PA Environment Digest

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North Penn Water Authority, Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy Hold May 20 Groundbreaking, May 21 Planting Day For Rain Garden Project In Skippack Twp., Montgomery County

The North Penn Water Authority and the Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy are partnering on a project to protect the Perkiomen Creek Watershed and beautify the community with a rain garden.

The rain garden will benefit Skippack Township in Montgomery County with a groundbreaking ceremony taking place on May 20, followed by a volunteer planting effort through May 21.

The location of the rain garden will be at Skippack Township’s newest open space, Lenape Park, which recently saw completed construction of a pavilion, bathrooms, and associated site improvements.

The addition of a rain garden will not only add beauty to the area by attracting birds, butterflies, and wildlife, but will also collect rainwater and address drainage issues and prevent pollution and erosion into Perkiomen Creek.

A rain garden is a garden of native shrubs, perennials, and flowers planted in a small depression, where water tends to pool. It is designed to temporarily hold and collect rainwater runoff. It also filters pollutants out of rainwater runoff, much of which ends up in our waterways.

As part of its commitment to environmental stewardship and watershed education, NPWA is committed to educating the public on the importance of watershed protection, source water protection and water conservation.

Partnering with the Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy for the Rain Garden project helps NPWA take that commitment to the next level by implementing a project that will act as a filter to rainwater and stormwater run-off.

“We are happy to be working with Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy on the Rain Garden Project,” said Anthony Bellitto Jr. P.E., Executive Director of NPWA. “We are in the business of providing our customers with clean, safe drinking water 24 hours a day and clean water begins at the source. By protecting source water, we are protecting drinking water.”

"North Penn Water Authority is taking the next step to ensure its residents have access to safe, clean and reliable drinking water. We are thrilled to be a part of that step,” said Ryan Beltz, Executive Director of the Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy. “Nothing is more valuable than protecting the natural resources that sustain us."

Visit Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy’s Rain Garden webpage to learn more about other rain gardens they have installed.

To learn more, visit the North Penn Water Authority website or follow them on Facebook.

(Photo: Cuddy Park Rain Garden in Lower Frederick Township.)

Events:

-- Celebrate First Ever Pennsylvania Native Species Day June 17

-- Pollinator Partnership Celebrates Pollinator Week June 20 - 26

Resource Links - Native Plants:

-- Pollinator Gardens: Help Encourage Ecological Diversity In Your Own Backyard [Videos]

-- Gardening For Butterflies: Penn State Extension

-- Planting For Pollinators: Penn State Extension

-- Penn State Extension Master Gardeners

-- Penn State Pollinator Garden Certification