Drainage improvement ideas from Ghirardi WaterSmart park in League City

On a recent trip to League City I visited the Ghirardi WaterSmart Park. It is located along Louisiana Avenue just south of FM 518.  The park is built around a few very old live oak trees that have been preserved.  It also has a play structure for the kids.

The park is designed to educate the public about various methods to mitigate runoff, conserve water, improve water quality, and protect natural habitats.  Many of the techniques on display could be 

easily adopted by neighborhoods and individual homeowners.  

The use of pervious pavers on driveways and sidewalks would slow runoff by allowing water to soak into the ground.  The pavers also act as filters for oil and heavy metal particles leaking from cars.

Rain gardens can be installed to collect, absorb, and filter storm water.  Rain gardens are bowl-shaped depressions containing various plants and ground cover materials such as mulch.  These act to slow the flow of water and give it a chance to be absorbed into the soil.  The soil, plants, and mulch hold water and filter out pollutants.
Builders of "WaterSmart" gardens are advised to choose non-invasive native and non-native plants that are well-suited for the local climate.  To conserve water plants should be watered early in the morning and bedded with mulch to reduce evaporation.

The use of a cistern reduces runoff from rooftops by storing water for other uses, particularly for landscape and garden watering.  The collected rainwater is chemical-free and can be used for drinking, washing, and to water plants.
Readers, do the techniques on display at the Ghirardi Park give you any ideas about potential water conservation or drainage mitigation projects that could be implemented around your property?  Are there measures in use in your neighborhood that you would recommend?

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