What’s it all about?
Are you a homeowner with large volumes of water run-off from your downpipes? If you live in Kerry then the chances are that a big ‘YES’ is the answer to this question. Excess rainwater from your roof run-off may lead to puddles and even some flooding in the vicinity of your home. Thankfully, there are ways to alleviate the pressure on your drains, including a nature-based solution.
What’s a Nature-based Solution?
Although it might sound complicated, the term nature based solution (NBS) just means using the natural environment to address issues. The Kerry Biosphere’s Rainwater Planter Initiative aims to use NBS to target stormwater in the Biosphere region. Excessive volumes of stormwater add to the pressures on our wastewater / stormwater and may contribute to negative impacts on our natural waterbodies like rivers and lakes. Our initiative uses a very simple concept to divert the water from a roof into a rainwater planter.
What’s a Rainwater Planter?
The planters comprise a simple design and can vary in shape. We’ve kept it as simple as possible in the Kerry Biosphere and have adopted rectangular shape for our planters. The size of the planter is determined by the area of the roof serviced, a simple bit of maths is used here to work out the size of the planter. The planters are constructed from treated timber and filled with layers of sand, gravel, and topsoil. The top layer is planted with plant species that can tolerate shade, wet conditions, and some periods of dry weather. There are many plants that fit the bill, although we recommend using native Irish species where possible.
How does it work then?
Simple! The downpipe from the roof is diverted into the planter. The planter is fitted with an overflow pipe to allow excess water to overflow to the drain if needed. The planter is lined with tarpaulin to help hold on to the water from the roof which slowly filters through the layers in the planter, reducing pressure on the stormwater drain.
Why Bother?
The planters are a good-looking feature to install at your home, at your house, or garden shed. In addition to benefitting our watercourses, the planters also provide a food source for our pollinator species such as bees, hoverflies, and butterflies. The planters are a lovely feature to install and have great benefit to supporting biodiversity and in turn are an asset in the fight against the climate crisis.
What about this Workshop?
The workshop is delivered by wetlands and nature-based solutions aficionado Féidhlim Harty. We welcomed Féidhlim to the beautiful surroundings of Killarney House in January 2025. The large audience were fiercely entertained and enjoyed the interactive nature of the workshop. We look at the concept of nature-based solutions for water management, stemming from rainwater planters. The workshop is delivered in an informal, informative way, this time in the comfortable surroundings of Anam Cultural and Arts Centre in the heart of Killarney. The workshop will run from 10am until 1pm with a coffee break in the morning. The scones from the O’Donoghue Ring Collection were a focal point for much chat at our previous event, paired nicely with hot tea or coffee!
I’ll Book it so
Great! We’ll be delighted to welcome you. Booking is free and can be made on the Kerry Biosphere Eventbrite Page: https://bit.ly/3FllrsH
For further information please visit www.kerrybiosphere.ie or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
