Rain Barrels reuse water from house gutters for gardening

Water run-off is not something most people think about. Where does our city water go once it is down the drain? What happens when the sewers flood? Why is water overflow such a bad thing? How can we prevent this?

Nathan Wildfire, ELDI Sustainable Policy Coordinator, and a number of partnering green organizations have been asking just these questions for almost two years. If you asked this Green Infrastructure team about water run-off they would tell you it is a big problem!

Pittsburgh ranks fourth of the 763 worst water overflow locations nationally. “With an annual average of 38 inches of rain, water overwhelms Western Pennsylvania pipes so often that 16 billion gallons of raw sewage pour into our rivers each year,” reported in the Tribune Review.

Because of this staggering statistic, East Liberty has been researching and planning strategies, such as rain barrels, porous pavement and tree wells, which will catch a good portion of the rain before it enters the sewer. These preventative solutions are more environmentally and economically friendly than the previous solution of additional sewer pipes.

For more information about these exciting, eco-friendly projects, contact Nathan at 412.361.8061.