On Saturday, October 8, student volunteers joined Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) staff to clean and maintain the Jennings Hall rain gardens. Volunteers, including the Texnikoi Engineering Honorary and the Ecological Engineering Society, weeded, trimmed perennials and mulched 22 garden boxes during the annual fall event, which has taken place since 2013.
The rain gardens were among the first developed for the Columbus campus after the Botany and Zoology Building (renamed in 2002 in honor of former Ohio State President Edward H. Jennings) greenhouses were demolished in 1995. Rain gardens help filter and slow the runoff from storm events. They are also a popular form of green infrastructure due to their lower maintenance requirements compared to other forms of water treatment and detention.
Not only did student volunteers help beautify and maintain an important natural stormwater facility, but they also helped the Ohio State meet one of its stormwater permit requirements. These students and their efforts helped satisfy “Public Involvement and Participation” Best Management Practice (BMP) required in the university’s National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit.
In addition to the student volunteers and student organizations who participate with this initiative, EHS also wishes to thank Stephen Volkmann, Stephen Schneider and FOD Landscape Services for their continued support.