Building a rain garden (or a couple of rain gardens) in your own yard is probably the easiest and most cost-efficient thing you can do to reduce your contribution to stormwater pollution.
1.) By capturing clean rainwater from your roof, driveway, and sidewalks and diverting it into a great-looking rain garden where it can slowly soak into the ground, filter contaminants, and keep quantities of clean water from going down the sewer system you’ll have a great looking garden that puts water in its place.
2. ) A rain garden can mimic the natural absorption and pollutant removal activities of a forest, or a meadow, or a prairie and can absorb runoff more efficiently, sometimes as much as 30% – 40% more than a standard lawn.
“Capturing rainwater in a rain garden, holding the water for a short time and then slowly releasing it into the soil can reduce the rush of a large storm –quickly, neatly and naturally.” ~ Rain Garden Network
3.) Because rain gardens are dug 4″ to 8″ deep, and in some cases 1′ to 2′ deep, they hold large quantities of rainwater, making their overall construction more cost-efficient than other green alternatives. Rain gardens also need less technical experience to install and can be installed without permits or heavy equipment.
4.) Rain gardens are one very good option that helps to lower the impact of impervious surfaces and polluted runoff because they are low-tech, inexpensive, sustainable, and aesthetically beautiful.