1. 1 What is Green Infrastructure and How Does It Reduce Wet Weather Issues? Making natural systems work for us: using soil and vegetation - rather than concrete and pipe, to manage stormwater volume, rate, and water quality impacts Prepared by: Prepared for: Onondaga County, New York October 2008

2. 2 Combined Sewer Interceptor Sewer to Wastewater Treatment Facility Sanitary Sewer Creek Dry Weather Flow During dry weather, sanitary flows are collected in combined sewers for treatment at Metro Catch Basin

3. 3 During wet weather, inflows exceed the collection system’s capacity and trigger a CSO Combined Sewer Interceptor Sewer to Wastewater Treatment Facility Sanitary Sewer Creek Catch Basin Combined Sewer Overflow Stormwater Runoff Roof Leaders

4. 4 Green solutions intercept and reduce stormwater flows to sewers, providing storage, infiltration, and treatment Vegetated Swale Combined Sewer Interceptor Sewer to Wastewater Treatment Facility Sanitary Sewer Creek Dry Weather Flow Porous Roadway Stormwater Runoff Roof Leader

5. 5 Green infrastructure reduces…. Flooding Erosion Stormwater runoff volume Stormwater pollutant loadings CSOs Gray infrastructure operation, maintenance, energy and treatment costs

6. 6 Green Infrastructure Technologies and Example Applications Porous pavement  Parking lots  Roadways  Sidewalks  Basketball courts Bioretention/vegetated infiltration  Rain Gardens  Vegetated curb extensions  Tree trenches  Planter boxes  Cisterns for capture/re-use  Vegetated roofs Green streets  Combinations of the above

7. 7 Porous Pavement Parking Lot 7

8. 8 Porous Pavement Asphalt Roadway Porous Pavement Paver Roadway 8

9. 9 Porous Pavement sidewalk basketball court

10. 10 Rain Garden (bioretention/vegetative infiltration) 10

11. 11 Vegetated Curb Extension – Plan View

12. 12 Vegetated Curb Extension – Profile View 12

13. 13 Tree Trench

14. 14 Tree Trenches along Street

15. 15 Planter Box 15

16. 16 Cistern for Capture/Re-use 16

17. 17 Vegetated Roof

18. 18 Vegetated Roof under construction finished roof

19. 19 Green Streets…putting it all together Portland State University Street Planters

20. Image Source: A Civic Vision for the Central Delaware Green Streets…putting it all together ~ “Catch the Rain” 20

21. 21 Green Infrastructure improves: Water quality Air quality Neighborhood aesthetics Habitat and biodiversity Recreational and transportation opportunities Property values Community health and vitality

22. 22 DEC Promoting GI Approach Stormwater Best Management Practices (BMPs) CSO Long Term Control Plans Order on Consent Environmental Benefit Projects

23. 23 Funding Sources Environmental Benefit Projects Water Quality Improvement Projects (WQIP) US Forestry Grants Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF)

24. 24 Demonstration Projects GI projects should be demonstration projects »Cost / Benefit compared to gray »Actual stormwater retention/detention »Operation and Maintenance costs »Other benefits/problems

25. 25 Data Collection Data collection to estimate transpiration rates, percent removal of contaminates, infiltration rates, and estimated volume reduction in runoff may include – quality of the stormwater influent and effluent meterological data/ rainfall data (rain gauges) groundwater and surfacewater levels water flow monitoring devices soil pH and nutrient levels observed flora and fauna

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