Enjoy our new website!
Conservation Education Center
Are You "WISE" About Storm Water?
A Green Innovation Grant Project From NYS EFC​​
"Clean watershed technology begins with the very pavement you park on, the Waterman Center's WISE Project can store and filter more than 14,000 GALLONS of rainwater with each storm!"
Go With the Flow!
The way water moves across the land following a rainstorm has a massive effect on how that water might damage the land, contribute to flooding, or pollute our streams, rivers, and lakes. The faster water moves, the more it erodes land, picks up sediment and contaminants, and the faster it contributes to raising water levels. The WISE Project demonstrates several ways to slow and temporarily store runoff which gives it a chance to sink into the ground, evaporate, and be used by plants. This helps purify the water before it goes any further and contributes to a healthier watershed!
Its All Downhill From Here ...
How water quality is handled upstream has direct effects lower in the watershed. All of our runoff is funneled through the Susquehanna River Watershed, eventually reaching the Chesapeake Bay! This massive region of coastline where freshwater mixes with saltwater (an estuary) is incredibly important ecologically and economically. The storm water practices used throughout the Southern Tier have a direct impact on this important natural resource and those who rely on its fisheries!
Signed, Sealed, Delivered
Roads, roofs, parking lots, and sidewalks made with conventional building materials like asphalt and concrete are examples of impervious surfaces. Water is unable to move through them and instead runs rapidly across to gutters, drains, and ditches that in turn send rain water as fast as possible toward the nearest body of water. This system of pollution "superhighways" conveys contaminated water directly to sensitive aquatic habitats and exacerbates the severity of floods.
The Right Tool for the Job
There are many different types of sustainable storm water management practices. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses. For instance, if not well-maintained porous pavement can become clogged with debris and cease to function. A practice like porous paving might not be suitable for all projects and conventional building materials will need to be used. In these cases, it is important to consider where else in the system sustainable practices can be employed. Often times, rain gardens, detention and retention bays, and storage cisterns/rain barrels can be placed between impervious surfaces and municipal drainage. In the case of rain gardens and rain barrels this can probably even be done at your home for little cost!
Porous Paving
Three different types of porous paving products allow water to pass through our parking lot's surface rather than running off into a drain or ditch.
Planted Detention Bays
During larger precipitation events, our porous parking bays overflow to two detention bays planted with native wetland plants. They offer additional water storage while filtering and slowing any water that escapes.
Trees and Shrubs
​In addition to plantings in bays, ponds, and ditches, hundreds of trees and shrubs were planted throughout the project area. They further enhance the stability of the soil and its ability to hold, utilize, and purify water as it moves through the area
HOW DOES WISE WORK?
Green Roof
More than a neglected layer of moss! Green roofs employ carefully selected mixes of plants that can absorb and utilize large amounts of water and counter the heat island affect, all while serving as a carbon sink.
Wetland Retention Pond
On a landscape scale, wetlands serve as filters and overflow basins that safeguard water quality and increase resistance to flooding. They actively process and sequester contaminants and stabilize surges in water flow. Much of the WISE Project's 14,000 gallon capacity is held in the three wetland ponds at the front of our property