Residents of the Peters Brook Watershed in New Jersey are once again being offered rebates of up to $200 on rain barrels to help with water conservation, according to local reports.
The watershed encompasses parts of the towns of Somerville, Bridgewater and Raritan, The Messenger-Gazette reports. This is the second year area officials have offered the rebate.
"The Peters Brook Watershed is highly developed, and is comprised of approximately 30 percent pavement, rooftops and other impervious surfaces," according to the news source. "Rainwater runoff from impervious surfaces flows to our streams, picking up pollutants along the way. Rain barrels are one item in the toolbox for managing stormwater runoff."
The New Jersey Water Supply Authority also holds a rain barrel-building workshop in the area. Residents can learn how to build and maintain their own barrels, which can help collect water runoff from roofs during rainstorms.
More and more U.S. homeowners are harvesting rainwater to cut down on utility costs and protect the environment, according to RainBarrelGuide.com. The practice goes back at least 2,000 years to Thailand, where residents would gather rain in clay pots.
