A wonderful opportunity to learn how to install large cisterns for reducing stormwater runoff and increasing water supply for your landscaping! Please see details and registration information below.




Workshop/Demonstration on Rainwater Catchment for “Guilt-Free” garden watering all summer!


Bainbridge Islanders interested in a “guilt-free” supply of irrigation water in the dry summer months are invited to a workshop Saturday, April 5, on how to design and install a large water catchment system.  

PROBLEM:   As natural areas are replaced by impervious paved surfaces, rainfall can’t soak into the ground to recharge our drinking water supply.  Stormwater too often ends up running off roads into Puget Sound instead of being absorbed by soil to slowly trickle into groundwater aquifers.  Large amounts of pollutants are washed with it into open water bodies.

Watering of lawns and gardens accounts for a large increase in City water usage every dry season.   Pumping precious drinking water for watering our gardens can be expensive, particularly for residents using limited City water supplies.  

ONE SOLUTION:  Why not capture excess rainwater off the roof of your house to water your plants in the dry season,  and reduce stormwater runoff from your property?

The hands-on workshop is being sponsored by the Bainbridge Island Watershed Council, the Bainbridge Island Permaculture Guild, and an ad-hoc group called DRIP (Demonstrating Rainwater Irrigation Possibilities). The workshop is scheduled from 1 to 5 p.m. at a home on New Sweden Road. Details will be provided upon pre-registration by emailing info@biwatershedcouncil.org. (Suggested donation $25).

Two 3,000-gallon cisterns are being installed on the site. They will be at different stages of installation that day, so participants will get to help with many aspects of the process. Participants will also learn about options for locating cisterns, and using gravity to deliver the water. Designed for above-ground installation, the tanks don’t need to be located next to a house,even though they are linked by pipes to gutters. Instead, the tanks can be tucked into out-of-the-way places in a landscape.

For several weeks after the workshop, the sponsoring organizations will take orders for this type of cistern, which cost a little more than $1,000 when ordered in bulk. People who want professional assistance will be able to make appointments for site visits.