This season’s heavy rainfall has taken a toll on our stormwater basins. Severe weather significantly impacted these basins at Puerta de Refugio. These basins are designed to manage rainwater, particularly in parking lot linear swales—long, shallow depressions meant to catch runoff.
During recent storms, the river overflowed its banks, and the basins faced serious erosion, threatening the integrity of the parking lot. Green infrastructure requires ongoing maintenance and long-term TLC.
This week, our River Rangers returned to Puerta de Refugio to perform essential maintenance. They addressed the erosion by packing stone dust into the voids and reinforcing the sides of the basins. They removed debris and refilled the areas with two tons of fresh soil. A bespoke seed mix, including 17 herbaceous plants, sedges, and flowers tailored to this harsh site, was introduced in collaboration with Door of Refuge. To further stabilize the soil and prevent additional erosion, they applied straw and biodegradable coconut husk matting.
This restoration effort was funded through the EPA’s Southern New England Project. Special shout out to our very special cat guest during the cleanup.