Over the last decade the EPA has required cities to change the way they treat their sewer and storm water before releasing it back into the water. Cities are faced with millions of dollars in improvements to comply. Green Infrastructure as part of the solution has been around since the 1990’s. Only recently though has the EPA actively promoted it and aggressively supported its implementation.
I’m familiar with the concept of Green Infrastructure and totally committed to its value. For those of you unfamiliar with GI, here’s a good definition from Annie Donovan of the Skoll World Forum. Green infrastructure generally refers to the use of the natural landscape instead of engineered structures. Applied to stormwater management, GI can be defined as “solutions that manage stormwater onsite through installation of permeable pavement, green roofs, parks, wetland, roadside plantings, rain barrels, and other mechanisms that enhance natural hydrologic functions, such as infiltration into soil and evaporation into the air.
Traditional, or “gray,” stormwater management systems consist of pipes, storm drains, and concrete storage tanks. … These systems are expensive to construct and maintain. The high cost of construction is one challenge with gray infrastructure; another is water quality.
As background to the Gray/Green discussion, it’s important to understand how stormwater is/has been typically handled and why the EPA is requiring so many cities to upgrade their systems. First, you need to know what Gray Infrastructure is. Gray is the traditional way of handling water. Gray is pipes, storm drains, tunnels and storage tanks that direct water to a central location for treatment. Gray is designed to transport water that comes into the system, move it to the central location, clean it up and discharge it.
When older communities like Euclid were built they installed CSOs (Combined Sewer Overflows) and SSOs (Sanitary Sewer Overflows). The pipes led to a treatment plant that then discharged the ‘clean’ water. During periods of heavy rain, pipes overflowed and rather than the typical 3 treatments before discharge, the overflows were treated only once. You can learn more about CSOs and SSOs at the EPA Municipal Stormwater page.
In April, 2011, the EPA came out with A Strategic Agenda to Protect Waters and Build More Livable Communities Through Green Infrastructure. The opening paragraphs illustrate the agency’s commitment to GI. “Supporting the work of local communities to improve their environment, protect public health and build greener, more economically vibrant communities is a key Administration priority. Green infrastructure (GI), protecting and restoring natural landscape features and using natural systems (or systems engineered to mimic natural processes) to manage rain water as a resource, is a win-win-win approach and a fundamental component of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) sustainable community efforts. By helping urban communities manage stormwater, while also providing additional benefits such as increased recreational space and improved pedestrian safety, communities can be made both more attractive and livable.
EPA supports expanded use of green infrastructure to protect and restore waters while creating more environmentally and economically sustainable communities. This Strategic Agenda to Protect Waters and Build More Livable Communities Through Green Infrastructure outlines key near-term activities to help make green infrastructure an available tool for meeting Clean Water Act requirements in sewer permitting and plans, enforcement orders and consent decrees, and other areas. The Agenda is the product of a cross-EPA effort and serves to both update the 2008 Action Strategy entitled “Managing Wet Weather with Green Infrastructure,” as well as to coordinate with a range of EPA and other Federal programs (interagency (HUD/DOT/EPA) Partnership for Sustainable Communities, Brownfields, Urban Waters, Climate Showcase Communities, Environmental Justice Showcase Communities, Greening America’s Capitals, etc.), in fostering on-the-ground GI implementation.”
The EPA’s page Green Infrastructure is probably the best, most complete place to start in understanding Green Infrastructure. The site is pretty exhaustive in its coverage of and support for GI and requires frequent visits to digest all the information available. It covers Basics of GI e.g. Downspout Disconnect, Rainwater Harvesting, Rain Gardens and more. It provides Case Studies and Research. Tools is where I found a good read, The Economic Benefits of Green Infrastructure which claims, “Green infrastructure can often provide more benefits at lesser cost than single-purpose gray infrastructure.”
Anyone interested in other Resources for better understanding the value of incorporating Green Infrastructure into Gray Plans can explore:
I’m familiar with the concept of Green Infrastructure and totally committed to its value. For those of you unfamiliar with GI, here’s a good definition from Annie Donovan of the Skoll World Forum. Green infrastructure generally refers to the use of the natural landscape instead of engineered structures. Applied to stormwater management, GI can be defined as “solutions that manage stormwater onsite through installation of permeable pavement, green roofs, parks, wetland, roadside plantings, rain barrels, and other mechanisms that enhance natural hydrologic functions, such as infiltration into soil and evaporation into the air.
Traditional, or “gray,” stormwater management systems consist of pipes, storm drains, and concrete storage tanks. … These systems are expensive to construct and maintain. The high cost of construction is one challenge with gray infrastructure; another is water quality.
As background to the Gray/Green discussion, it’s important to understand how stormwater is/has been typically handled and why the EPA is requiring so many cities to upgrade their systems. First, you need to know what Gray Infrastructure is. Gray is the traditional way of handling water. Gray is pipes, storm drains, tunnels and storage tanks that direct water to a central location for treatment. Gray is designed to transport water that comes into the system, move it to the central location, clean it up and discharge it.
When older communities like Euclid were built they installed CSOs (Combined Sewer Overflows) and SSOs (Sanitary Sewer Overflows). The pipes led to a treatment plant that then discharged the ‘clean’ water. During periods of heavy rain, pipes overflowed and rather than the typical 3 treatments before discharge, the overflows were treated only once. You can learn more about CSOs and SSOs at the EPA Municipal Stormwater page.
In April, 2011, the EPA came out with A Strategic Agenda to Protect Waters and Build More Livable Communities Through Green Infrastructure. The opening paragraphs illustrate the agency’s commitment to GI. “Supporting the work of local communities to improve their environment, protect public health and build greener, more economically vibrant communities is a key Administration priority. Green infrastructure (GI), protecting and restoring natural landscape features and using natural systems (or systems engineered to mimic natural processes) to manage rain water as a resource, is a win-win-win approach and a fundamental component of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) sustainable community efforts. By helping urban communities manage stormwater, while also providing additional benefits such as increased recreational space and improved pedestrian safety, communities can be made both more attractive and livable.
EPA supports expanded use of green infrastructure to protect and restore waters while creating more environmentally and economically sustainable communities. This Strategic Agenda to Protect Waters and Build More Livable Communities Through Green Infrastructure outlines key near-term activities to help make green infrastructure an available tool for meeting Clean Water Act requirements in sewer permitting and plans, enforcement orders and consent decrees, and other areas. The Agenda is the product of a cross-EPA effort and serves to both update the 2008 Action Strategy entitled “Managing Wet Weather with Green Infrastructure,” as well as to coordinate with a range of EPA and other Federal programs (interagency (HUD/DOT/EPA) Partnership for Sustainable Communities, Brownfields, Urban Waters, Climate Showcase Communities, Environmental Justice Showcase Communities, Greening America’s Capitals, etc.), in fostering on-the-ground GI implementation.”
The EPA’s page Green Infrastructure is probably the best, most complete place to start in understanding Green Infrastructure. The site is pretty exhaustive in its coverage of and support for GI and requires frequent visits to digest all the information available. It covers Basics of GI e.g. Downspout Disconnect, Rainwater Harvesting, Rain Gardens and more. It provides Case Studies and Research. Tools is where I found a good read, The Economic Benefits of Green Infrastructure which claims, “Green infrastructure can often provide more benefits at lesser cost than single-purpose gray infrastructure.”
Anyone interested in other Resources for better understanding the value of incorporating Green Infrastructure into Gray Plans can explore:
- The American Soc of Landscape Architects (ASLA): Banking on Green – Written in April, 2012 this report focuses on how Green Infrastructure saves municipalities money and provides economic benefits.
- NC State Univ Coop Extension: Forests and Green Infrastructure
- NC State Univ Coop Extension: Forests and Green Infrastructure
- Philadelphia PA: A Triple Bottom Line Assessment of Traditional and Green Infrastructure Options for Controlling CSO Events in Philadelphia's Watersheds
- Cincinnati OH: The Lick Run Watershed which posed the intriguing question, What if a sewer project could be more than just a sewer project? And then went on to make it so.
- Onondaga County (Syracuse) NY: Save the Rain is an ongoing strategy that began in Syracuse and is expanding to outlying communities.
- Portland OR: Grey To Green. Portland has always been ahead of the curve in its implementation of sustainable practices.
Smart cities around the country are embracing Green Infrastructure for its economic, social and environmental benefits. The EPA is encouraging and assisting their efforts.
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