The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that nearly 40 percent of household water is used for lawn and garden maintenance. One way to reduce this is to build a rain barrel to collect rainwater runoff from your home. Since rainwater is soft and devoid of minerals, chlorine, fluoride and other harmful chemicals, it’s great for your garden. To build your own rain barrel, check out these free plans:
Environmental Protection Agency
Lincoln (Nebraska) Watershed Education: Rain Barrels
Maryland Environmental Design Program
