Pollution of our streams and lakes is a concern for most of us, but the solutions often seem too complicated and expensive for us as individuals to do much about it. Rain gardens allow us to be part of the solution for reducing pollution and have the added advantage that they reduce the work required to maintain our lawns. As you can see in our featured article, Olsson Associates has extensive knowledge about how to design a successful rain garden. Rain gardens can be completed on a small scale in our own back yards, or on a large scale similar to the rain garden projects we help our clients create.
 Sincerely, 
Louis Lamberty, PE
Omaha Office Leader |
What makes a garden, a rain garden?
By Paul Woodward, PE, CFM
What is something that almost all projects -- roads, buildings, parks, dams, etc.-- have in common?
Give up? It's stormwater. No matter what the project is or where it is located, it is affected by rainfall and its by-product, stormwater runoff. If you haven't been following all of the latest and greatest information lately, the perception of how we deal with rainfall and stormwater is rapidly changing. No longer considered a nuisance that we need to get rid of as fast as possible, rain water today has the potential to be conserved and used as part of our landscape.
 One of the many methods employed to conserve and use stormwater is a rain garden. A rain garden can simply be thought of as a bed for flowers, shrubs, or trees that is designed as a depression to hold rainfall from its surroundings until it can be used by the plants or can infiltrate back into the ground. This seemingly simple concept can achieve numerous environmental benefits while still being aesthetically pleasing. Such benefits include less runoff, reduced pollutants, improved stream function, and reduced erosion, just to name a few.
Although many suggestions are available for building a rain garden, don't be frightened; it's just as easy as a regular garden and probably less work than picking peas or tomatoes. With some helpful information from the University of Nebraska Extension, I was able to gain firsthand knowledge by building a rain garden in my own backyard. UNL has several NebGuides available online that can help you through designing, selecting plants for, and installing your own rain garden. READ MORE |
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Featured Project
Orchard Park, Omaha, Nebraska
 Stormwater runoff is an issue affecting the entire Omaha region. In neighborhoods long developed, or in new developments, increases in the amount of paved or "impervious" areas increase the amount of stormwater runoff trying to enter drainage inlets and our streams.
For more information about this project
and other Olsson projects: CLICK HERE | |
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A rain garden on your property makes you part of a solution to stormwater pollution. Rain gardens can potentially absorb hundreds of gallons of rain that would otherwise wash pollution down the street and into the nearest river, stream, or lake. Even small rain gardens can absorb a lot of rain. |
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To get more information about rain gardens, visit the following:
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"How To" Manuals
Olsson Associates and the University of Nebraska Extension Service are preparing "how to" manuals for design, construction, and maintenance of rain gardens and bioretention gardens for the City of Omaha. These manuals will show the "latest and greatest" information of how to design and build rain gardens specifically for the Omaha region and will be out this fall. | |
