Los Angeles Invites Residents and Businesses to Participate in City's New On-Site Rainwater Harvesting Program

Los Angeles (July 21, 2009) – The City of Los Angeles Department of Public Works rolls out the City’s first free Rainwater Harvesting pilot program that will provide free assistance to residents and commercial businesses willing to collect rainwater for storage and use for their private property irrigation.  The program aims to reduce the polluted rainwater that goes into the ocean and help conserve the use of potable water.

  The pilot program will cover these areas: Jefferson area, bounded by Jefferson, La Brea, Adams and Fairfax Avenue; the Sawtelle area, bounded by Sawtelle, Pico, Barrington, and Stanwood; and the Mar Vista community. The Rainwater Harvesting program aims to enlist 600 Los Angeles property owners in the targeted neighborhoods by fall 2009, and will set goals for citywide participation.

Residents that sign up for the program will be eligible for complementary installations of rain barrels and downspout disconnections, or planter boxes for businesses.  The captured rainwater will then be either routed to pervious surfaces or used for on-site irrigation.  The program allows residents and businesses to become part of the solution in transforming rainwater from urban runoff to a natural commodity.

“Rainwater is a natural resource. Harvesting that resource locally by collecting rainwater is one of the easiest and most profoundly important things a person can do.” said Lisa Cahill, Citizen Forestry Manager for TreePeople. She adds, “Safely collecting the water is the first of many vital steps of water conservation. When neighbors work together to help each other with this effort the results can be amazing.”

The environmental benefits of the pilot program are far-reaching.  A typical Los Angeles home directs an average of 14,000 gallons of water down its downspouts and into the storm drain system annually.  This water may collect pollutants, including trash, pet waste, oil and grease or other chemicals.  As an alternative, the Rainwater Harvesting program will allow homeowners to collect the rainwater and reduce the amount of rainwater pollution entering the Santa Monica Bay. The captured rainwater will be maintained on individual properties to irrigate lawns and gardens thereby also helping residents comply with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s recently-mandated water conservation requirements.

Wing Tam, City of Los Angeles Rainwater Harvesting program manager says, “This program sets an important first step for future citywide roll-out.  Our hope is that the pilot areas will begin the momentum needed to generate interest in harvesting rainwater throughout the entire community. Ultimately, the beauty of the program is that it establishes community members and the City as collaborators, both working together for a more sustainable water supply and a clean ocean.”

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The pilot program and its complementary services are provided through a grant funded by State Proposition 12 from the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission (SMBRC) contracting through the State Coastal Conservancy.

For more information about the Rainwater Harvesting program and enrollment, please call (562) 597-0205 or visit LArainwaterharvesting.org.