A Rain Garden to Stop the Rainfall in Lexington, Kentucky

In the March/April 2008 issue of Stormwater Magazine, Margaret Buranen reports that the West Glendover Stormwater Improvement Project in Lexington, Kentucky is an unusal project that resulted from extraordinary cooperation on the part of all parties involved. “They managed not only to create a functional and attractive stormwater management solution but also to resolve concerns that were sometimes diametrically opposed,” writes Buranen.

The article describes how locating the rainwater/stormwater project in an arboretum stopped flooding to nearby homes, enhanced the arboretum's collection of plants, and allowed the public to see a large-scale rain garden. The arboretum is situated on land owned by the University of Kentucky.

According to Margaret Buranen, the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government considered three options and concluded that the logical approach was also the most cost-effective: Slow the flow of water by taking advantage of the nearby arboretum's location and natural features.

The project meets the EPA's stormwater guidelines for public education. As school-children, recreational and fitness walkers, and other people tour the area, they learn about the problem of rainwater/stormwater and an effective and aesthetic way to manage it. Margaret Buranen reports that the project won a Best of the Year 2007 award from the Kentucky chapter of the American Public Works Association.

Acknowledgment:

Before STORMWATER, The Journal for Surface Water Quality Professionals, there was no single publication written specifically for  the professional involved with surface water quality issues, protection, projects, and programs. Margaret Buranen of Lexington, Kentucky, writes on environmental and business topics for a number of national publications.

Posted September 2008