Tag Archives: Seattle

Rainwater Catchment

Is Seattle Making Progress on Stormwater Solutions?


Seattle skyline with Space Needle and Mount Rainier in the background.Is Seattle Making Progress on Stormwater Solutions?

With all of the new construction taking placein the Seattle area, many commercial projects have stepped up to the plate and have adopted rainwater collection in their building’s designs to address stormwater solutions.

Beloware photos of some of the commercial projects RainBank Rainwater Systems hasbeen involved with overthe last few years. Congratulations to all the engineering firms, general contractors, designers, and owners of these buildings for being on the leading edge of conservation, sustainability, and stormwater mitigation.

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Rainwater Catchment

Rainwater Catchment is a Viable Source of Clean Water for Home


City skyline at dusk with a rainbow and ferris wheel.Seattle residents are discovering that rainwater catchment is a viable source of clean water for their homes.

Many Seattle residents are having rainwater collection systems designed and installed to augment their city water usage. A simple rain barrel system that the home owner can install is just the tip of the iceberg for the increased use of rainwater collection.

Irrigation demands of landscaping arebeing met by rainwater catchmentin urban environments by residential and commercial consumers. Whether the application is for new construction or existing buildings and homes, many are opting for a greener way to control stormwater runoff. While new construction is mandated to infiltrate on-site runofffrom roofs, existing buildings and homes are discovering rainwater collection can offset their water and sewer bill.

Rainwater is generally without chlorine or additives that city water has and is beneficial to the healthy growth of plants. A simple rain barrel system for small irrigation needs is easyto install and can supply enough water for a limited amount of irrigation. Larger systems for irrigation can be achieved with underground cistern or slimline tanks. These systems are generally gravity fed to the cisterns and pressurized with a booster pump to faucets or hose bibs.

Rainwater catchmentfor irrigation demands isthe introduction to household usage such as toilet and or laundry facility systems. Approximately 50% of household use of water is for these purposes. Whole house use of filtered, disinfected rainwater can supplement city water usage with quality, safe, potable water thus reducing monthly water and sewer bills. An automated system, when designed and properly installed, allows ahomeowner or commercial building maintenance personnel,hands-free switching from city to rainwater.

“Seattle Downtown After Rain” by ruoyun is licensed under CCby2.0

Rainwater Catchment

Can Rainwater Collection Control Stormwater Issues in WA?


Water droplets resting on a green leaf with prominent veins.
Photo courtesy of danschenker.com
Is promotion ofrainwater collection an opportunity for counties in Washington State to control stormwater?

As of October 2009, rainwater collection is legal in all counties in Washington State. Many county Health Departments are allowing collected rainwater for potable use as well. King County, the largest county in the state, allows for potable usage. Seattle Public Utilities offers rebates for rain gardens in certain areas of Seattle such as Ballard. The Rainwise Program encourages home owners to collect and use roof runoff to help control storm water. Many consumers have taken advantage of this program and are practicing good storm water control. The GSI or “green storm water infrastructure“mandate addresses the issue of storm water runoff for new construction by total infiltration of impervious surfaces on site.

But what about all the existing buildings and houses throughout our state including Seattle area, wherestormwaterrunoff still overwhelms sewer systems, causing intentional sewage release into the Puget Sound during large rain events?

What can the counties and municipalities do to encourage existing building and home owners to control their runoff, thus reducing or eliminating these large releases? Public awareness is an excellent start. Countyand municipality funded educationusing media andpublicservice announcements promoting rainwater catchment practices while offering incentives such as theRainwise program would generate interest. A properly funded program of encouragement and incentives would create morepublicinterest to adopt rainwater collection, as it has with the Rainwise Program, while money being spent to promote would be absorbed by the cost savings totheoverwhelmed systems we experience now.

Rainfall collection and use can be part of thesolution to Seattle’s storm water issue, augmenting the GSI mandate by addressing runoff, not only from new construction, but from existing buildings and homes as well. It’s fair to saythat most Seattleites would welcome being part of the solution — if given the opportunity.