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My street in Austin used to flood every big storm. Now it doesn't, and it's because of a ditch. | Climate Action - Talk Freely

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emery_bailey•7mo ago

My street in Austin used to flood every big storm. Now it doesn't, and it's because of a ditch.

For years, a heavy rain meant water over the curb and into our yards. The city finally dug a wide, deep drainage ditch along the road about 18 months ago and filled it with native plants. Last week we got 4 inches in a few hours and the water just vanished into it. It's a simple fix that beats repaving everything. Has your town done any small projects like this that actually worked?

3 comments

3 Comments

reese_lopez497mo ago

We had a similar problem in my old neighborhood in San Antonio. I always thought we needed bigger underground pipes, which would have been a huge mess to install. The city put in a series of shallow gravel-filled trenches, called infiltration basins, along the parkway instead. They look like simple landscaping but they soak up an amazing amount of water. Our basement hasn't flooded once since they went in. It totally changed my view on what good drainage looks like.

reese_lopez497mo ago

So much for my genius plan to just dig up the whole street, I guess.