What
Well it is fair to say after the weather we’ve had in the last week or so that Autumn is well and truly with us! As I was enjoying a wet and windy dog walk this morning I was thinking about how much we need this weather. After such a long dry Spring and Summer nature is just crying out for some life-giving rain. By the end of the summer the Horse Chestnut trees around where I live were looking particularly sad from lack of water; local ponds were either lower than I’ve ever seen before or virtually dried up and anyone with space to grow plants will have experienced how hard it was to keep them alive over the summer. The rain is good for watering the trees and the plants and topping up our ponds but I am also aware that, with the heavy rain we more often get these days, it also brings with it risk of flooding. So, what can we be doing in our urban areas to help reduce that risk?
Where
There is a lot of information out there about the actions that can be taken to help slow down the passage of water into our urban sewer systems. For anyone who has enough space to park a car on their own land, the big thing we can do is not pave over that space. Using gravel or other similar materials that allow the water to permeate through helps to reduce the area of land that the water can just run straight off. Adding some hardy grasses to the area that can soak up a little more water will help too. Adding a water butt to a downpipe will stop the water before it reaches the sewers and provide free water for watering your plants when it is dry. If your property has a flat roof and you have the budget, installing a green roof will slow the water down and provide many other benefits as described on our green roof habitat page. Anyone with a little more space can think about developing a rain garden that uses different levels and a variety of plants to slow down the passage of water when it rains and will also survive during our increasingly dry summers.
Why
Many of us making these little changes can add up to a big impact. Getting a sense of feeling like we are doing something is gratifying and enjoying the nature that is attracted to the new features we put in is reward in itself.
What Achieved
What can you do?
If you don’t have the space or opportunity to do any of this at your own home but would like to make an impact we are always looking for volunteers to come and help us put our projects into action so we’d love to hear from you. You can find out more about our work here and get in touch with us here
