The system works, after a fashion. But there is a better way. And a movement is now emerging that just might get stormwater management out of the curb and gutter and into our front and backyards. The concept is simple enough for anyone with some green space to put into practice. Gutters and sewers collect the stormwater and direct it to detention ponds, which slowly release it to streams and lakes.
Rain gardens do the opposite.
By keeping stormwater close to where it falls, rain gardens do help reduce flooding and settle out sediments. Yet they also prevent stormwater from becoming so contaminated with oils and other chemicals in the first place, and they actually remove pollutants from the water as it percolates through the soil on its way to becoming groundwater. It is this latter aspect, groundwater recharge, that University of Wisconsin water resources engineering professor Dr. Ken Potter finds particularly exciting. He's been worried about declining groundwater levels for years, not only because of groundwater's importance for human use but also because of its significance for aquatic ecosystems. So, altogether rain gardens make for better surface water quality, groundwater quality, and overall hydrological health.