Project Highlight: Stormwater Demonstration at the Sciencenter

Provided by Charles Trautmann
Sciencenter Executive Director

The Sciencenter of Ithaca has received a grant to construct a stormwater pollution control demonstration project. According to Executive Director, Charlie Trautmann, the stormwater retention system will be completed during the Spring of 2003 and will be accompanied by outdoor signs and an indoor exhibit on stormwater and watersheds.

Located in the Sciencenter parking area, the system will collect water from the Sciencenter’s 30,000 square feet of parking lot and roof, allowing it to seep slowly into the adjacent soil. Typically, water that drains from these impervious surfaces would be channeled via a storm drain into Cascadilla Creek, and subsequently into Cayuga Lake. The retention basin will reduce the volume of stormwater entering local streams and will trap sediment and pollutants that would otherwise find their way to Cayuga Lake.

Sediment and other pollutants caught by the basin's filter fabric will be removed and evaluated regularly to provide insight on the nature of pollution coming from cars and roadways, and on the effectiveness of control measures such as this one. This and other demonstration projects to be funded in the coming years should provide planners and residents alike with valuable information on best ways to restore and protect our watershed resources. We hope you will take time to tour the project once it is open to the public. Contact the Sciencenter at 607-272-0600 for more information.