Have your say: Rain Ready Ottawa program update
We are seeking your input on the Rain Ready Ottawa pilot program. Rain Ready Ottawa is currently undergoing a review to learn from the pilot and identify recommendations for a possible future program.
Since launching in 2021, Rain Ready Ottawa has successfully led to the installation of hundreds of residential stormwater management projects like rain gardens, permeable pavement and soakaway pits. It has engaged with thousands of Ottawans on how they can get rain ready.
Many of Ottawa’s older urban areas were developed without thinking about managing the impacts of runoff on local watercourses. Buildings, streets and parking lots don’t absorb stormwater like natural areas do. When rain falls on these surfaces, it moves quickly into storm sewers as stormwater runoff that drains straight into our streams and rivers, picking up pollutants along the way. This can cause problems like:
Poor water quality in creeks and rivers
Increased risks of flooding and erosion
Habitat degradation
Beach closures
These include:
Downspout redirections away from storm drains and to permeable surfaces.
Installation of rain barrels to capture and store stormwater.
Installation of rain gardens and soakaway pits to encourage on-site stormwater absorption.
Installation of permeable pavements to reduce impermeable hardscapes and encourage on-site stormwater absorption.
Protecting the health of the Ottawa River watershed will need everyone to take action. Projects both big and small can make a difference and help improve the health of our waterways and reduce the harmful impacts of stormwater runoff.
The Rain Ready Ottawa pilot is currently undergoing a review to identify recommendations for an extended or permanent program. The review is considering:
How to tell more people about Rain Ready Ottawa.
How to best support Ottawans in undertaking stormwater management projects through education and rebates.
What kind of engagement activities would benefit Ottawans the most.
How the City can work better with landscaping companies to get projects in the ground.
What areas would benefit most from improved residential stormwater management.
To learn more about Rain Ready Ottawa and the projects it supports, visit ottawa.ca/rain
Have your say
Tell us about your experiences with the current program and how the City can support you to become more ‘rain ready’ in the survey on the Rain Ready Ottawa Engage Page. Your responses will be considered as a part of the program review that will be presented to Council in spring 2024.