Medians in the parking lot of the Rood Administrative Center are being rebuilt to capture stormwater and prevent parking lot grime from polluting Deer Creek.

The areas — called rain gardens and bioswales — will not reduce parking at the Nevada County center in Nevada City, but will become home to native plants that help maintain the soil, allowing it to filter out pollutants, said Project Manager Luke Hunt of American Rivers, a national river conservation nonprofit that has had its California headquarters in Nevada City for six years.

Rainwater polluted by oil, antifreeze, brake dust and other toxins that would otherwise flow into storm drains, which in turn empty into the creek, will instead flow into the rebuilt areas and soak into the ground naturally, Hunt said. As filtered groundwater, it will nourish trees and plants in Nevada City later in the year, when water is most needed.

These areas of “green infrastructure” use natural processes to deal with human-created problems. The project is being funded through an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grant awarded to American Rivers.

Construction should be completed in August, Hunt said. A public event is planned for September.

An Interpretive trail will have signs explaining how the rain garden works, how people can get involved and how this technology is beginning to transform stormwater management across America, Hunt said.

The South Yuba River Citizens League, which has been monitoring water quality in the Yuba River watershed for 10 years, will measure the project's clean water benefits.

Nevada City graphic designer David Wellner is creating the interpretive signs. Integrated Environmental Restoration Services, of Tahoe City, is leading the construction, Hunt said.

Learn more at www.AmericanRivers.org

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To contact City Editor Trina Kleist, e-mail tkleist@theunion.com or call (530) 477-4230.