You can slow the flow of stormwater runoff on your property and prevent pollution and damage to local water bodies. Here are a few ways to help:
Rain Gardens
Install a rain garden! The websites below offer tips and guidance, including how to calculate the appropriate rain garden size.
Check out this video about a Howard County resident who saved her yard from stormwater runoff by installing a rain garden. Her rain garden also protects the environment and offers beautiful habitat for butterflies!
The Chesapeake Stormwater Network offers guidance on building rain gardens and other practices yourself in the Homeowner Guide to a More Bay-Friendly Property..
- Thinking about building a rain garden yourself?
- The Chesapeake Stormwater Network’s Homeowner Guide to a More Bay-Friendly Property takes the guesswork out of estimating excess fill and what materials you need to buy. Check out the table on page 24.
- Check out our Green Registry for a list of local stores--and aisles within those stores--where you can find materials for your do-it-yourself rain garden project.
- Need creative inspiration? Use these free rain garden templates to jump-start your imagination!
To help you understand your soil type and what types of lawn care are appropriate for your unique soil, you can get a lawn soil test. If you live in a Columbia Association property, you can get a test for FREE!
Hardscaping
We recommend that you hire a contractor for most hardscaping projects.
- This video explains why you should consider permeable hardscaping and how it works.
- The Chesapeake Stormwater Network provides examples of creditable/reimbursable systems (see page 62).
- Find a contractor in your area using the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute Certified Contractor Member Search.
Watch this video to learn what a difference permeable hardscaping can make.
Conservation Landscaping
- Learn more about conservation landscaping on the following websites:
- Homeowner Guide to a More Bay-Friendly Property (see page 45)
- Learn about native plants that can be used for habitat restoration and natural or environmentally beneficial landscaping projects in Maryland.
- Check out our Green Registry to find Howard County stores that sell native plants and other tools for your rain garden project.
- Find native plant nurseries in Maryland.
Rain Barrels and Cisterns
How much rain water can you catch in your barrel? Find out!
Do you want to learn more about rain barrels and get a free one? Find comprehensive rain barrel information, including where to get the barrels FREE, assembly and installation guides, here.
Rain barrels can be purchased from Howard County stores within our Green Registry.
Tree Planting
Access resources on page 51 of the Homeowner Guide to a More Bay-Friendly Property.
Other Outreach and Awareness Tools
Stormwater Calculator
See how much runoff your property generates with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s National Stormwater Calculator.
Get Involved
Check out these creative ways to broaden your environmental horizons and get involved in the race against runoff!
- Project Map: Check out some of the projects funded by the Watershed Protection Fee
- Green Map: Discover all of the green living, nature, and cultural resources right here in your own backyard on the Howard County Green Map.
- Water Reporter: Water Reporter is a social network optimized to support watershed initiatives. It connects individuals with organizations actively working to protect and improve water quality. Water Reporter offers two ways to make observations--reports and campaigns. Reports allow users to create and share observations with georeferenced photos and comments. You can also contribute to a Campaign, a specialized report focused on a specific water monitoring aspect.
Our Stream Mapper app has been migrated to a Water Reporter campaign which allows you to monitor the physical health of streams in Howard County. You are prompted to upload photos and some basic information about a local stream of your choice. The user enters data about: land use, streamside plants, bank cover, stream width, bank height, bank shape, blockages, trash, invasive plants, sedimentation, exposed utilities, and any unusual conditions.
Ready to get started?
1. Download Water Reporter from iTunes or GooglePlay.
2. Create an account and join the Clean Water Howard Group.
3. Click on the compass icon and choose the Stream Mapper campaign to add your observations. – this step is for making a Stream Mapper report
How to create a basic report (not Stream Mapper):
Other FAQ stuff is here:
https://help.waterreporter.org/basic-users-guide-to-water-reporter
If you have questions about Water Reporter please contact Julie Costantino at jcostantino@howardcountymd.gov.
- Watershed Stewards Academy: Howard WSA trains, supports, and empowers community leaders to serve as Master Watershed Stewards in the protection, restoration and conservation of Howard County watersheds.
- Simple Ways to Reduce Runoff: You can do it—it’s easy! Watch this video to learn more.