Calling Monterey Middle School Rain Garden Volunteers

The 200 m² Monterey Middle School Rain Garden demonstration site was built by the Peninsula Streams and Shorelines – Rain Gardens for Headwaters program in collaboration with the Friends of Bowker Creek’s 1000 Rain Gardens Program, School District 61, and with support from Oak Bay Engineering. Located at Monterey Middle School adjacent to the school parking lot, the rain garden was designed to capture and treat stormwater runoff from approximately 1,000 m² of contributing area before flowing through municipal pipes into McNeill Bay. Prior to construction, runoff from the parking lot flowed rapidly into a storm drain, carrying heat, sediment, and urban pollutants to the nearshore environment. The rain garden now intercepts this water, slowing, storing, and filtering runoff through engineered soils and vegetation while also addressing localized drainage issues on site.

Students were intimately involved in every step of the design, construction, and planting phases and now participate in ongoing maintenance of the garden. The site incorporates curb cuts, sediment-settling features, gently sloped flow paths, and overflow controls to manage both small and large rainfall events, while protecting existing site features such as a mature oak tree. Through in-class presentations, hands-on workshops, and outdoor learning, students have gained a deeper understanding of stormwater impacts, rain garden function, and Green Stormwater Infrastructure, and are currently designing interpretive signage to share this knowledge with the broader school and community.