Last year Onondaga County kicked off its "Save the Rain" program to keep stormwater runoff out of the city storm drains, a.k.a., catch basins. This runoff makes its way into the city's storm and combined sewers, often polluting our city's streams and Onondaga Lake. Part of the county's success will rely on city residents doing what they can to catch the rain on their property and keeping the runoff from migrating into the streets, and thereby the drains. 

To further this program, last fall the county funded a collaboration of organizations and community groups to raise awareness in the city about the importance of green infrastructure for managing the city's stormwater runoff. 

The organizations that are working together to educate the city residents, businesses and non-profits are:

SUNY-ESF,SU's Environmental Finance Center, Onondaga Environmental Institute, Baltimore Woods, Atlantic States Legal Foundation, Onondaga Earth Corps and the Partnership for Onondaga Creek.

Together, we plan events and intiatives to tell residents how they can "Save the Rain."  To date we have put on porous pavement, rain barrel and rain garden workshops.  Last fall ,some of groups went door-to-door on the Near Westside and the Southside surveying households about green infrastructure practices.  Charettes have happened in the Westcott area designing ways to capture the runoff in the area. We are also taking every opportunity to speak to the public at meetings, cultural fairs or at events, like the Light a Candle for Literacy Festival on the Southside or at the Duck Race in the Inner Harbor