U.S. Water News Online
NATCHITOCHES, La. -- Cane River is the centerpiece of Louisiana's oldest settlement and keeping that oxbow lake's waters clean is important to tourism and quality of life.
This town, founded in 1714, has grown up around the 32-mile-long lake, which was once part of the Red River.
The LSU Agriculture Center has been working on ways to keep Cane River's water as clear as possible while development occurs along its banks.
While most people associate pollution with a sewage discharge or industrial plant pipe pouring into a lake or stream, pollution also comes from rainwater running off the land. That's called nonpoint source pollution.
And cities contribute about nine times more runoff than wooded lands, according to Mimi Stoker of the AgCenter's office.
One recent improvement in Cane River is a new fountain that spouts water high into the air alongside one of the town's two downtown bridges.
``We won't want dirty water spewing from it,'' Stoker said. The community's drinking water comes from another source but the river is heavily used for fishing and recreation and it needs to remain clean, Stoker said.
``Permeable pavement'' is one idea being used to reduce urban runoff.
J.E. Smith and Cecila Dalme restored a 170-year-old home that sits high on the banks of the Cane River just north of downtown.
Their interest in restoring the house's old looks also turned out to be an opportunity to do something environmentally responsible as well, they said.
They installed a driveway of ``permeable pavement.'' It is not the concrete or asphalt many might think of when hearing the word ``pavement,'' where water can't percolate down into the ground through those substances.
``Permeable pavement'' can be porous enough to allow rainwater to soak through while still maintaining a fairly hard surface.
Dalme and Smith chose to put in a driveway and walkways made of ``permeable pavement.'' First, they laid down a layer of sand, then small gravel and then crushed limestone. All that is contained by small concrete blocks that look a little like a traditional curb.
Smith said ``our idea was to keep the driveway and walkways as close to what they were originally as we could. So we believed dirt or gravel, and bricks, would be more appropriate than concrete.''
The couple bought the house in October 1999. They remodeled the house and fixed the driveway first.
``The driveway is probably the cheapest thing we did,'' Smith said. ``We spent about $3,600 on materials and $500 on labor. That's nothing compared to what we've spent redoing the house.''
Their idea for the driveway came after Dalme saw some houses in New Orleans with pavement like she wanted.
``We were not really conscious of how environmentally friendly this was,'' she said. ``It was just something we wanted to do. It's really nice because we can wash cars or whatever, and the water just sinks right in.''
Stoker said ``if the driveway and sidewalks were concrete, rainwater would run off and carry oil, or gas or bug spray'' or other contaminants that might be on the surface of concrete or asphalt.
Instead, polluted runoff is filtered by flowing through the surrounding grass or percolates down into the ground.
Stoker said another common variation is to use brick or patterned concrete blocks with sand filling in the gaps and allowing the water to drain down.
``In most cases, it is less expensive than concrete and it certainly doesn't produce as much heat'' in the summertime, Stoker said. ``It does require some occasional maintenance, like smoothing out the rocks. But a driveway is not going to have a lot of traffic'' and should not require much work, Stoker said.
Some contractors are using a new type of asphalt that is not as thick and has gaps that allow water to run through it, but it is fairly expensive, Stoker said.
A very visible construction site on the banks of the Cane River that was allowing muddy water to flow into the waterway is also being used to promote new ideas, Stoker said.
Agents divided the sloping land into four segments and they are using three different erosion control techniques; one spot is left alone to demonstrate what happens when nothing is done.
In one set of small gullies that was forming as the water ran off the higher land, agents put down biodegradable fiber mats made of vegetation.
In the next set of gullies, mounds of ground-up tires in chip form have been placed to slow down the water and allow silt to build up behind them.
In the third plot, agents dropped heavy composted material -- decomposing leaves and other organic materials.
All three are holding back dirt while the few control gullies continue to erode. And Cane River is cleaner.
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