SplashBoxx wins KCD Award

SplashBoxx  

wins a King Conservation District Award!

Sustainable Seattle has partnered with SplashBoxx, LLC and GeAlogica, LLC to carry out an innovative "above ground" rain garden project at the Port of Seattle.

SplashBoxx makes it possible to use Nature's stormwater cleaning magic even when the soil in a particular area does not test well for in-ground rain gardens.  The project is going well. Regular soil and volcanic soil mixes are being compared as dirty runoff falls from the roof of an old building at the Port then filters through the SplashBoxx. If successful, the Port and other highly paved industrial sites are likely to use this approach to clean the runoff from their operations before it heads into the Sound. Learn more about the project in the fun video below!

White Center's Holy Family Parish Tackles Stormwater in a Big Way

Big changes are underway at a Parish and School in the White Center community.  In the past couple months, Sustainable Seattle has started working with Holy Family to transform their multi-acre property and prevent stormwater pollution.

With the help of Rain Dog Designs, we are installing rain gardens that will qualify for the RainWise incentive program.  But we won't stop there!  The rain gardens will also be designed to qualify for the Stormwater Credit Program through Seattle Public Utilities - saving the Parish money that's typically spent to pay surface water fees.  Since this is the first time these two incentives will work together, this project has the potential to be a model site for future RainWise rain gardens - demonstrating a process that can be replicated at countless sites to access stormwater credits!

This could provide large sites the extra incentive they need to dive into the RainWise program - helping the city of Seattle reach a goal of 700 million gallons of runoff managed by green stormwater infrastructure by 2025.  Isn't that exciting?!

With this extra goal, though, a little more testing and designing needs to happen compared to a standard rain garden. And that work is already underway at Holy Family!  Last week, Associated Earth Services--tasked with analyzing the soil and performing infiltration testing--completed the second step of the process: installing pit drains to assist with the rain garden filtration and testing the infiltration rate.  

It's truly exciting to be able to build a foundation that can be replicated throughout our city.  We'll keep you updated on this project, and share more about planting days and work being done with Sustainability Ambassadors to ensure rain garden education is threaded into the school's curriculum!  

Check out photos of the testing process and learn more about the project here.

Digging the pit and measuring the depth	Pipe for infiltration installed
Infiltrating testing underway	Volunteer Linda monitoring the infiltration

Sustainable Seattle Receives $60,000 Grant From Russell Family Foundation

March 30, 2011

SUSTAINABLE SEATTLE RECEIVES $60,000 FROM RUSSELL FAMILY FOUNDATION FOR RAIN GARDENS CONSTRUCTION IN FIVE SEATTLE NEIGHBORHOODS

Sustainable Seattle

Phone: +1.206.622.3522 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting +1.206.622.3522 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Email: laura@sustainableseattle.org, amy@sustainableseattle.org, nathan@sustainableseattle.org

SEATTLE—Sustainable Seattle, in collaboration with Creatives 4 Community, Home Grown Organics and Stewardship Partners has received a $60,000 grant from the Russell Family Foundation for a project called “Sustainable Rain.” The project includes the construction of rain gardens, storm water training and green infrastructure demonstrations in five Seattle neighborhoods. The project is looking for participation from local businesses, residences and other publicly visible sites in West Seattle, Central District, Beacon Hill, Duwamish and White Center.

The Russell Family Foundation has a long history of funding innovative, local projects and programs and was a natural choice for Sustainable Seattle according to Amy Waterman Project Manager with Sustainable Seattle.

“Russell Family Foundation has been a great supporter of projects in our region that lead to sustainable communities. And they have provided support to Sustainable Seattle in the past. They have also specifically supported rain garden projects in our region, including some with our partner, Stewardship Partners.”

Sustainable Rain's goal is to create demonstration rain gardens and create educational opportunities around sustainable business in each neighborhood that will benefit the business owner, youth in the area, the broader community, and the Puget Sound. One business or organization in each neighborhood will be selected for free installation of a rain garden as well as a free Whole Environment Building (WEB) assessment, a tool for local businesses to assess their sustainability efforts and operate more cost effectively, while managing their “nine domains of happiness.”

“Rain gardens are one of the easiest ways we can make the built landscape function more like the natural systems that preceded it, reducing the risk of floods and the amount of pollution washed into Puget Sound and our lakes,” says Eldan Goldenberg Director of Operations at Sustainable Seattle.

Sustainable Rain will also be having community meetings in each of the five neighborhoods providing training on storm water management, rain gardens, and other sustainable business practices. There will also be funds available on a competitive basis for members of the community to design and install their own rain gardens towards the end of the one-year project.

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Sustainable Seattle

Founded in 1991, Sustainable Seattle is a non-profit organization that promotes sustainability in the Central Puget Sound, nationally and internationally. Sustainable Seattle’s mission is to be a positive catalyst and resource for positive change. We accomplish this mission by working with diverse individuals, communities, businesses and government agencies to build awareness, assess progress, and take action on collective sustainability goals.