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Mimicking Nature to Solve a Water-Pollution Problem
Boulder, Colorado
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The Boulder headquarters of the non-profit Land and Water Fund of the Rockies combines a number of techniques to create a "closed loop" landscape, allowing almost no runoff to leave the property. Plants in low-lying areas absorb and filter runoff, as do "rain gardens" situated below drainage spouts from the roof. In addition, the parking lot's grading ensures that water drains toward the vegetation and not the street. Overall, 70 percent to 80 percent of water that falls on the property -- as rain, snow or irrigation -- seeps through the soil to replenish groundwater below, with plants absorbing almost all of the rest of the water. Back to introduction | Previous page | Next page Photo: Len Wright |
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