Rainwater Harvesting & Stormwater management BY THE POND GNOME

In an interview with The Backyard Vegan, he did a walk-through tour of a commercial rainwater harvesting/storm water management project in the middle of an apartment complex in Scottsdale, AZ.  Obviously, this is a large project, but the technology can be adapted for just about any size & location!

WATER FEATURE GIVING YOU GRIEF?

Rainwater Harvesting Options in Phoenix, AZ

We all want to be better stewards of the earth. However, not everyone is willing and/or able to grow their own food. Not everyone can afford to build, or re-build, their home completely from renewable resources.  And most HOAs frown on chickens and bee hives on your property, as well as traditional rain barrels.

Have you wondered how you could get involved in the “Green” movement, but you’re just not sure what you could do?  Or perhaps you're interested in LEED points for your property. Believe it or not, you could create a riparian environment that would help replenish our disappearing native wetlands and wildlife respites right in your own yard!  Yes, even if you live in an HOA.

The Pond Gnome can design and build a rainwater harvesting system that even your nosiest neighbors won’t know is there!  You can see a system like this in action in a front yard on our FREE Pond Tour.

Why live with this?

When you can have THIS!
One of these FRONT YARD features can be seen at any time as part of our public displays. The underground cistern captures close to 2,000 gallons of water off the residence roof, filters it, and re-uses it for this gorgeous disappearing pondless stream.  It’s not uncommon to see the neighborhood kids hanging out on its edge to watch the butterflies and dragonflies.

How do we do that?

The Rain Xchange system is both simple and complex. Using a pre-filter, underground water storage cistern, and a water-recycling feature of some kind, you, too, can recycle beautifully!

The equipment is hidden from view, so it's HOA-approved! The water feature can be anything from a simple fountain to a recirculating stream that's installed right over the top. A serviceable pump vault allows for ease of maintenance.

Want to wash your car or water your fruit trees?  No problem!  Just add a booster pump for easy access to the water you're collecting.
This apartment complex feature can be seen at any time as part of our public displays.  It is built within a storm water retention basin. The catchment is the entire northeast parking lot of the apartment complex. Storm water is “scrubbed” by flowing through rock, gravel and constructed wetland filters it as it makes its way to the cistern at the lowest point in the basin, keeping the fish and amphibians that reside within this system of disappearing pondless waterfalls and streams healthy & happy!
Check out this cool project done by our mentors at The Conservation Foundation in Naperville, Illinois:

RAINWATER HARVESTING IS A GREAT ADDITION TO ANY OPTION: