At various locations on campus, stormwater is captured and stored in large cisterns, which can be used for irrigation and flushing toilets. At the FedEx Global Education Center, a 54,000 gallon underground cistern stores rainwater from the roofs of the Center and nearby buildings. The stored water is used to flush toilets in the building and irrigate the plantings outside. A large cistern has also been installed next to Hooker Fields. In the future, cisterns will be installed at the North Carolina Botanical Gardens Education Center and at the intersection of the Campus Y, Gerrard Hall and Hanes Hall.

Infiltration beds, areas where stormwater filters through gravel layers, help recharge groundwater and maintain stream flow during dry weather. At UNC, infiltration beds are found under the new football practice field (Navy Field), under Ehringhaus Field, and under Hooker Field. The infiltration bed at Hooker Field can hold up to 500,000 gallons of water that is collected from the roofs of the School of Government and the indoor track. A gravel infiltration bed also lies under the parking lot of the new Administrative Office Building on Airport Drive. 

Additionally, large stone planters, able to accommodate trees and absorb stormwater, have been installed on the brick plaza in front of the Student Union and Lenoir Dining Hall.