Rain barrels capture and store rain water for things like home gardening projects and other household tasks, and the city of Santa Clarita is offering a rain barrel purchase program where residents can pre-order two rain barrels per household for $40 each.
As a means to help conserve water, save residents money on their water bills, and reduce runoff pollution and erosion, residents can purchase up to two rain barrels between 9 and 11 a.m. on April 2 at The Centre at 20880 Centre Pointe Parkway, with an opportunity to take a class on how to collect and utilize rain water effectively. Each rain barrel is made of food-grade plastic with a solid brass spigot that can be used to attach a garden hose to divert water for landscape irrigation. The barrel is also topped with a 4-inch mesh screen that prevents bugs from contaminating the water.
“No. 1, we’re trying to bring attention to conserving water,” said the city of Santa Clarita’s event coordinator Laura Jardine, “and No. 2, offer a program that we think is valuable to the community. This is a great opportunity to capture that rain water from the roof, and then use it in a good way to save water and save on your water bill.”
Barrels range between 50 and 60 gallons each, according to Jardine, and those sizes are based on the color residents choose.
This is the third time the city has offered this program, Jardine said, the first being a trial run last spring that resulted in selling all 50 barrels the city had on hand. The city did a second program in the fall, and for this third time, the city has 100 barrels to sell.
The informational class as part of the April 2 event is set to begin at 9 a.m., and it’s offered to anyone interested, even those who don’t purchase barrels. The class will cover the benefits of rainwater harvesting, the best practices for installing a rain barrel and helpful water conservation tips.
“People often think that we don’t get enough rain to even be worth doing this,” Jardine said, “but one good rain actually fills up the barrel pretty quickly.”
For those who can’t make it to the April 2 event, there should be, according to Jardine, another one in the fall.
For more information about the rain barrel purchase program, email Rain Barrels Intl. at [email protected] or contact the city’s environmental services team at [email protected], or call 661-286-4098. To learn more about the city’s environmental efforts and green programs, go to GreenSantaClarita.com.
