Build your own rain barrel at Darlington workshop

Published: April 10, 2012

Carolina Clear image by: Carolina Clear

DARLINGTON — Build a rain barrel and learn about rain harvesting at a workshop hosted by the Florence/Darlington Stormwater Consortium and Darlington County.

The workshop will be from 10 a.m. to noon April 28 at the Darlington County Recreation Center, 300 Sanders St. in Darlington.

The class costs $40 per person, which includes all rain barrel materials. All participants leave with a completed rain barrel. The class is limited to 20 participants. Rain barrels typically cost about $100.

Registration deadline is April 20 and is on a first-come, first-served basis.

Make checks payable to Clemson University and mail or deliver them to the Florence County Extension office, 2685 S. Irby St., Suite K, Florence, SC 29505. Mark them for the attention of Terasa Young. Contact 843-661-4800, ext. 113, or terasa@clemson.edu for more information.

Rain barrels utilize an age-old concept of reusing rainwater to irrigate gardens and lawns, water plants and wash cars, among many other uses.

A 1,000-square-foot roof catches more than 600 gallons of water from just an inch of rain. Rain barrels also are good for the environment because they reduce stormwater flow, which causes erosion, and can carry pollutants from yards and streets into streams.

END

Florence/Darlington Stormwater Consortium
The Florence/Darlington Stormwater Consortium is a regional collaboration involving the Carolina Clear program in partnership with communities and educators from universities, state agencies and nonprofits.

Carolina Clear
Carolina Clear is a stormwater education and awareness program of the Clemson University Restoration Institute and the Center for Watershed Excellence. The program’s goal is to minimize polluted stormwater runoff by educating the general public, youth, builders, developers, homeowners and government officials about how they can keep water in the state’s streams, rivers and basins as clean as possible.