The city of Laurel, Maryland, announced an initiative to encourage residents to collect rainwater by giving away free rain barrels.
The city said it would give away one barrel per household until they were gone. Volunteers were available to assist with the installation of the rain barrels.
The city's website explained that rainwater that isn't absorbed by the ground and runs along pavement "picks up pollutants along the way which then enters our streams" and that it "can cause flash flooding and erosion, lower water quality, and harm fish habitats."
Collected rainwater serves many purposes for homeowners. According to Southern California's Fresh Water Systems, rainwater can be very handy for gardening, as it doesn't contain many of the chemicals and minerals present in tap water that can harm plants. It's also great, the FWS website states, for washing cars, clothing, and home interiors, for flushing toilets, and, if treated correctly, even for drinking or bathing.
This readily available resource can obviously save people plenty of money on water bills. An average American household uses approximately 300 gallons of water per day, and a home with 1,000 square feet of rooftop area could collect up to 500 gallons with just one inch of rainfall.
For any Laurel residents who didn't snag a rain barrel in time or wanted extras, Prince George's County also offers a Rain Check Rebate Program, which provides rebates for eight types of rainwater management methods or upgrades. Some of these include permeable pavement — porous surfaces that help prevent flash floods — and rain gardens, innovative outdoor spaces designed specifically to collect and direct water into designated areas that also save money on irrigation.
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Some Prince George's County residents had rave reviews about these programs.
"My husband and I had been wanting to set up rain barrels around our home for a few years. When we finally found the right barrels … we did not have to use our outside water faucets to water plants the entire growing season!" one commenter said.
Another couple, who got $4,000 from the rebate program, said it was a "no-brainer if you are considering any of the green initiatives they cover."
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