High School Stormwater Reuse Project

A partnership was developed amongst the City of Forest Lake; Rice Creek Watershed District; the Minnesota Department of Health; Forest Lake Area Schools; Forest Lake High School environmental, biology, and agriculture faculty; and the student-led environmental club. Their commitment to environmental protection, education, and sustainability brought unique perspectives to this project that received more than $500,000 from the Board of Water and Soil Resources Clean Water Fund.

The first phase at Forest Lake High School included a new stormwater basin to filter and treat stormwater. The basin was converted to a wet pond to store water and receive runoff from a drainage area of 19.9 acres, including 14.3 acres of impervious surfaces. In order to irrigate approximately 12 acres of athletic fields, this pond provides a storage volume for the existing irrigation system. Stormwater pond retrofits and a new irrigation infrastructure helps reduce the high school’s potable groundwater usage by more than 4 million gallons per year.

Through science and technology curriculum development, teachers and students will monitor water used compared to stormwater harvested for irrigation.