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Program Director Clay Barber was on the road this week, checking in on stormwater projects in Nash County.

Clay visited three schools this week — all the recipients of past Campus Stormwater Program projects in need of some TLC.

“So, I was inspecting some past stormwater devices that we’ve built to see what they need to be spruced up before school starts back,” Clay said. “These are all in the area where we’re trying to host volunteer opportunities for the employees at Cummins Rocky Mount engine plant, and I’m hoping we can have some campus stormwater cleanup days.”

Cummins has partnered with Sound Rivers on several projects at Nash Community College, Southern Nash High School and North Nash High School.

Sound Rivers’ Campus Stormwater Program projects at Nash Community College include two rain gardens, one at the Early College High School located on the college campus, four rainwater harvesting cisterns and a swale Sound Rivers rebuilt.

“That stuff looks really good,” Clay said.

Southern Nash has a rain garden, rainwater harvesting cistern and a regenerative stormwater conveyance system, a series of pools built into a slope to prevent erosion and instead slow water down and allow it to seep into the ground naturally.

Northern Nash has two rain gardens, a swale and a “pocket wetland,” a spot that always stayed damp and is now home to water-loving plants.

Clay said the first order of business is sprucing up the rain gardens.

“We’re going to start with the maintenance at Northern and Southern Nash, because those projects could use a bit more love,” he said. “They need some mulch and fresh plants here and there; a little cleaning out of debris that builds up.”

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