[0]Clean River Rewards
The Oregonian [1] recently published some articles about Portland's stormwater discount program, Clean River Rewards [2], and how you can earn discounts on your stormwater utility charges by managing stormwater runoff on your property. The city currently plans to launch Clean River Rewards in late October.
In the meantime, the city is holding workshops on ways to manage stormwater runoff, and how to go through the discount program registration process. Plenty of information is available either online [3], email: cleanrivers@bes.ci.portland.or.us or voice mail: 503-823-1371.
Clean River Rewards include discounts worth as much as 35% of your stormwater management charges. In addition, the program will grant retroactive credits equal to as much as 12 months worth of stormwater discounts.
The amount of discounts and credits you receive depends on the extent and effectiveness of your stormwater management efforts. For single family residences, the requirements are simple and focused on controlling the volume of runoff from building downspouts. For all other properties, the program requires ratepayers to manage volume, speed and water quality of runoff from buildings, parking lots, private drives, and other paved areas.
Need help assessing the potential of managing stormwater on your property? The city has a technical assistance team to help you learn more about stormwater management techniques. These stormwater experts will even arrange to tour your property and offer helpful suggestions about ways to "contain the rain" and earn stormwater discounts.
Stay tuned for announcements about the start of the program. We will post program updates at www.CleanRiverRewards.com and insert notices in city utility bills. And expect to see more coverage in the local media.
Clean River Rewards is coming. This is your opportunity to help improve the health of our rivers and streams, and at the same time, reduce your city stormwater bill.