Hands in the ground: help us build a rain garden

Have you ever wanted to create a Rain Garden, but don’t know how? Now is your chance to learn!

Save the Sound is planting two rain gardens on Edgewood Avenue in New Haven this coming Saturday, September 26, and we need you to help make the project a huge success.

Join us as we plant over 400 native grasses and perennials in two special gardens that are designed to capture, filter, and soak up rain water runoff. Learn about the function of rain gardens and the benefits of planting with native plants. Get your hands dirty, while knowing that your efforts are helping to prevent pollution to New Haven’s West River and Long Island Sound.

Here are the details:

Edgewood Mall
(Along Edgewood Ave between Ella T Grasso Blvd and Ellsworth Ave)
New Haven, CT
Saturday, September 26
9am – 1pm

Register to volunteer
Why?

Sidewalks and city streets help us get from point A to point B, but these impervious surfaces also cover the soil and prevent water from soaking into the ground when it rains. Instead, the rain that flows over these surfaces picks up pollutants like oils, grease, salt, and fertilizers and then carries them downstream, causing localized flooding and making our rivers and the Sound unsafe for people and animals.

When it rains where there is a lot of impervious surface, the result is a lot of harmful stormwater runoff. Pollution from stormwater runoff is a serious problem.

A rain garden is a cost-effective solution to polluted stormwater runoff. When designed and built properly, a rain garden can help soak up water from impervious surfaces and filter it—preventing pollution downstream. By helping Save the Sound build a rain garden, YOU can help make the Sound safe for people and animals to enjoy.

Sign up to volunteer Saturday!

For tips on how to build a rain garden and reduce stormwater runoff, check out this great guide from UConn’s NEMO program and follow us on Twitter @SavetheSound.