Throughout the Puget Sound region, there has been an increased focus on the importance of finding environmentally sound methods of managing stormwater runoff. The expansion of our suburbs into land that once was forest and field, and the denser development of land within our cities, have greatly accelerated in the past 20 years. This has resulted in fewer areas with permeable surfaces (land that is capable of absorbing rainfall) and more areas of impermeable surfaces (parking lots, sidewalks, and roofs). These impermeable surfaces in our region are generating millions of gallons of runoff from each rainfall event, with increasingly destructive effects.

In recent years, even our typical fall and winter storms have caused flooding and landslides that once were a rare occurrence. Besides the damage to property, the water quality in our streams and other waterways is being damaged by the soil erosion, pesticides, and other pollutants that are carried by the runoff in every rainfall event. The decline in our native salmon populations and other aquatic life is directly related to the problem of increasing stormwater runoff.

The standard systems that have been built in the past to capture runoff, such as storm drains and detention ponds, have not proven to be the solution for the Puget Sound region, nor for other communities nationwide that are struggling with this problem. Instead, new ways of thinking have produced a multi-faceted approach to the problem that is already having positive effects throughout our country. Rain gardens are one facet of the new approach and illustrate clearly how even one homeowner can be part of the overall solution for stormwater runoff.

Rain Garden Design Guide Contents

• The Basics of a Rain Garden

• Designing a Rain Garden

• Building the Rain Garden

• Plant Selection

• Maintenance

• Resources and References