Learn About Native Wildlife Habitats & Rain Gardens
- Chatham Township’s Native Wildlife Habitat & Rain Garden
- Storm Water Basin of Southern Boulevard Elementary School (SBS)
- 192 Southern Blvd, Chatham Township, NJ 07928
Adjacent to the parking lot of SBS is a storm water retention basin. The basin was built originally in 2002 as a mowed turf storm water basin designed to slow rainwater runoff from the school parking lot storm drains. In 2005, Girl Scout Troops of The Chathams, Boy Scout Troops, Members of the Chatham Township Environmental Commission, and other community members planted the forebay of the basin to retrofit it into a bio-filtration basin and wildlife habitat—thanks to a Natural Resource Conservation Service Grant. Later, the Chatham Township EC and community members worked to create a Rain Garden too.
Here’s how the Chatham Township Native Wildlife Habitat protects local drinking water
Rain from the school’s parking lot goes into storm drains and empties into the cement pipe that comes out into the little pond at the bottom of the basin near the gate. Plant root systems filter sediment, oils, road salt, and other pollution and make the ground more porous for water to seep back into the ground. Then the cleaner storm water flows to the back part of the basin and out a pipe by the cement cube at the far end of the back bay. From there it joins a storm water pipe, flowing towards Southern Boulevard, and pours out by the Chatham Township Gazebo into a tributary
of Black Brook, one of the feeder streams of the Great Swamp. The Swamp is headwaters for the Passaic River. The Passaic River is one of the main sources of drinking water for the NJ American Water Company, which provides tap water for most of Chatham Township.
Use of the Native Wildlife Habitat/Rain Garden
All Chatham Township citizens are welcome to enjoy the habitat/ rain garden at SBS. Parents, Girl Scout Leaders, and Boy Scout Leaders can bring their supervised children and Scouts there after school and all summer long.
SBS teachers use the habitat for poetry or descriptive writing, for art projects, and science activities, such as release of butterflies raised in the classroom. On Earth Day each year, all first grade classes are led by parents to the habitat for a nature scavenger hunt.
In the fall of 2009, kindergartners will be assisted by Master Gardeners in planting a daffodil bowl.
How to Have Your Own Rain Garden
You can have a rain garden in your own yard to capture storm water, clean the local drinking water and prevent soil erosion at the 96 storm water outlets that enter the Great Swamp from Chatham Township. Simply plant a perennial rain garden in a depression in your yard. If you use low-maintenance native plants, you will have the added benefit of feeding native butterflies, birds and enhancing the local ecosystem. For a list of plants native to the Chatham Township area check out https://npsnj.org/native-plants/plant-lists/.
Rain Garden Planning
Size depends on the area of water that will drain into the garden, the type of soils on the site, and the depth of the garden. A typical rain garden ranges from 100 to 300 square feet with a depression depth of 3- 8inches. Evaluate existing drainage infrastructure on the site and identify desired garden features.
*Instructions courtesy of www.SustainableJersey.com
Helpful Links
Rain Garden Education/Training Resources:
Resources Program
Low Impact Development Center
Native Plant Society of New Jersey Rain Gardens Page
New Jersey Master Gardeners
