Rain Gardens to be dedicated at Olney Elementary School on Thursday, November 1

For Immediate Release: Tuesday, October 30, 2018

County Executive Leggett, Board of Education President Durso, MCPS COO Zuckerman Will Join Fourth Graders in Celebrating Modern Approach to Stormwater Management

Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett, County Board of Education President Mike Durso, Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) Chief Operating Officer Andrew Zuckerman and Maryland Secretary of the Department of the Environment Ben Grumbles will join fourth graders from Olney Elementary School at 10 a.m. on Thursday, November 1, to dedicate three new rain gardens at the school as part of the continuing partnership between the County’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and school system in creative stormwater management.

Olney Elementary School is located at 3401 Queen Mary Drive in Olney. The ceremonies will take place at one of the three rain gardens in which the dignitaries and students will jointly position the final plants to complete one of the rain gardens.

The Department of Environmental Protection has been collaborating with MCPS since 2012 to identify locations on school properties to install new Environmental Site Design stormwater management facilities. The three rain gardens to be installed at Olney Elementary will increase the number of projects to 33 at 10 schools overall. The rain gardens at Olney Elementary and one at Sherwood Elementary School are expected to be the only ones established on school properties during the 2018-19 school year.

“The water from these rain gardens at Olney Elementary School will drain into Rock Creek, which flows into the Potomac River and ultimately ends up in the Chesapeake Bay,” said County Executive Leggett. “If that water leaves, polluted, from Olney, that polluted water could harm aquatic life and plants that are important to our eco system. So, it all starts here.”

The stormwater facilities at schools provide an educational aid for teachers to instruct about water quality issues, streams, rivers and the Chesapeake Bay. The fourth-grade class of Corey McClellan will participate in Thursday’s ceremonies.

“These rain gardens will become living classrooms on our own school campus,” said Olney Elementary Principal Carla Glawe. “Our fourth-grade students will be at the ceremonies to share the knowledge they have gained about the importance of stormwater management.”

Environmental Site Design projects are an important part of the County’s stormwater management program. Small-scale facilities—such as rain gardens—intercept stormwater runoff closer to its source and thereby provide more opportunity for stormwater to soak into the ground.

“We know from research and data that it takes time to see noticeable environmental improvement and behavioral change,” said Patty Bubar, the County’s interim director of DEP. “However, we have made great strides and are making good progress in changing the environmental climate in the County. Projects and partnerships like these are major steps forward.”

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Release ID: 18-726
Media Contact: Ryan Zerbe 240-777-7744, Neil Greenberger 240-777-6532