April 25, 2005

Charles River Watershed Association Sponsored Project Called ‘Best Practice” in Solving Stormwater Pollution Problems

Waltham, MA -- The Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA) and Rainwater Recovery Systems (RWRS) have completed a pollution prevention demonstration project using an innovative rainwater recovery system at Harvard University that captures clean stormwater runoff from rooftops to use for both irrigation and vehicle washing. The rainwater recovery system will allow Harvard to reduce storm water runoff while increasing groundwater recharge.

The new system, located at the university’s vehicle maintenance facility on North Harvard Street in Allston, MA, catches clean stormwater runoff from the facility’s rooftop and stores it in cisterns for vehicle washing and lawn irrigation.  Though residential rainwater recovery systems can be found all over suburban Boston, the Harvard system is the first time the SmartStorm® Rainwater Recovery System has been installed in an institutional setting.

The vehicle maintenance facility consumes an estimated 1,000 gallons of water twice monthly for maintenance activities.  Ordinarily, stormwater runoff from the 6,000 square-foot roof of the facility is collected through internal drains and discharged at the four corners of the building to a combined sewer system that ultimately discharges to the Charles River in wet weather.  The new system reuses the water rather than allowing it to be dumped into the river. 

The system consists of a 1,200-gallon storage tank, which will supply the vehicle maintenance facility with water, and a 2,500-gallon dry well, which will send the excess rainwater into the groundwater supply.

Robert W. Varney, regional administrator of EPA’s New England Office, calls this a “project that will provide useful information on how to solve stormwater problems in a heavily urbanized area.”  In neighborhoods like Allston, as well as in heavily paved suburban areas, clean rainwater lands on the pavement and becomes contaminated by pollutants such as sediments, oil, and fertilizers before being sent by pipe to the Charles River or another local water body, he said. 

  Compounding the issue, impervious surfaces, such as pavement and buildings, prevent the rain from soaking into the ground, limiting the replacement of the groundwater that keeps our waterways flowing during the hot, dry summer months.  With rainwater unable to seep into the groundwater, rivers, including the Charles, suffer from lower flows, higher temperatures, and increased pollution. 

Advocates of the project see the dual benefits of conservation and recharge as the system’s main draw. "Harvard University is pleased to be supporting the protection of the Charles River while at the same time conserving water," said Joe Griffin, environmental health and safety director.  “Recently, Harvard washed 19 vehicles – five buses, five vans, eight pick-up trucks and one police cruiser – with the new system. Using recycled rainwater, Harvard could wash over 50 vehicles. This is a great savings.”

Since the system was installed, Harvard has conserved 2,000 gallons of water each month using rainwater to wash its vehicles.  Previously, Harvard’s vehicle wash water at this facility came from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority’s Quabbin Reservoir.

“Harvard and a number of other universities in the Boston area enjoy their location in the Charles River watershed.  We are happy to be working with Harvard on their efforts to restore the river’s health and lead the way in protecting our sustainable water resources,” said Robert Zimmerman,   executive director of the Charles River Watershed Association, an environmental organization dedicated to improving and protecting the quality of water in the Charles.  “Institutions like Harvard realize that we have to make a change in the way we manage our water if we want to have enough water in the future.  Harvard is setting a strong example for other organizations to follow their lead".

A number of these systems have been installed at homes in the upper Charles River watershed, where communities depend on groundwater for water supply and face strict watering bans starting as early as March and running through October. 

The project was hosted by Harvard University’s Transportation Services Department and developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and NSTAR.  The Charles River Watershed Association managed the project, and the system was designed and installed by RainWater Recovery, LLC. 

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Charles River Watershed Association’s uses science, advocacy and the law to protect, preserve and enhance the Charles River and its watershed. One of our country’s first watershed organizations, CRWA formed in 1965 in response to public concern about the declining condition of the Charles River.  Since its earliest days of advocacy, CRWA has figured prominently in major clean-up and watershed protection efforts that have dramatically improved the health of the Charles.