Water has been shaping climate and ecosystems since life began so it is no surprise that water management is an important part of our permaculture design. The Pittsburgh climate has rainy springs, hot summers, mild falls and winters that hover around the freezing point.
Watershed management projects, such as those run by Nine Mile Run Watershed Association, improve local watersheds by increasing the collective awareness of our impacts on local waterways. NMRWA helps households connect what they do in their daily life with the environment they see immediately outside their doors as well as downstream. Their rain barrel program has provided hundreds of households with 133 gallon barrels and the necessary hardware for cheaper than they would have cost otherwise.
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We are proud to be a part of a group of communities that has reclaimed ownership of the local watershed and are grateful for the work that has been done to reinvigorate our local ecosystems. We want our design to serve our needs, watering the plants and saving us money while, at the same time, protecting the environment and providing healthy habitats.
The goals for our permaculture design are to 1) provide water to the plants that need it during the hot dry periods, 2) ensure proper drainage during wet weather, 3) reduce the amount of water we draw from public utilities and 4) let less water get to the storm/sewer system by promoting greater ground water penetration and reusing waste water.
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