Sarita Rain Garden Project Overview

The Rotary Club of Corpus Christi (RCCC) partnered with the Los Altos Quetzaltenango Guatemala Rotary Club and Coastal Bend Bays and Estuaries Program (CBBEP) and the Kenedy County-wide Common School District (District) to install a rain garden on the Sarita Elementary School campus (Sarita, Texas). Other sponsors included the Rotary Clubs of Marble Falls, Edinburg, Brownsville Sunrise, Harlingen and Southside Corpus Christi and Districts 5930 (South Texas), 5870 (Central Texas), 5580 (North Dakota, Minnesota and Ontario) and 4130 (Northeast Mexico).

Rain gardens are listed as a green infrastructure best management practice to address stormwater in the WPP because they are designed to collect rainwater from a roof, driveway, parking lot, or street and allow it time to soak into the ground. When planted with grasses and flowering perennials, rain gardens are a cost-effective and beautiful way to reduce flooding; provide habitat for butterflies, songbirds, and other wildlife; store excess carbon; and filter out pollutants. Grant funds will be used for design and construction of the rain garden, which will serve as a demonstration project for surrounding communities. **Photo credits: Coastal Bend Bays and Estuaries Program (CBBEP)**