Shortly after moving into the neighborhood, a homeowner noticed that a nearby neighbor had made a shocking change to their lawn.
“Neighbor around the corner from me has had [dirt] added and seeded in their drainage ditch,” they shared on Reddit recently, highlighting the logistical concerns during heavy rainstorms. “At my old house I was glad for deep ditches a few times during crazy storms, where the sewer couldn’t take water fast enough.”
Photo Credit: Reddit
Photo Credit: Reddit
Commenters were quick to agree with the original poster, even noting that this was likely done against the municipality’s wishes.
“Looks like they performed illegal fill work with a municipal right of way (the hydrant is usually a good indicator of the right of way limit),” one commenter noted. “Call [your] local Municipality and report them.”
“This absolutely needs to be reported to the municipality’s Public Works Director and/or Code Enforcement Officer ASAP,” said another commenter, who works for a municipal public works department. “Someone in your community could get a lot of misdirected water that’ll do damage in the next huge storm.”
Drainage issues — especially avoidable ones resulting from poorly informed decisions like this one — can do severe damage to nearby neighbors’ properties and homes during severe weather. As torrential rainfall becomes more common and widespread due to the overheating of our planet, homeowners must install and maintain effective landscaping and drainage measures.
For those with nonexistent drainage, projects like a French drain installation can help deal with flooding in yards. In larger-scale settings, some urban areas are even becoming “sponge cities,” which incorporate infrastructure like extensive parks and bodies of water to help stave off flooding.
In this Redditor’s case, reporting this project to the city will likely quell the concern, and commenters are anxious to know the results when they do.
“Please fill us in later after the city comes out,” one commenter said. “We want to know what happens!”
Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more and waste less, and don’t miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
