Clean Water … Green City

Blending interests of land and water

Howard M. Neukrug, PEDirector, Office of Watersheds

A new approachfor SUSTAINBLE Cities!!

MSU Green Roof Research Program (courtesy Old House Journal)

Innovations

Innovative where needed?

Watersquares

• Technically feasible• Cost beneficial,• Sustainable and adaptive,• Supportive of the goals of the:

• Clean Water Act• Safe Drinking Water Act• Clean Air Act• Urban Sustainability

Green infrastructure is:

Re-defining our Industry

• Environmental Protection• Resource Managers• Watershed Protection• Leaders in Sustainable Design• Regional partners• Community based collaboration• Adapting the urban landscape

Linking land and water

Land Water

Infrastructure

Community

Philadelphia Water Department Office of Watersheds

• An integrated utility:• Drinking Water• Wastewater• Stormwater

• A new integrated approach:• Land• Waterways• Infrastructure• Community

• Unite the City with its water

environment

• Create a green legacy for

future generations

• Incorporate a balance

between ecology,

economics and equity

Clean Water … Green City

How to Manage Stormwater

Old Approach –

Collect it and pipe it away quickly!

How to Manage StormwaterNew Approach –

Temporarily hold it on site to allow it to:InfiltrateEvaporateBe Reused

GreenGrey Infrastructure Solutions

Sustainable Site Design

Courtesy of WRT and PennPraxis

Courtesy of WRT and PennPraxis

Planning for land can improve our water

Planning for our water can improve our land

Civic Vision for the Central Delaware

Why is Green Infrastructure Critical to Philadelphia?

• Shrinking cities• Old infrastructure• Continuing the old approach is unsustainable• Large percentage of low income households• Community renewal• Environmental justice• Urban waters and corridors, parks, open space,

The old approach to managing water

Crooked Streams are a menace to life and crops…

In addition, much of the dirt is loosened and later scoured out by the water …which rushes swiftly through the straightened channel

There are significant issues ahead of us for improving the water environment

PLUS: LTCPU, 308 letter, state COA, new permits

Overflow Compliance Costs

Washington Pittsburgh Philly

Population (million) 2 0.850 2

Service Area (mi2) 725 200 286

CSO Area (mi2) 19.5 60 64

Number of CSOs 53 > 300 166

Overflow Volume

(BG/Yr)

2.5 14 16

Compliance Costs $ 2.65 Billion $2 - $3 Billion $ BILLIONS

Our Approach for investing in CSO reductions

• Keep stormwater out of the sewer

• Spend capital dollars above the ground, not below it

• Leverage other sources of money

• Restore the urban waterways

• Recognize that for PWD to be a sustainable utility, our city must be sustainable

• Solve multiple problems at once

The Public is equally interested in all things water

Streamflow and LivingResources, 12%

Quality of Life, 12%

Flooding, 11%

Stream Corridors, 11%

Stewardship, 11%

Pollutant Loads, 10%

Stream Habitat and AquaticLife, 9%

Water Quality, 9%

Coordination, 8%

Stream Channels and Banks,7%

Total Benefits of Green City, Clean Waters over the next 40 years

$-

$500,000,000

$1,000,000,000

$1,500,000,000

$2,000,000,000

$2,500,000,000

1

Reduction in Construction-Related Disruptions (0.2%)

Carbon Footprint Reduction(0.6%)

Energy Savings (1.0%)

Avoided Social Costs fromGreen Jobs (3.7%)

Air Quality (4.6%)

Water Quality and Habitat(14.5%)

Property Value Added (18%)

Recreation (22%)

Heat Stress MortalityReduction (35%)

Our Approach….

• Capture the first inch of each storm

• For every impervious acre “greened” we will reduce about 1 Million gallons of runoff per year

• Achieve continuous improvement for water quality

Green Infrastructure = Continuous Improvement

55%

60%

65%

70%

75%

80%

85%

0 5 10 15 20Time

Performan

ce

Centralized Storage Green InfrastructureGreen/Transmission/Treatment

Our Approach….

• Capture the first inch of each storm

• For every impervious acre “greened” we will reduce about 1 Million gallons of runoff per year

• Achieve continuous improvement for water quality

• The more change that occurs through normal urban renewal, the less it will cost

Philadelphia’s 2006 Stormwater Regs have already reduced runoff by (almost) 1 BG per year

Our Approach….

• Capture the first inch of each storm

• For every impervious acre “greened” we will reduce about 1 Million gallons of runoff per year

• Achieve continuous improvement for water quality

• The more change that occurs through normal urban renewal, the less it will cost

• Use incentives to increase the rate of change

Creating an impervious cover rate charge

How our Rate Payer’s money will be invested

• $ 270 Wet Weather Treatment Plant Upgrade

How our Rate Payer’s money will be invested

• $ 270 Wet Weather Treatment Plant Upgrade

• $ 310 million Stream Corridor Restoration and

Preservation

“Fishable, Swimmable, safe, attractive and accessible”

Before and After restoration of an interceptor

Proposed Stream Corridor and Preservation Sites

How our Rate Payer’s money will be invested

• $ 270 Wet Weather Treatment Plant Upgrade

• $ 310 million Stream Corridor Restoration and

Preservation

• $1020 million Green Stormwater Infrastructure

Vision: “Philly’s 8 green programs to manage every acre

of imperviousness”

Philly’s 8 green programs

Putting it all together

To rebuild our City

Overwhelming Public Support

“I love the idea! Please give us a greener Philadelphia. It would make us healthier and happier all around.”

- Response to the question, “Are you in favor of greening?” (PWD “Green Neighborhoods through Green Streets Survey.”)

“I love the idea! Please give us a greener Philadelphia. It would make us healthier and happier all around.”

- Response to the question, “Are you in favor of greening?” (PWD “Green Neighborhoods through Green Streets Survey.”)

Imagine if we invested in

Philadelphia’sgreen

infrastructure …

Belmont Intake Riparian Restoration Project

Schuylkill River

BEFORE

AFTER

Washington Avenue

Port Richmond Rail Yards and Lehigh Viaduct

Frankford Avenue

Pier 70 Early Action

Penn Treaty Park

Spring Garden Street

Girard Interchange Connection

Clean Water Green City = Urban Waters Program?

• Based on Achieving Water Quality Goals• Improves public health, the environment and

quality of life and builds community capacity• Makes environmental stewardship relevant to

new sectors of society• Green jobs and volunteerism• Sustainable over generations• Restores the urban waterways and the

communities that surround them

Working in partnership

• EPA - OW, OECA, OWOW, ORD, smart growth, green jobs, environmental justice, brownfields and land revitalization, smart growth, Region 3

• ACE, HUD, Commerce, US Forest Service, National Park Service, USDA

Clean Water … Green City

Credit: Maurer, City of LinzQuestions???Questions???