rooftops, driveways and patios before it becomes runoff. The cistern itself is a storage tank that is part of a larger rainwater collection system.
Cisterns reduce runoff, but they have the added benefit of lowering household water consumption.
They can also come in handy as an extra water source during dry periods, when water from your local utility might be rationed and watering lawns, washing cars or filling pools might be prohibited. Most cisterns are below ground, but they can also be placed above ground. Residential cisterns come in sizes that range from 100 to 1,400 gallons. Plant A Rain Garden Bioretention areas, also known as rain gardens, are low-lying areas of soil and vegetation that are constructed in yards or gardens to channel and collect polluted runoff. When runoff flows from downspouts and off driveways and patios, the plants in the garden block the water flow, slowing it and allowing it to filter into the ground, rather than washing quickly over the surface and carrying pollutants to street gutters and storm drains.