Traditional development and landscaping designs cause rainfall to flow off roofs, sidewalks, driveways, and compacted lawns. Water flows into streets, down the storm drain and through the storm sewer to the nearest stream, river or lake. Along the way, it picks up pollutants that degrade water quality. Learn more about what you can do to help reduce runoff and water pollution.
The Solution Page
You can help solve Iowa’s flooding and water quality problems!
As a homeowner or urban resident there are several things you can do to reduce runoff and improve water quality. To start, ask yourself some questions (example issues photos)
- Where does water go when it leaves your property?
- Do you have wet areas, or do you see water flowing when it rains?
- How are your soils, do plants have trouble growing?
- Do you want to do any landscaping?
By asking these questions you can begin to think about where could you utilize “Rainscaping” practices to manage your property’s runoff.
“Rainscaping Iowa is a statewide campaign promoting infiltration based storm water management practices that result in the improvement and protection of Iowa's soil and water resources.”
Rainscaping Practices
There are several stormwater, aka rainscaping, practices that can be implemented by homeowners and urban residents to manage stormwater and improve water quality. Essentially these practices can look like regular landscaping, but they can serve a range of purposes such as:
- Improving soils
- Slowing down runoff
- Improving water quality
- Providing pollinator habitat
- Fix drainage issues
These practices rely on the natural functions of a healthy Iowa landscape, creating conditions where the ground can soak in and naturally filter the water. Many of these practices also utilize native prairie grasses and flowers that can have roots 5-10 ft. into the ground.
Rain Gardens (1 header image)- A rain garden is a landscaped depression that captures rainwater runoff from impervious surfaces, such as roofs and driveways. Runoff collected in a rain garden is temporarily ponded before seeping down through the soil. Installing a rain garden helps restore a landscape’s ability to manage water more sustainably.
Rain Garden Design Considerations
- Must be more than 10 feet from buildings
- Avoid utilities by marking locations prior to install
- Floor of the rain garden must be level
- Conduct percolation test prior to install
- Determine size of impervious area draining into the garden and percolation rate
- Ponded water should infiltrate within 12-24 hours
- Slopes leading into the rain garden should be 3:1
- Use the Iowa Rain Garden Manual to ensure the rain garden is designer and installed correctly
Soil Quality Restoration (1 header image)- As buildings and houses are built, valuable topsoil is removed and the remaining subsoil is compacted by heavy grading equipment and construction activity. Healthy soil is the first step in preventing polluted runoff. Soil quality restoration begins with the decompaction of soils, through aeration. Composed is added to further increase the soil’s organic matter content, which helps a yard absorb more rain.
Permeable Pavers (1 header image)- Roads, parking lots and driveways account for more than 60 percent of the impervious surfaces in urban areas and are the largest generators of stormwater runoff. Permeable pavement allows water to infiltrate into layers of rock placed below the pavers and then into surrounding soils.