St. Johns Riverkeeper and our numerous partners collaborated to install the City of Jacksonville’s first bioswale along Lasalle Street in front of the San Marco Library. A bioswale collects stormwater runoff from roads, rooftops, and parking lots and uses soil and plants to remove pollution before the water reaches the St. Johns River.
Funded by a grant from Coca-Cola, the bioswale was installed to demonstrate how Low Impact Development (LID) or Green Infrastructure strategies can be effectively utilized to manage and treat stormwater. A portion of the runoff from Lasalle Street and the surrounding area will now be diverted into the bioswale, helping to clean the stormwater before it enters our river.
Previously, this water was diverted into storm drains and went straight to the river untreated, carrying with it fertilizers, chemicals, and other pollutants.
This project was made possible by the generous contributions of numerous partners, including enVision Design + Engineering, Coca-Cola, San Marco Preservation Society, Greenscape, Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens, MetroVerde, Content Design Group, Petticoat-Schmidt, Media Works, PMB Constructors, Superior Trees, City of Jacksonville, Council Member Lori Boyer, and Jacksonville Public Library.
Florida Roads also donated a pervious concrete walkway at the site to demonstrate additional strategies to prevent stormwater from polluting our waterways.