{"id":1343,"date":"2014-04-21T10:17:58","date_gmt":"2014-04-21T17:17:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/extension.wsu.edu\/clark\/?page_id=1343"},"modified":"2020-05-31T14:32:15","modified_gmt":"2020-05-31T21:32:15","slug":"faqs","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/extension.wsu.edu\/clark\/naturalresources\/stewards\/faqs\/","title":{"rendered":"Factsheets, Videos & FAQs"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Publications & Videos<\/h2>\n

Homeowner Practices for Managing Rain<\/h3>\n

Rain Barrels<\/h4>\n

Storing Rain in the Pacific Northwest: Rain Barrels<\/a>\u00a0(1.1 MB PDF)
\nHow to build a rain barrel<\/a> \u2013 Video Link
\nHow to install a rain barrel<\/a> \u2013 Video Link<\/p>\n

Rain Gardens<\/h4>\n

Reusing Rain in the Pacific Northwest: Rain Gardens<\/a> (1.5 MB PDF)
\nWhat is a Rain Garden?<\/a> \u2013 Slide Show with Audio (flash presentation)<\/p>\n

Using Native Plants<\/h3>\n

Landscaping in the Pacific Northwest: Native Plants<\/a> (899 KB PDF)<\/p>\n

Neighborhood Stormwater Facilities<\/h3>\n

Stormwater Facilities in your Neighborhood<\/a> (461 KB PDF)<\/p>\n

Protecting Streams<\/h3>\n

Protecting Your Stream: Ten Actions for Streamside Property Owners<\/a> (1.8 MB PDF)
\nRiparian Buffers for Western Washington Agriculture<\/a>
\nEstablishing Riparian Buffers Adjacent to Agricultural Lands<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cGreen\u201d Practices<\/h3>\n

Going Green: Vehicle Maintenance<\/a> (463 KB PDF)<\/p>\n

FAQs<\/h2>\n

What is a Rain Garden?<\/a>
\nWhat\u2019s a Watershed?<\/a>
\nWhat is non-point source pollution?<\/a>
\nWhy do all the new sub-divisions have those ditches?<\/a>
\nI heard rain barrels are illegal!<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a>What\u2019s a Rain Garden?<\/strong>
\nUnderstand what a rain garden is an how it helps beautify your yard and protect the environment. (Slide show with audio<\/a>).<\/p>\n

<\/a>What\u2019s a Watershed?<\/strong>
\nA watershed is an area of land that catches rain and snow and drains into a given stream, river, lake, or wetland into a wetland, stream, river, lake, or groundwater. Watersheds include forests, prairies, industrial areas, and neighborhoods. They cross county, state, and even international boundaries. Watersheds can vary in size. Cedar Creek drains a small watershed into the Lewis River, which drains a much larger area. The Lewis River then empties into the Columbia River, a watershed covering thousands of square miles.<\/p>\n

<\/a>What is non-point source pollution?<\/strong>
\nNon-point source pollution is pollution that contaminates surface and groundwater that do not originate from one specific place, such as a pipe. Non-point pollution may come from a variety of everyday activities, such as fertilizing the lawn, changing the oil, washing the car, and painting.<\/p>\n

Land uses like farming, ranching, forestry, and building can also contribute to non-point source pollution. Fortunately, non-point pollution can be reduced through simple practices such as fencing animals away from creeks, washing cars on the lawn, and using only appropriate amounts of fertilizer and pesticides. Contact us<\/a> with specific questions on reducing non-point source pollution.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Why do all the new sub-divisions have those ditches?<\/strong>
\nNewer sub-divisions are built with \u201cbio-swales\u201d to reduce non-point source pollution. These swales actually reduce pollution by allowing sediment and pollutants to settle out before stormwater moves into streams or lakes. Vegetation in the swales remove many of the pollutants so they don\u2019t wind up in our streams.<\/p>\n

<\/a>I heard that having a rain barrel is illegal!<\/strong>
\nA lot of people know that Washington State considers rain water a resource of the state which is defined as \u201call water above, upon, or beneath the surface of the earth, located within the state.\u201d RCW 43.27A.020<\/a>. The Department of Ecology is responsible for maintaining WAshington’s water resources but has never required permits for negligible amounts of rain water collection. See more about this topic on Ecology’s website<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Our pages provide links to external sites for the convenience of users. WSU Extension does not manage these external sites, nor does Extension review, control, or take responsibility for the content of these sites. These external sites do not implicitly or explicitly represent official positions and policies of WSU Extension.<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Watershed Stewards Topics<\/h5>\n