All year the city of Dublin has been informing its residents on how to become a greener community with the Dublin Community Recreation Center’s (DCRC) four-part “How is it Greener in Dublin?” series and many recycling events that help community members get involved with going green in Dublin. Now, the DCRC is getting a $50,650 grant from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to build an eco-friendly green roof that will have vegetation growing on top of the building.

The green roof will be 2,300 feet in size and it will contain two rain barrels to harvest the rainwater for the plants and a rain gauge to determine exactly how much water is being moved from the South Indian Run. It will also include a walkway and a small patio. Any residents or community groups can schedule a tour. With this project, Dublin City Schools will provide the students with hands-on experience with storm water pollution and the advantages of projects like this.

Members of the Green Team, a group of Dublin volunteers, will help care for the green roof and track the rain fall for research purposes. Other plans for the green roof include growing herbs for cooking classes.

The grant is thanks to the Ohio EPA’s Surface Water Improvement Fund, which provides money for local governments, park districts, conservation organizations, and others, says the EPA. The goal of this fund is to improve the water quality of the streams and rivers in Ohio. The DCRC is one of the many applicants that received funding for their environmental-friendly projects.

The ultimate goal of this project is to cut the volume of storm water coming off the roof and into the South Indian Run. The reason is that rain carries sediment, bacteria, and other pollutants into the waterway. Many people think in terms of traditional pollution, which means unhealthy violations from corporations putting waste into Ohio’s rivers and streams, but there are other forms of pollution that are just as harmful.