STORIES OF PROGRESS IN ACHIEVING HEALTHY WATERS
^pR0^° EPA Region 3 Water Protection Division
EPA Helps Botanic Garden Blossom
North Fayette, Pennsylvania • September 1, 2016
One of the keys to the continued transformation of abandoned
mine lands into a world-class botanic garden near Pittsburgh is
an innovative rainwater system financed by EPA's Clean Water
State Revolving Fund.
EPA provided $1.36 million through Pennsylvania's PENNVEST
to build three irrigation ponds and a giant 400,000-gallon
underground cistern to meet the future watering needs of flower
gardens that will beckon visitors from a ridge of the Pittsburgh
Botanic Garden.
According to the botanic garden's website, the rainwater system
will provide more than two million gallons of rainwater a year,
avoiding the "significant expense of bringing in municipal water."
The botanic garden, located 10 miles west of the city in Settlers
Cabin County Park, opened on a permanent basis in April 2015
with a 60-acre section that includes an award-winning Lotus Pond,
three miles of wooded trails, a family fun zone, and a restored
1870s barn that hosts weddings and other special events.
With 460 acres leased from Allegheny County, the facility's next
steps are construction of additional parking and a visitor's center
followed by the installation of display gardens, said Bob Hedin, an
environmental consultant involved with the project.
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EPA funds irrigation system for area of
Pittsburgh Botanic Garden.
System to provide more than two
million gallons of rainwater a year.
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Construction of EPA-funded cistern to satisfy
irrigation needs. Credit: Pittsburgh Botanic Garden
Hedin explained that surface water from land being reclaimed from past mining activity will flow into the
three ponds for storage and be pumped as necessary to the underground cistern, which will irrigate the
water-intensive gardens area. The cistern and the ponds are already in place.
The irrigation system is part of the broader project to realize the vision of garden enthusiasts and
community leaders to create a botanic garden from land and streams impacted by legacy mining
activity and other past practices.
In May, the botanic garden received its latest infusion of funds - a $370,000 Growing Greener Grant
from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to passively clean acid mine drainage
within the headwaters of the Garden's Kentucky Hollow area. The botanic garden was also recently
selected for Department of Interior Office of Surface Mining's Abandoned Mine Lands Economic
Revitalization Pilot Program.
The Pittsburgh Botanic Garden has already won a Pennsylvania Governor's Award for Environmental
Excellence for a passive treatment system to control acid mine drainage at the Lotus Pond exhibit. The
pond receives mine water that has pH 3 but is passively treated with limestone to neutral pH. The
excellent water quality has allowed the botanic garden to plant the Lotus Pond with diverse aquatic
plants and stock it with fish. The treatment system has been incorporated in the Garden's trail system.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
EPA Region 3 Water Protection Division
Philadelphia, PA
For additional information contact:
Magdalene Cunningham,
cunningham.maqdalene@epa.gov
EPA WPD Office of Infrastructure and Assistance
Dr. Paul K. Marchetti, PENNVEST, parchetti@pa.oov

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