*[Enwl-eng] NOAA Releases Rain Garden App

[ENWLine]

*Create a rain garden, protect the environment with NOAA Sea
Grant-funded app*

Jan. 30, 2013
Contact: Peg Van Patten, Connecticut Sea Grant, 860-405-9141

Rain Garden, a new free iPhone app, guides users on how to create and
install rain gardens that curtail runoff of pollutants, prevent erosion,
and provide wildlife habitat. Development of the app was funded by the
NOAA Sea Grant Climate Change Adaptation Capacity Building Initiative
and developed by Connecticut Sea Grant and the University of Connecticut
Center for Land Use Education and Research.

The free app debuted this month in Apple's iTunes store. The Rain Garden
app is designed to help landscapers, contractors, and homeowners design,
install, and maintain rain gardens. The app includes tutorials to help
gardeners install a garden, select native plants, and choose a site for
the garden. It includes soil drainage maps, six video tutorials, and a
searchable plant database. The app can use Global Positioning System
coordinates for individual addresses, making planning specific to a
localized plot of land, not just a general area.

Currently the Rain Garden app is intended for southern New England, but
the app team plans to work with partners to create a national version as
well as one for Android devices.

Special features

Among the tools the app provides is a calculator to show soil and water
characteristics and project costs. The plant catalog allows users to
select plants suited to their location. For example, a search for
"shrubs in part sun with colors blue and orange" produces a list of
native plants fitting that criteria with photos and care requirements. A
user can plan multiple gardens and save them for future reference or
sharing.

Also, users can send their garden plans to the app developers at
Connecticut Sea Grant and the University of Connecticut Center for Land
Use Education and Research. Researchers there will use the plans to
calculate how much stormwater the gardens filter and the amount of
pollution runoff they prevent.

What are rain gardens and why are they important?

When it rains, runoff from rainwater carries pollutants into any nearby
stream, river, lake, or ocean. Rain gardens are created in a depression
in the landscape. They collect water from rooftops, yards or driveways
and allow it to infiltrate the ground where selected plants have been
placed and topped with mulch. By building a healthy rain garden using
attractive native plants, property owners can reduce the amount of
pollution that would otherwise enter nearby water bodies. Rain gardens
also prevent erosion, remove standing water, and create habitat for
wildlife such as butterflies and birds. They work well in urban and
residential areas, including hospitals, offices, and school settings.
NOAA's new Center for Weather and Climate Prediction in College Park,
Md., incorporates a rain garden.

Climate connection

In 2010, NOAA Sea Grant awarded one of several community climate change
adaption grants to Mike Dietz, Connecticut Sea Grant extension educator;
and David Dickson of the University of Connecticut's Center for Land Use
Education and Research. They used the grant to develop rain garden
training sessions and demonstration projects. One of the demonstration
projects was the rain garden installed in 2010 behind the Bridgeport
Aquaculture High School facing Long Island Sound. The school, which is
in a coastal city that experiences frequent flooding and is only two
feet above sea level, stayed dry throughout Tropical Storm Irene in
2011. Done properly, a rain garden can redirect a tremendous amount of
rainwater.

Scientists predict that heavy downpours will occur more frequently with
climate change in the Northeast United States. Flooding from sea-level
rise combined with storm surge is also a big concern.

Rain garden resources

Because rain gardens offer so many environmental benefits, other Sea
Grant programs are promoting them too. Oregon Sea Grant has developed a
how-to publication to guide citizens in setting up rain gardens.
Maryland Sea Grant also conducts rain garden trainings and projects and
has posted the information on Angie's list where contractors and
customers can learn more. Texas Sea Grant has partnered with volunteers,
including Girl Scouts, to build rain gardens at Armand Bayou, Dickinson
Bayou, and several others in the greater Houston area. Developing the
app was a logical next step, putting training and examples literally in
peoples' hands.

NOAA's mission is to understand and predict changes in the Earth's
environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and
to conserve and manage our coastal and marine resources. Visit us at
www.noaa.gov and join us on Facebook, Twitter and our other social media
channels.



http://researchmatters.noaa.gov/news/Pages/raingardenapp.aspx


*** NOTICE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this
material is distributed, without profit, for research and educational
purposes only. ***



From: "Yahoo Newsgroups" <vasi...@ramapo.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, April 03, 2013 7:47 AM
Subject: News: NOAA Releases Rain Garden App


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