About the RainScaping Campaign
The RainScaping Campaign—an Environmental Partnership for Stormwater Runoff Solutions—was primarily active 2008-2013, and continues via outdoor signage at various locations. Organized by the Chesapeake Ecology Center, this PSA/Ad and social marketing campaign brought together 53 partners whose common purpose is to improve the health of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries by motivating a critical mass of residents to make RainScaping the norm in Anne Arundel County.
Highlighting “RainScaping…Beautiful Solutions to Water Pollution!,” the RainScaping Campaign (RC) has produced outstanding rainscaping PSAs/Ads, signage, and educational material; and has distributed rainscaping messages via television, print, and web PSAs/Ads, advertising via social media and networks, posters, brochures, outdoor RainScaping Education Stations, and outdoor signage. As a result of extensive marketing and educational efforts, including over 160 presentations and exhibits, we estimate that rain-scaping messages have reached at least 10 percent of Anne Arundel County residents, based on in-depth surveys and Google Analytics website reports.
RC media and educational initiatives target urban and suburban landowners. Residents are encouraged to actively participate in RainScaping activities which result in reduced pesticide and fertilizer use, better management of pet waste and trash, and the installation of rain gardens, rain barrels, native trees and shrubs, and other “Beautiful Solutions to Water Pollution!” The promotion of RainScaping to reduce stormwater runoff continues via outdoor signage, RainScaping Education Stations, and a variety of projects.
Why is RainScaping Being Promoted?
“Stormwater runoff is generated from rain and snowmelt events that flow over land or impervious surfaces, such as paved streets, parking lots, and building rooftops, and does not soak into the ground. The runoff picks up pollutants like trash, chemicals, oils, and dirt/sediment that can harm our rivers, streams, lakes, and coastal waters.” –www.epa.gov/npdes/npdes-stormwater-program
Our manmade system of curbs, gutters, and storm drains quickly carries stormwater runoff directly to local streams, rivers, and the Chesapeake Bay—without any natural filtering process. Learn more about Stormwater Issues and Solutions.
To protect our waterways, homeowners, communities, schools, and businesses use stormwater controls, known as best management practices (BMPs). RainScaping BMPs reduce stormwater runoff, promote infiltration, and filter runoff by controlling it at its source. RainScaping practices range from simple measures that include redirecting downspouts to planting beds, installing rain gardens and rain barrels, planting native trees and shrubs, and replacing hard surfaces with permeable surfaces, to more sophisticated measures such as larger bioretention and green roofs installations.
