May 19th, 2008 · No Comments

Capturing rainwater is the ultimate in local green pursuits, according to Fladmark, because it is totally done on site, making use of all that nature intended for that patch of real estate.

And there’s only so much freshwater in the world. City water departments across the country are beginning to lament how so much treated water is lost on summer lawns. The Dallas Water Department reports that more than 50 percent of its treated municipal water is expended on lawns in the summer and provides tips on its website on how to reduce usage.

Nationwide, the EPA estimates that across wet and arid areas more than 30 percent of the water we Americans use goes for outdoor irrigation or other outdoor uses, such as washing cars.

“That’s a poor use of a city resource,’’ says Beth Mortenson, “chief rainmaker” at Catch the Rain in McKinney, Texas. “We’re treating this water to be drinkable and then we’re putting it on our plants?”

Ms. Mortenson specializes in selling rain barrels because they are an easy way for a homeowner to get started in rainwater collection.

Smaller rain barrels as opposed to larger systems, she says, can be the perfect solution for someone wanting to service a flower or vegetable garden.

The rainwater is better for plants because it doesn’t contain the chlorine or mineral salts of treated water that can actually harm a plant’s ability to take up nutrients from the soil, said Ms. Mortenson, who in addition to being a certified Texas irrigator and rainwater catchment expert is also a master gardener.

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