An Arizona resident has been impressed by the methods their municipality has been taking in order to preserve groundwater supplies.
“My city has been narrowing residential streets by installing rainwater gardens,” they wrote on Reddit. “Some years ago they also allowed residents to make curb cuts so rain water can flow into basins to recharge groundwater supplies.”
The original poster included photos of the curb cuts. These features are part of Tucson’s larger green stormwater infrastructure program called Storm to Shade. It aims to “capture, clean, and infiltrate stormwater; shade and cool surfaces and buildings; reduce flooding, create wildlife habitat; and provide other services that improve environmental quality and communities’ quality of life.”
The program has been active for years in an attempt to improve urban tree canopy, lower temperatures, and improve water supplies. Measures like these are sorely needed, as Tucson residents have been subjected to contaminated groundwater and have even been incentivized to rip up thirsty grass lawns in order to conserve water…