Can You Dig It? join Littoral Society to Plant a Rain Garden at Cumberland County Library

The rain garden site at Cumberland County Library is prepped and ready for a volunteer planting event on Saturday, June 18 at 10 a.m.

Volunteer Event to Create Habitat and Clean Waterways on Saturday, June 18

Bridgeton’s Cumberland County Library needs your help to plant its new rain garden with native flowers and shrubs that will help prevent stormwater pollution from flowing into nearby streams, while also providing vital habitat for local insects, birds, and other wildlife.
 
The public Rain Garden Planting Event will be held Saturday June 18, from 10 a.m. – Noon at the library’s building on 800 E Commerce St, Bridgeton, NJ. Click here for more information or to register for the event.
 
A rain garden is planted in a shallow depression and is designed to absorb rainwater as it runs off roads, rooftops, and parking lots. The soils and plants in the rain garden act to filter pollutants from the stormwater, as well as absorb excess nutrients like fertilizers that can cause harmful algae blooms. Rain gardens also slow the flow of stormwater so that it can soak into the ground, refilling the supply of ground water for human use.   

Rain gardens are one form of Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI). These practices aim is to mimic the type of natural water filtration that occurred before buildings and paved roads became so prevalent, sealing off many of the pathways through which stormwater once seeped into the ground.
 
The Library’s new rain garden will serve as an example of the use of Green Stormwater Infrastructure to prevent pollution, provide habitat, and protect against flooding. Installed in partnership with the American Littoral Society’s Delaware Bayshore Team – based in Millville, NJ – and Rutgers Cooperative Extension Water Resources Program, it will be a resource for education, relaxation, and nature appreciation in the community.
 
This work is a part of the South Jersey Landscape Makeover Program funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the William Penn Foundation.