The need for water conservancy is becoming more and more apparent. Here in Sault Ste. Marie, we may be situated on the largest fresh water lake in the world –Go Us! – but that does not leave us immune to the rapidly decreasing water levels. Recently, water collection devices like Rain Barrels have made a mainstream resurgence. They make rain collection and reuse quite simple and allow you to reduce your dependency on your municipal water supply, saving you money on utility bills. The water that is collected can go a long way in maintaining your lawn, flower beds, vegetable gardens and your house plants as well. Ready-made Rain Barrels are often fitted with an intake that can directly connect to the downspout from your eaves trough, a filtering mesh for insects and small debris as well as a spigot for gravity-fed watering in the yard.
The student’s of F H Clergue French Immersion Public school are making use of the benefits of Rain Barrels and hope you will too! They’re fund-raising to help the earth and build their very own Teaching Garden on the grounds of the school. The Clergue community is excited about the opportunity for everyone to learn about gardening and agriculture in a sustainable way.
The grade 2 students of F.H. Clergue created a list of the benefits of the Rain Barrels:
- You will save money by not running your water!
- Rain that falls from the ground, lands on your vehicle and picks up oils. This water goes into the sewers and back into our lakes.
- Rain that falls into a rain barrel is then used in a garden or to water your lawn. The garden/lawn filters the water, cleaning it which will send clean water into our lakes.
- Rain from a rain barrel is pure and clean. There are no chemicals. Use this water to water your plants inside and outside! Your plants will thank you.
- We will benefit from a Learning Garden built at the new F.H. Clergue school that we could use to learn more about our earth.
- With the water from a rain barrel you can wash your pet, water your garden, or clean your driveway!
To date, they’ve sold 81 barrels, and must reach their goal of 300 by April 15.
Here’s how you can go about purchasing your Rain Barrel –
1. Click on this link , order and pay online by using VISA or Mastercard.
2. Click on this link , place an order and pay with cash on pick-up.
3. Call F.H. Clergue (705-945-7136) and tell us what you want, and we’ll place the order for you!
4. Drop into F.H. Clergue and use our sign-up sheet to order your rain barrel.
“The rain barrels come in three colours, black, grey and terracotta and are $55 per barrel. Check-out our website for more information! www.rainbarrel.ca/fhc
Thank You! Merci! From Mlle Phillips’ Grade 2 Class!
Algoma Food Network 