The roof of the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y., features a rainwater capture project to reuse hundreds of thousands of gallons of runoff. "We want to use this type of project to help promote sustainable efforts going forward, because at the end of the day sustainable means less costly," said Matt Driscoll, president and CEO of NYS Environmental Facilities Corp.
Syracuse (WSYR-TV) - Next time you head to the Carrier Dome you'll want to check out their latest improvement. The Dome's Rainwater capture project is up and running, including a fully interactive display. Laid out for all to see are the inner workings of the system, near Gate D of the Dome.
It's capturing hundreds of thousands of gallons of run off from the Dome roof, saving it from an aged, overwhelmed city stormwater system, that's been negatively impacting Onondaga Lake for years. Former Syracuse Mayor Matt Driscoll, now the President and CEO of NYS Environmental Facilities Corporation says, “We want to use this type of project to help promote sustainable efforts going forward, because at the end of the day sustainable means less costly."
The other thing that has people so excited about the project, fueled by a state grant of $1.3 million dollars, is the educational piece of it. A touch screen display outside the project room details its full workings. If you miss that it's hard to ignore all the information and markings in the bathrooms on the Northside of the dome about the project. The captured run off is enough to be used for flushing toilets and urinals in half the Dome's restrooms. They see this project as a real chance to educate people about benefits of this type of green effort.
Two local schools are already signed up to check it out, with hopes of more to come. Pete Sala, the Dome Manager, says, "We're going to walk through it, we'll take them outside show them where the tanks are in the ground we'll basically follow the pipes into the building, take them through the restrooms, take them through this process." That winter storm we got last week was really the perfect test for this system with all the snowmelt that was coming off the roof down into the two giant holding tanks below the pavement outside Gate D of the Dome. Sala says, “It's doing what it's supposed to. When it needs to do certain things, switch over from city water to rain water the system works great. We're very, very pleased." Bruce Wanlass, the Principal Engineer for C&S Companies tells NewsChannel 9, "To see it completed and done, down to the last bit of graphics on the glass, its very exciting because its here and its something you can touch and look at and feel." You be able to see purple pipes in the ceiling of the building on the Northside that are carrying the captured run-off water. In the bathrooms you'll be able to notice it in the toilets and urinals because the water will have a blue coloring.